Fife And Davis Team Up To Win First Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship

Royce Davis (left) and Flannagan Fife of the Fishers of Men team trail earned the Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship inaugural trophy after bringing in 26 pounds, 8 ounces on DeGray Lake out of Bismarck, Ark., Thursday. Royce and Fife will join the other Top 3 teams Friday in the bracket round of the Toyota Bonus Bucks Team Championship Classic Photo by Seigo Saito/Bassmaster

BISMARCK, Ark. — Fishers of Men teammates Flannagan Fife and Royce Davis made B.A.S.S. history Thursday by becoming the first team winners of the inaugural Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship today at DeGray Lake by bringing in a two-day total weight of 26 pounds, 8 ounces.

The Arkansas anglers topped a field of 155 two-man teams from a host of B.A.S.S.-sanctioned team trails across the country to earn the championship title along with the grand prize of a Nitro Z7 bass boat/Mercury Optimax 150 Pro XS outboard rig and the Livingston Lures Leader Award of $500. The national champions also received a traveling trophy to take back to their Fishers of Men team trail.

Thursday’s action concluded the team competition of this unique four-day tournament. Friday the six anglers from the Top 3 teams will fish individually for the final two days of competition. The individual Bassmaster Team Trail champion qualifies for the final 2015 GEICO Bassmaster Classic berth and receives a Skeeter FX20/Yamaha 250 outboard rig to run in the Classic.

Fife and Davis spent both days cranking the shallows to earn the nine bass they caught Thrursday. Although the weather changed from sunshine yesterday to clouds today, Fife thought their pattern stayed about the same.

“We had a lot of lulls when we weren’t getting bites, and we would try to make adjustments. But, we still wouldn’t get bit, so we went right back to cranking,” he said.

The team tried about 30 spots during the two competition days, but only four of their spots kept producing fish. Even though they will be fishing the next two days, Fife and Davis didn’t save any spots for the next round.

“We went all out (to win),” Fife said. “Most of our spots are isolated, and we didn’t have a lot of them. To get five bites we had to fish everything and lean on it hard. I don’t know if there is anything left there or not.”

Fishers of Men anglers Brandon Gladish and Aaric Correll moved into second place with 23-13 and will also fish in the bracket round starting Friday. The weather change caused their fish to go deeper, so they had to make some adjustments to catch a limit weighing 12-8 today.

Gladish said they used “three or four different baits,” while keying on largemouth bass the first two days and are using tactics totally different than what they fish back home in Indiana. Since they will be fishing against each other Friday, they will have to share their most productive spot. “There are a lot of fish there, so we should be in good shape,” Gladish said.

Day 1 leaders Brandon Gray and Todd Massey stumbled today and caught only four keepers weighing 8-14. However, they made the bracket cut by finishing in third place with 23 pounds overall.

“The cloud cover really hurt our fish,” Massey said. “We just couldn’t get anything really good going. We had four keeper bites today and fished clean. We did catch a short fish which was probably a quarter of an inch short in the last 15 minutes, but it might have moved us up only one place. We just couldn’t get the bites.”

The North Carolina anglers from the Anglers Choice circuit keyed on one area both days. “We bounced around and tried a few other areas but went back to that one area we have really been focusing on and lived or died there,” Massey said.

Hosting the tournament is the DeGray Lake Resort State Park. Launches and weigh-ins for Friday and Saturday will be held at Caddo Bend in DeGray Lake Resort State Park, Bismarck, Ark.

2014 Bassmaster Team Championship Title Sponsor: Toyota Bonus Bucks

2014 Bassmaster Team Championship Official Sponsors: Mercury, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha

2014 Bassmaster Team Championship Supporting Sponsors: Booyah, Diet Mountain Dew, Livingston Lures

About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 500,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2), social media programs and events. For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series presented by Allstate, Old Milwaukee B.A.S.S. Nation events, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, Bassmaster High School Series presented by Carhartt, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro.

Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship
12/10/2014 – 12/11/2014 Degray Lake – Degray Lake Resort – Bismarck, AR
STANDINGS  BOATER DAY   2
Today’s Activity Accumulative
Name #Fish #Live Lbs-Oz #Fish #Live Lbs-Oz
1 Flannagan Fife – Royce Davis Fishers of Men 5 5 13- 7 9 9 26- 8
2 Brandon Gladish – Aaric Correll Fishers of Men 5 5 12- 8 10 10 23-13
3 Brandon Gray – Todd Massey Anglers Choice 4 4 8-14 9 9 23- 0
4 Jon Griffith – John Stewart Jr Total Bass Addicts 5 4 12- 8 10 9 22- 4
5 John Carnes – Kelly Dorman NTBA 5 5 10- 6 10 10 21- 7
6 Jake Boomer – Jason Bryan Northwest Bass 5 5 11-11 10 10 21- 4
7 Josh Busby – David Mccormick Joe Bass Team Trail 5 5 10- 8 10 10 21- 4
8 Justin Kerr – John Weisfuss Ultimate Team Tour 4 4 8- 9 9 9 19- 9
9 Josh Wray – Kavan Maybee Joe Bass Team Trail 5 5 9- 9 10 10 19- 7
10 Don Ingram – Ronnie Grant NTBA 4 4 11- 2 9 9 18- 6
11 Phillip VanDerVeer – Damien McMahon Anglers Choice 5 5 8- 5 10 10 18- 4
12 Cledas Manuel – Dave Austin Fishers of Men 4 4 10- 5 9 9 17-11
13 Wayne Dixon – Jared Allen Fishers of Men 2 2 4-14 7 7 17- 7
14 Eran Mccormick – Mark Randolph AC Tournament Trail 3 3 9-12 6 6 17- 1
15 Randall Hutson – Matthew Beckler Ozark Mountain Team Trail 5 4 8- 0 10 9 16-14
16 Rogne Brown – Cary Dotson Chattanooga Bass Association 3 3 7- 4 8 8 16-12
17 Josh Moore – Keith Butler TN Valley Team Champ Series 4 4 6-11 9 9 15-13
18 Brian Tidwell – Michael Tidwell Fishers of Men 5 5 9- 7 10 10 15- 7
19 Kevin Brumfield – Rick Pullen Fishers of Men 5 5 5-15 10 10 15- 5
20 Charles Phillips – Mike Norwood McNider Marine Iron Man 2 2 6- 3 6 6 14-13
21 Daniel Morgan – Greg Shaver Chattanooga Bass Association 4 4 5-11 9 8 14- 8
22 Chris Parker – Abe Kalechman CT BN Team Trail 5 5 8- 1 8 8 14- 2
23 Travis Lilly – Buster Lilly Jr Morristown Marine 3 3 5- 2 8 8 13-13
24 Todd Walters – Jason Threadgill Carolina Bass Challenge 5 5 6-15 10 10 13-13
25 Jeremy Lawyer – Joe Waggoner Ozark Mtn Team Trail 2 2 4- 6 6 6 13-12
26 Steve Miracle – Mike Wolfenbarger Tom’s Marine Team Trail 5 5 6-14 10 10 13- 0
27 Alan Fluharty – Chad Brinegar WV BN Team Trail 3 3 5-10 5 5 12-15
28 Martin Elshout – Mark Price Fishers of Men 1 1 2- 4 6 6 12-14
29 William Davis – Tim Cummings Alabama Bass Trail 1 1 2-10 6 6 12-14
30 Forrest Webb – Chad Harvey Allstar Bass Fishing Tournaments 4 4 6- 1 9 9 12-14
31 Steve Czerniski – Dean Kreuzer Total Bass Addicts 2 2 2- 2 7 7 12-10
32 Jeff Mason – Lyle Dalby Allstar Bass Fishing Tournaments 5 5 7-11 8 8 12- 8
33 Gene Parker – Stan Gunter Carolina Bass Challenge 4 4 6- 8 7 7 12- 8
34 Eric Grigg – Marc Grigg Carolina Bass Challenge 2 2 4-11 6 6 12- 7
35 Mark Crutcher – Ken Mah US Anglers Choice 5 5 9- 8 7 7 12- 6
36 Kyle Dorsett – Allen Yarborough Big Bucks Buddy Trail 4 4 8- 6 6 6 12- 5
37 Rusty Darnell – Tim Newberry Joe Bass Team Trail 5 5 6- 1 10 10 12- 4
38 Tyler Ward – Corey Gaffney Renegade Bass 4 4 5-10 9 9 11-12
39 Wayne Vaughan Jr – Mitch Blankenship James River Priority 4 4 4-11 9 9 11-11
40 Kerry Betz – James Hammersley AC Tournament Trail 2 2 4- 3 5 5 11-10
41 Thomas Brewer – Michael Brewer Alabama Bass Trail 2 2 2- 7 6 6 11- 9
42 Jamie Smith – Michael Rains Alabama Bass Trail 4 4 10- 1 5 5 11- 5
43 Dean Yamagata – Ryan Yamagata Ultimate Team Tour 2 2 1-15 6 6 11- 5
44 James Wall III – Jimmy Wall Jr Carolina Bass Challenge 1 1 2-11 5 5 11- 4
45 Tom Goins Sr – TJ Goins Jr Fishers of Men 3 3 3- 8 8 8 11- 4
46 Casey Whitehead – John Cochran Chattanooga Bass Association 4 4 7- 4 6 6 10-14
47 Keith Estes – Donnie Estes James River Priority 3 3 6- 8 6 6 10-14
48 Shane Lineberger – Jerry Lineberger Carolina Bass Challenge 2 2 4- 9 7 7 10-13
49 Tom McGovern – Michael Zaccagnini Joe Bass Team Trail 5 4 10-12 5 4 10-12
50 Al Gagliarducci – Todd Winters MA BN – Classic Rumble 5 5 5-13 10 10 10-12
51 Brent Algeo – Jim Copeland Ozark Mtn Team Trail 4 4 8- 0 5 5 10- 5
52 Aaron Hochstedler – Rodney Ellis IN BN Team Trail 4 4 3-14 7 7 10- 5
53 Pete Henry – Shane Gray Media Bass Teams 3 3 5- 6 7 7 10- 5
54 J.C. Goulet – Pierre Hugue Lussier Renegade Bass 4 4 10- 3 4 4 10- 3
55 Blake Felix – Chris Bridges Joe Bass Team Trail 4 4 4- 5 9 9 10- 3
56 Robert Silva – Garret Seppala NH BN Team Trail 3 3 4- 3 5 5 10- 2
57 Mike Layton – Scooter Lilley Anglers Choice 4 4 7- 8 6 6 10- 0
58 Tony McCraw – Penny McCraw Fishers of Men 5 5 5- 7 9 9 9-14
