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We’re Not Rich, We Just Love to Fish
If you stood at a boat ramp on the Harris Chain of Lakes in Central Florida and watched dozens of young Americans line-up to launch this week at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship, you could easily get the false perception these are a bunch of rich kids with pricey boats and tow vehicles.
Dig a little deeper and you’ll quickly realize, they’re actually fueled by Oreos, borrowed boats, and in some fortunate cases, a bit of financial support for tuition and travel expenses from the colleges and universities they represent.
“Nope, we’re not rich. This is my dad’s boat and he just lets me borrow it. I’ve had a job sackin’ groceries at Publix for years, and now I’m part of a pressure washing business to earn money,” says Jarrett Brown, a 22-year-old finance major from Montevallo State, who recently registered for the new Yamaha Power Pay cash bonus program for a chance to earn extra money.
Brown and teammate Tyler Harless, a biology major, who makes and sells Wicked Jigs to support his tournament fishing, say a bag of Oreos often serves as breakfast and lunch most days on the water, because they’re inexpensive and easy to eat.
The two earned their way to this week’s national championship with a victory earlier this year using a Carolina Rig and shaky head on Eufaula, Alabama, but say a topwater frog and a heavy Texas-rigged punch bait will be their main players this week around the Harris Chain’s abundant vegetation.
After the first two full days of practice, they rated the fishing as average – not super tough – but by no means easy. “We’re still trying to figure it out,” says Brown. “We’re required to be off the water by 4:30 this afternoon, but if they’d let us, we’d fish until dark,” adds Harless.
In that case, the bag of Oreos would likely serve as this evening’s dinner too.
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MLF Announces 2021 Abu Garcia College Fishing Schedule, Rules and Entry Dates
Top Two Teams at College Fishing National Championship Advance to the 2021 Toyota Series Championship to Compete as Pros for a Shot at Winning up to $235,000
BENTON, Ky. (Oct. 27, 2020) – Major League Fishing (MLF) announced today the schedule, rules, payouts and entry dates for the 2021 Abu Garcia College Fishing season, culminating in the Abu Garcia College Fishing presented by YETI National Championship presented by Lowrance on Grand Lake in Grove, OK, as well as advancement opportunities for anglers to compete as boaters and co-anglers in the 2021 Toyota Series Championship.
- Both members of the winning team and the runner-up at the 2021 College Fishing National Championship advance to the 2021 Toyota Series Championship to compete as pros for a shot at winning as much as $235,000, including a $35,000 Phoenix MLF BIG5 Bonus.
- Both members of the third-place team at the 2021 College Fishing National Championship advance to the 2021 Toyota Series Championship as co-anglers for a shot at winning a $33,500 Phoenix 518 Pro with a 115 HP Mercury.
- Top 10 teams from each 2021 qualifying event and the top 20 teams from the 2021 Abu Garcia College Fishing Open advance to the 2022 College Fishing National Championship, where the top two teams will advance to the 2022 Toyota Series Championship.
- Top performing schools will continue to be recognized with School of the Year titles awarded to the top overall school of the season, as well as the top school from each of five conferences. Schools earn points based on their top two teams in each tournament, with School of the Year being awarded to the school with the most points in each conference and overall at the end of the season.
Live weigh-in coverage will continue at every tournament with expanded national television coverage of the 2021 College Fishing National Championship on Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel and World Fishing Network. Anglers will also qualify for MLF College Faceoffs presented by Wiley X held in conjunction with select Abu Garcia College Fishing tournaments, where they will compete using the catch, weigh, immediate-release format.
“We are excited to welcome back familiar faces and meet new students during the 2021 season,” said Kevin Hunt, MLF BIG5 Senior Director of Tournament Operations, College and High School. “The chance to qualify for MLF College Faceoffs and advance to the Toyota Series Championship provide our anglers multiple avenues to hone their craft and work their way up through the MLF BIG5 circuits. With national livestream and television coverage, we are thrilled to provide college anglers the very best opportunities to elevate their schools, sponsors and personal brands. We expect 2021 to be our most successful college fishing season yet.”
Registration for teams wishing to compete in the 2021 Abu Garcia College Fishing tournaments will be accepted beginning at 8 a.m. CT December 14, 2020, for teams from school clubs represented in the 2020 College Fishing National Championship. All other teams may register beginning December 15, 2020. Teams can register at FLWFishing.com or by calling (270) 252-1000. The entry fee remains the same for 2021 – $75 per team for teams who enter prior to onsite check-in and $100 for teams who enter onsite.
Abu Garcia College Fishing teams may compete in both conference and nonconference tournaments, giving them the flexibility to construct a schedule that meets their needs. Each conference includes three regular-season qualifying tournaments. The top 10 teams from each regular-season tournament and the top 20 teams from the Abu Garcia College Fishing Open advance to the following year’s College Fishing National Championship. Additional teams qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats or 200 boats in the Open.
The 2021 Abu Garcia College Fishing presented by YETI National Championship presented by Lowrance is on Grand Lake in Grove, Oklahoma, March 3-5, and is hosted by the Grove Convention and Tourism Bureau and the City of Grove. Held in conjunction with REDCREST, the 2021 championship will provide unique networking opportunities for college anglers, Bass Pro Tour pros and potential sponsors.
Complete rules for the 2020 Abu Garcia College Fishing program can be found online at FLWFishing.com.
For complete details and updated information, visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow Abu Garcia College Fishing on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
Abu Garcia College Fishing Open
Tue-Wed TBA
Mar 30-31
Central Conference
Friday Table Rock: Table Rock State Park Marina
Mar 26 Branson, MO
Friday MS River-La Crosse: W. Copeland & Clinton
Jul 30 La Crosse, WI
Friday Lake of the Ozarks: Public Beach #2
Oct 15 Osage Beach, MO
Northern Conference
Friday Smith Mountain Lake: Parkway Marina
Apr 30 Huddleston, VA
Friday Potomac River: Smallwood State Park
Jun 4 Marbury, MD
Friday Detroit River: Elizabeth Park Marina
Aug 20 Trenton, MI
Southeastern Conference
Friday Harris Chain: Venetian Gardens – Ski Beach
Feb 12 Leesburg, FL
Friday Lake Guntersville: Lake Guntersville State Park
Apr 23 Guntersville, AL
Friday Lake Chickamauga: Dayton Boat Dock
Oct 22 Dayton, TN
Southern Conference
Friday Lake Somerville: Lake Somerville Marina
Apr 16 Brenham, TX
Friday Lake of the Pines: Lakeside Park
Jun 11 Jefferson , TX
Friday Lake Dardanelle: Lake Dardanelle State Park
Oct 1 Russellville, AR
Western Conference
Saturday Shasta: Bridge Bay Resort
Jan 30 Redding, CA
Saturday California Delta: Big Break Marina
May 15 Oakley, CA
Saturday Clear Lake: Redbud Park
Sep 25 Clearlake, CA
Abu Garcia College Fishing presented by YETI National Championship presented by Lowrance
Wed-Fri Grand Lake: Wolf Creek Park
Mar 3-5 Grove, OK
Hosted by Grove Convention and Tourism Bureau & City of Grove
About MLF BIG5
MLF BIG5 is part of MLF, the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization. It provides anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money across five tournament circuits featuring a five-biggest-fish format. Headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with offices in Benton, Kentucky, MLF and its partners conduct more than 290 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Namibia, Portugal, South Africa, Spain and Zimbabwe.
MLF tournaments are broadcast on Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel, World Fishing Network, MyOutdoorTV, Discovery and CBS Sports while MLF Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros to the world’s most avid bass anglers.
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Erskine Earning Top Grades in College Bass Fishing
Unless you live within a couple hours of Due West, South Carolina you’ve probably never heard of a little college called Erskine, but the campus of 800 students is home to everything that’s good about college bass fishing.
This week, 22-year-old recent graduates Wyatt Reid and Gehrig DeFronzo are proudly representing the school at the Carhartt Bassmaster College National Championship on Central Florida’s Harris Chain of Lakes, but their passionate work along with coach Ryan Teems the last few years has nurtured the small campus to be a garden of growth for college bass fishing.
Coach Teems is only a year older than Reid and DeFronzo, but he helped start the bass fishing team and get it formally recognized by the campus leaders. Now they have about 20 students on the “Flying Fleet” fishing team and are offering bass fishing scholarships to high school students that want to attend Erskine.
Ironically, Reid started at Erskine on a golf scholarship and DeFronzo on a baseball scholarship as a middle infielder, but their passion for bass fishing will leave an absolute legacy and ease the tuition burdens of future Erskine bass anglers for decades to come.
Their home lakes include deeper clear reservoirs like Hartwell and Clarks Hill, so figuring out the shallow vegetation rich Harris Chain won’t be easy. But Reid caught nearly an 8-pounder in practice Monday, so there’s definitely reason for optimism.
When asked what the hardest college class they had to take at Erskine was, Reid cited a literature class, and DeFronzo, a pre-med major quickly spotlighted organic chemistry, even though he earned an “A.”
But there’s no doubt both have set the curve for all that is great about college bass fishing during their time at Erskine
The post Erskine Earning Top Grades in College Bass Fishing appeared first on Bass365.com.
Froggin’ Flippin’ And Fall Fishing with ISH MONROE | Bass 365 LIVECAST
Major League Fishing Pro ISH MONROE sits down with Bass 365 for another awesome LIVECAST. We are talking Froggin’ Flippin’ and A HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT from The King Of the Delta ISH MONROE. This episode is proudly brought to you by RIVER 2 SEA.