59 Raymond Hogge – Kevin Whitehurst James River Priority Team Trail 5 5 5- 7 8 8 9- 7
60 Mike Hair – Rodney Pope Fishers of Men 4 4 6- 7 5 5 8-15
61 Mike Crowther – Ray Arbesu Ultimate Team Tour 0 0 0- 0 5 5 8-11
62 Donald Tomlinson – Brady Bickers NTBA 3 3 4-12 7 7 8-10
63 David Caylor – Allen Hayes Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 5 5 8- 9
64 Soon Chul Lee – Robin Oh Top Stick 2 2 2- 4 7 7 8- 9
65 Rickie Knight – Randall Carter Airport Marine Team Trail 3 3 2-14 7 7 8- 5
66 Kenneth Vicchio – Greg McDavid Tom’s Marine 0 0 0- 0 4 4 8- 3
67 Bob Blumenstein – Eric Powley IL BN Team Trail 3 3 3- 7 7 7 7-14
68 Bill Gretten – Bob Walker AC Tournament Trail 1 1 1-15 3 3 7-12
69 Jeston Anderson – Robbie Robinson Alabama Bass Trail 3 3 2-13 8 8 7-12
70 Mel Hedrick Jr – Eduardo Trevino IL BN Team Trail 2 2 3- 2 6 5 7-12
71 Kyle Kempkers – Brett Haveman BBT Bass R Us Tournament Trail 1 1 1-10 3 3 7-10
72 Doug Schilling – Darin Lankford Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 4 4 7- 9
73 Dan Greenwood – Rick Landry NH BN Team Trail 2 2 7- 4 2 2 7- 4
74 Ray White – John Frye H & W Marine Trail 2 2 1-14 7 7 7- 3
75 Steve Ortiz – Dominic Ortiz Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 5 5 7- 2
76 Gary Love – Ricky Todd Carolina Bass Challenge 2 2 4- 4 3 3 7- 0
77 Nathan Hipps – Heath Barker Toms Marine Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 4 4 6-15
78 Shane Williams – Matt Gorum H&W Marine Trail 0 0 0- 0 4 4 6-13
79 Mark Pullen – Kent Simmons Top Stick Tour 2 2 4- 2 3 3 6-12
80 Matt McCoy – Dennis Davis IN BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 3 3 6- 6
81 Wesley Cashwell – Shane Doughtie Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 3 3 6- 5
82 Bill Mayo – Walton Roberts Alabama Bass Trail 3 3 4-13 4 4 6- 4
83 Steve Fincher – Chris Basinger Big Bucks Buddy Trail 0 0 0- 0 4 4 6- 3
84 Hadley Coan – Scott Keeling Alabama Bass Trail 2 2 2-15 5 5 6- 3
85 Luke Gritter – Ryan Lapine D&R Sports Center Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 5-14
86 Kenny Turpin – Travis Swift KS BN Team Trail 1 1 2- 3 3 3 5-14
87 Chris Rutland – Coby Carden Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 5- 5
88 Jimmy Mason – Lance Walker Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 3 3 5- 4
89 Clifford Bunch – Paul Napier Morristown Marine 0 0 0- 0 5 5 5- 3
90 Jim Sprague – Danny Sprague MI BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 5- 3
91 Shane Johnson – Trace Myers Ultimate BASS Team Tour 3 3 3-11 4 4 5- 3
92 Derrick Blake – Clint Harrison II Morristown Marine Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 5 5 5- 1
93 Donald Ensor – John Ensor Tom’s Marine Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 4 4 5- 1
94 Donnie Palmatory – Kyle Meyer Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4-15
95 Joe Johnson – Sidney Reeves Ultimate Team Tour 1 1 2- 3 2 2 4-15
96 Jason Kervin – Brady Ouellette Maine BN Man vs.Bass Team Trail 2 2 4-13 2 2 4-13
97 Mark Williams – Rick Sikes McNider Marina 2 2 3- 7 3 3 4-12
98 David Shields – Chip Crews IV Carolina Bass Challenge 4 4 4- 8 4 4 4- 8
99 Corey Sullivan – Bill Mckay Media Bass Teams 0 0 0- 0 3 3 4- 8
100 Brian Graham – Johney Weaver Jr Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4- 7
101 David Williams – Gerald Williams Carolina Bass Challenge 2 2 2- 7 4 4 4- 6
102 Scott Owens – Dave Davis Total Bass Addicts 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4- 3
102 Jarrod Sherwood – Jeff Wiederman MI BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4- 3
104 Shaun Ford – Jeff Elliott D&R Sports Center Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 3 3 4- 2
105 Edward Baker – Casey Baker Morristown Marine Team Trail 1 1 1- 4 2 2 4- 2
106 Kenneth Shumate – John Shumate Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 3 3 3-14
107 Ryan White – Stoney Kissick Jr NTBA 1 1 1- 6 2 2 3-12
108 Tommy Williams – Thomas Hardwick III Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 2 2 3- 8
109 Wilson Burton Jr – Jeffrey Power James River Priority 0 0 0- 0 3 3 3- 7
110 Kevin Fulmer – Mark Richardson Carolina Bass Challenge 2 2 3- 7 2 2 3- 7
111 Cody Davis – Tim Marshall Jr Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 1 1 3- 6
112 Gary Hill – Bob Robinson NTBA 0 0 0- 0 1 1 3- 2