The post Froggin’ Flippin’ And Fall Fishing with ISH MONROE | Bass 365 LIVECAST appeared first on Bass365.com.
GADSDEN, Ala. — Focusing on current-related habitat enabled Cody Bird of Granbury, Texas, to win the Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open on Neely Henry Lake with a three-day total of 34 pounds, 1 ounce.
Cody Bird, of Granbury, Texas, has won the Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open at Neely Henry Lake with a three-day total of 34 pounds, 1 ounce.
Photo by Dalton Tumblin/B.A.S.S.
Bird placed third on Day 1 with a limit of 13-1 and moved into the Day 2 lead after adding 11-9. On Championship Saturday, he turned in a limit of 9-7 and earned the $35,000 top prize for his first B.A.S.S. win.
“I have two seconds, a third, a fourth, two fifths, a sixth and three sevenths — it feels good to finally win one,” Bird said. “I’m just not a closer. This time, when I got up there, I made up my mind that they were going to have to take it from me.
“It took me a while, but it was worth it. I earned this one, for sure.”
Fishing fast to cover lots of water, Bird said he covered a 15-mile stretch up the Coosa River. Throughout the event, he reported making upwards of 100 stops a day — often visiting key spots multiple times — and making approximately 1,000 casts a day.
Bird formulated his fast-paced strategy for the tough fall transitional period that found Neely Henry in a stingy mood. Bites were scarce, but Bird quickly dialed in the types of spots he needed to fish.
“I had a terrible first day of practice, so I decided to run up the river and check it out,” he said. “(Alabama Power) was running water wide open and the fish were really biting, so I figured that I was going to stay in that area.
“I knew the fish wouldn’t bite as good when they weren’t running water, so I ran tons of little drains that had water running out.”
Bird said he also targeted docks positioned in areas with good current exposure.
“I had a couple little stretches where I could line up with where the current came down,” he said. “The end of a dock is always good and you could get in behind them and find a few fish.
“I also caught several goods ones off stumps. I didn’t ever catch many off laydowns, but they were on stumps.”
Catching a mix of largemouth and spotted bass, Bird did most of his work with Lucky Craft RC 1.5 squarebills. He had each bait custom-painted in bright chartreuse patterns, but presentation was the most important element.
“The whole key to it was burning that bait,” he said. “The water was a little clear for a squarebill, so you had to trick them. I don’t know how many spots hit my bait at the boat and didn’t take it.”
Matthew Robertson of Kuttawa, Ky., finished second with 33-1. The first two days saw Robertson weigh limits of 11-0 and 11-8. On Saturday, he missed his limit by one fish but turned in the biggest sack of Championship Saturday — 10-9.
“This week I’ve just been winging it; fishing stuff I never fish,” Robertson said. “I stayed on the main river and threw a Strike King Red Eyed Special spinnerbait.”
Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ark., finished third with 32-11. After a Day 1 bag of 9-5 had him in a tie for 38th place, Browning found his biggest sack on Friday — a 13-6 limit that included a 5-5. He closed with a 10-pound Day 3 limit.
Targeting wood, riprap, chunk rock and gravel banks, Browning caught his fish on a Z-Man JackHammer ChatterBait with a Z-Man Razor ShadZ trailer and a Jewel finesse jig with a craw worm.
“It was just typical river fishing; you just fish what’s in front of you,” Browning said. “Realistically, I had (approximately) the same bag three days in a row, I just had that big fish on Friday that bumped me up really good.”
Browning won the $750 Phoenix Boats Big Bass award for his 5-5.
Fifth-place Kenta Kimura, of Osaka, Japan, won the $500 Garmin Tournament Rewards.
John Goul of Philadelphia, Miss., won the co-angler division with a three-day total of 17-15. Goul weighed two fish for 4-11 on Day 1, added a three-fish limit of 5-10 on Day 2 and earned his first B.A.S.S. win with a final round limit of 7-10.
Paired with Bird, Goul caught his final-round fish on a 3/8-ounce Dirty Jigs Finesse Jig in the Go To color with a watermelon Zoom Twin Tail trailer. He dyed the trailer tips chartreuse.
“He was cranking and paralleling the bank and he just gave me a few targets that just happened to have quality fish on them,” Goul said. “I caught fish as shallow as 6 inches, and I caught my biggest from the end of a tree in about 8 feet of water.”
Jason Henson of Rome, Ga., won the $250 Phoenix Boats Big Bass award among co-anglers with a 4-0.
Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., leads the Central Open points race with 547 points, followed by Darold Gleason with 540. Bassmaster Elite Series pro Lee Livesay is in third with 539, followed by Marc Frazier in fourth with 533 and Elite pro Brandon Palaniuk with 531.