113 Jason Sullivan – Peter Bayerle NTBA 1 1 1- 2 2 2 2-10
114 Zach Crider – David Crider Chattanooga Bass Association 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 9
114 Loy Galloway – Ed Larson Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 9
114 Ted Tinlin – Keith Kulow Iowa BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 9
117 Bobby Albert – Steve Lee Ozark Mtn Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 8
117 Jason Burchfield – Trevor Verge Ultimate Team Tour 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 8
119 Aaron Feeback – Matt Gorham D&R Sports Center Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 7
120 Jack Belt – J.D. Kyle AC Tournament Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 6
120 Daniel Howell – Russell Anderson Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 6
122 Ronnie Siress – Daniel York AC Tournament Trail 0 0 0- 0 2 2 2- 5
123 Chuck Camp – Mark Swink Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 4
124 Harley Davis – Lee Lands Jr TN Valley Team Champ Series 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 8
124 Justen Fain – Jim Brown Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 8
124 William Padgett Jr – Meredith Havird Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 8
127 Keith Speece – Myles Ireland Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 6
128 Glenn Bates – Bobby Hawes AC Tournament Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 5
129 Kevin Miller – Timothy Dube NH BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 4
129 Brad Webb – Danny Ferk James River Priority 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 4
131 Shawn Caskey – Lanny Walters NTBA 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 3
132 Johnny Johnson – Ron Carson Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1- 2
133 Ron Brown – Bobby Brown Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Ken Chapman – Rick Shannon TN BN Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Jeff Coble – David Wright Anglers Choice 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Patrick Currie – Ben Etheredge Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Keith Dees – Tommy Walley Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 James Edge – Jerry Roark Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Mike Ehlers – Tim McCue Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 David Gardner – Thomas Foster III Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Ron Gilbert – Allen Glidden Jr Maine BN Man vs. Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Mike Malone – Terry Blankenship Joe Bass Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 John McBride – Shaun Hall Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Kelly Pratt – Charles Rackley James River Priority 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Chris Richey – George Bost Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Michael Robinson – Bryan Heaberlin Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Chad Schroeder – Chase Schroeder McNider Marine Iron Man 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Andy Stinson – Tom Stinson Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Steve Strickland – Stephen McCord Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Stuart Wallace – Vernon Silver Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Robert Whitehurst – Anthony Withers James River Priority Team Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Jesse Wiggins – Jordan Wiggins Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Cole Winn – Lee Sawyer Jr Carolina Bass Challenge 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Chad Wise – Jeremy Stevens Fishers of Men 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
133 Jerry Wright – Brandon Staggs Alabama Bass Trail 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0
BIG BASS
Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz
1 Thomas Brewer – Michael Brewer Lawrenceburg, TN 5-11
2 Dan Greenwood – Rick Landry Hudson, NH 5- 0
TOTALS
Day # Fish # Live Lbs-Oz # Limits
1 394 392 698-12 40
2 277 274 493-11 21
CARHARTT BIG BASS of TOURNAMENT
Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz
1 Thomas Brewer – Michael Brewer Lawrenceburg, TN 5-11