Christie leads the Falcon Rods Bassmaster Opens Angler of the Year standings with 929 points.
The tournament is being hosted by Greater Gadsden Area Tourism.
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: Basspro.com
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series Premier Sponsors: Abu Garcia, Berkley, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Skeeter Boats, Talon, Yamaha
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series Supporting Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Carhartt, Huk Performance Fishing, Mossy Oak Fishing, Rapala
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 515,000-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 and The Pursuit Channel), radio show (Bassmaster Radio), social media programs and events. For more than 50 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, Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series, TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Series, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors, Bassmaster Team Championship, new Huk Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Kayak Series powered by TourneyX presented by Abu Garcia and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic.
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open at Neely Henry Lake 10/22-10/24
Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden AL.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Cody Bird Granbury, TX 15 34-01 200 $39,433.00
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 11-09 Day 3: 5 09-07
2. Matthew Robertson Kuttawa, KY 14 33-01 199 $19,153.00
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 11-08 Day 3: 4 10-09
3. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 15 32-11 198 $14,270.00
Day 1: 5 09-05 Day 2: 5 13-06 Day 3: 5 10-00
4. Derek Hicks Rocky Face, GA 15 31-11 197 $11,267.00
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 08-07 Day 3: 5 09-10
5. Kenta Kimura Osaka JAPAN 14 31-01 196 $10,302.00
Day 1: 5 09-10 Day 2: 5 14-14 Day 3: 4 06-09
6. Joey Nania Cropwell, AL 15 30-13 195 $9,013.00
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 10-01 Day 3: 5 08-06
7. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 13 29-00 194 $8,450.00
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 11-14 Day 3: 3 06-08
8. Wyatt Burkhalter Coker, AL 15 28-15 193 $7,887.00
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 5 07-07
9. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 15 28-13 192 $6,197.00
Day 1: 5 08-14 Day 2: 5 11-09 Day 3: 5 08-06
10. Darold Gleason Many, LA 13 28-01 191 $5,070.00
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 07-14 Day 3: 3 06-07
11. Matt Pangrac Broken Arrow, OK 12 25-08 190 $4,507.00
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 11-10 Day 3: 2 03-10
12. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 12 22-11 189 $3,943.00
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 09-08 Day 3: 2 02-07
———————————————————————–
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 05-05 $750.00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 83 615 1080-09
2 63 548 904-06
3 6 48 89-06
———————————-
152 1211 2074-05
2020 Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open at Neely Henry Lake 10/22-10/24
Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden AL.
(NON_BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. John Goul Philadelphia, MS 8 17-15 200 $14,393.00
Day 1: 2 04-11 Day 2: 3 05-10 Day 3: 3 07-10
2. Kayden Tanner Millsap, TX 8 17-02 199 $3,387.00
Day 1: 3 07-10 Day 2: 3 05-08 Day 3: 2 04-00
3. Buddy Elston Jr. Odenville, AL 9 17-02 198 $2,540.00
Day 1: 3 06-08 Day 2: 3 03-14 Day 3: 3 06-12
4. Jason Henson Rome, GA 8 16-13 197 $2,155.00
Day 1: 3 07-08 Day 2: 2 04-07 Day 3: 3 04-14
5. Mamoru Kagiya Takahama JAPAN 8 14-09 196 $1,778.00
Day 1: 3 04-12 Day 2: 3 05-14 Day 3: 2 03-15
6. Shane Soriano Merced, CA 9 14-01 195 $1,693.00
Day 1: 3 06-03 Day 2: 3 04-04 Day 3: 3 03-10
7. Ronald Young New Braunfels, TX 7 13-01 194 $1,609.00
Day 1: 3 05-15 Day 2: 3 05-11 Day 3: 1 01-07
8. Cameron Naquin Gray, LA 6 12-12 193 $1,524.00
Day 1: 2 05-10 Day 2: 2 04-00 Day 3: 2 03-02
9. Jake Larson Deerfield, WI 8 12-12 192 $1,397.00
Day 1: 3 05-00 Day 2: 3 05-06 Day 3: 2 02-06
10. David Booth Erin, TN 7 11-03 191 $1,270.00
Day 1: 3 05-03 Day 2: 3 04-06 Day 3: 1 01-10
11. Steven Hatch Long Beach, MS 7 10-15 190 $1,185.00
Day 1: 3 06-02 Day 2: 3 03-03 Day 3: 1 01-10
12. Rich Frey Owens Cross Roads, AL 6 10-09 189 $1,101.00
Day 1: 2 05-03 Day 2: 3 04-09 Day 3: 1 00-13
———————————————————————–
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Jason Henson Rome, GA 04-00 $250.00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 42 210 321-08
2 26 149 220-03
3 4 24 41-13
———————————-
72 383 583-08
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