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Day 1 Weigh In Videos from La Cross
Here are a few videos from the day one weigh in at La Cross Wisconsin.
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Former Classic Champion Casey Ashley Claims Early Lead In Bassmaster Elite
Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C., takes the lead on the first day of the Plano Bassmaster Elite at Mississippi River presented by Favorite Fishing, bringing 17 pounds, 10 ounces to the scales on Thursday.
LA CROSSE, Wis. — Casey Ashley has only a slim lead following the first round of the Plano Bassmaster Elite at the Mississippi River presented by Favorite Fishing, yet he almost oozed confidence as he left the weigh-in stand today.
“I feel like I’ve got another shot at winning,” he said after weighing in a limit of four smallmouth and one largemouth weighing 17 pounds, 10 ounces. The Elite pro from Donalds, S.C., knows that feeling, having won the 2015 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by GoPro. He aims to add another $100,000 to his career total on the Mississippi River this week.
Nevermind that two other skilled young fishermen are breathing down his neck. Ott Defoe of Knoxville, Tenn., is second with 17-7, and Jordan Lee, the former College standout from Grant, Ala., is third with 17-2.
Reigning Classic champion Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., is fourth with 16-13, and Brandon Card of Caryville, Tenn., rounds out the Top 5 with 16-9.
Card’s success may actually help Ashley’s dream of winning become reality.
DeFoe revealed that he has two great spots. One gave up three of the bass he weighed in today, and the other produced two.
They’re good enough holes to produce another remarkable catch, he said, but neither will hold up through the end of the tournament Sunday. That’s especially true because one of those two spots yielded most of Card’s fifth-place limit.
Card, who lives just 20 miles from DeFoe and has competed against him for years, said he saw DeFoe nearby when he found the place in practice. “I figured Ott would find it, too,” he said.
As Card arrived at the spot today, DeFoe was finishing up his limit. “He was smiling and I knew he caught them,” Card related. “I said, ‘Is there going to be a strategy we need to work out?’”
To his credit, DeFoe invited Card to finish out his limit there. Card said he expects the two friendly competitors will be able to work out a schedule to share the hole by the time round two begins Friday morning.
In contrast, Ashley said none of the 106 other Elite anglers is fishing anywhere near his areas. “I found it the first day of practice and went back to it this morning,” he said. “My first fish was a 4 1/2-pounder (a 4-7 that currently leads for the Phoenix Boats Big Bass Award), and I caught my limit there in about 20 minutes.”
He tried other, similar locations and caught good-size bass — 3- and 4-pounders — at most of them. After he had culled up to the 17-10 limit, he vacated the area and went scouting for more spots in another part of the river.
Lee, too, feels confident about his chances in this, the final regular-season tournament of the Bassmaster Elite Series. A second-year pro on the Elites, Lee did not have the benefit of two previous tournaments on the Upper Mississippi, and his practice fishing wasn’t especially good this week.
“The key was just being patient,” he discovered. “I caught four on four casts at about 10 o’clock in a place I thought I was only going to catch one, and they were all good fish. It told me to really slow it down. I did and hit a couple of little groups of fish and was able to cull up.” He found several other hot spots fitting his pattern, and he expects them to hold up in the later rounds.
For many of the Elite Series anglers in the field this week, the La Crosse Elite is their last chance to redeem their seasons. At the conclusion Sunday, the Top 50 in season-long Angler of the Year points will be invited to compete in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship at Mille Lacs Lake, Minnesota, which begins next week. Those making that cut will divvy up the $1 million prize fund, $100,000 of which will go to the 2016 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year.
The angler with the best chance of claiming that crown, Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala., helped his cause by climbing into 24th place today with 13-9.
The full field of 107 anglers will take off from Veterans Freedom Park in downtown La Crosse at 6:15 a.m. Friday, with the weigh-in taking place at the park at 3:15 p.m.
2016 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2016 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, GoPro, Huk, Humminbird
2016 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Carhartt, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Livingston Lures, Lowrance, Phoenix Boats, Power-Pole, Rapala, Shell Rotella, Shimano, Academy Sports + Outdoors, A.R.E. Truck Caps
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 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, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation presented by Magellan, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by GoPro.
Energy Balls and Insulin, Fuel Lee Brothers to Top 20 at La Crosse
One runs on insulin, the other on energy balls. Jordan majored in marketing, his older brother Matt majored in engineering. And while they tell each other everything, they fished their way independently to a Top 20 on Day 1 at the Plano Basssmaster Elite at the Mississippi River presented by Favorite Fishing.
Going into Day 1, did the two of you game plan a lot, some, or very little?
Jordan: Some. We talked a lot about our practice, but practice only goes so far. I really didn’t find them very well in practice. Most of what I caught today was by adjusting and fishing in the moment.
Matt: We tell each other everything about our practice. But we’re not in the same area during the tournament.
Did you see each other at all on Day 1?
Jordan: Nope, we never saw each other.
Matt: Nope, I don’t have a clue where Jordan fished, or where he caught ‘em.
What did you eat to fuel this great start to the final regular season Elite Series event of 2016?
Jordan: Before launch, I had a Monster and muffins. And while I was on the water, I had these energy balls that my girlfriend Kristen made me. They have oats, honey, cacao, chia seeds, flax, and peanut butter.
Matt: Not a whole lot. I ate a pack of peanut butter crackers. I adjust my insulin pump on tournament days to compensate for the sweat and lack of food. (Note: At age 22, Matt, a former Alabama High School State Baseball Champion was surprisingly diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. He now wears an insulin pump manufactured by Animas that provides him the perfect dose of Novo Nordisk insulin around the clock.)
Name 4 lures you’d advise every hardcore basshead to pack for La Crosse?
Jordan: Sexy Frog, 4” Strike King Rodent, square bill crankbait, and a drop shot.
Matt: Sexy Frog, shallow crankbait, a Texas-rigged soft plastic like a Strike King Rodent with at least a 1-ounce or heavier weight for ‘punching’ vegetation, and a shaky head.
School is back in session. What’s the one thing you wish you’d have done better or different during your days as a Carhartt Bassmaster College Series angler at Auburn?
Jordan: Those are the best times in life, and I wish I could spend more time with my buddies, like we had back then.
Matt: I live life with no regrets, and honestly, I loved every bit of it, especially my time with my buddies.
2017 Bassmaster Opens Slated For Top-Ranked Bass Fisheries
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — From the lakes of central Florida in mid-January to the Ozark Plateau of Oklahoma in early October, bass tournament anglers will find a variety of dates, locations and fisheries to challenge them in the 2017 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Series schedule, which B.A.S.S. announced today.
Nine Bassmaster Opens tournaments will be held in eight different states next year. Fisheries range from natural lakes to rivers to upland reservoirs, and from big-bass factories to tidewater fisheries that can humble the best in the sport.
Opens are divided into three separate divisions of three events each. The Opens Series has become extremely popular in recent years as the primary qualifying events for the prestigious Bassmaster Elite Series. The Top 5 anglers from each of the three divisions (after excluding any Elite anglers who are already qualified for that tour) are invited to step up to the pinnacle of professional angling.
In addition, the winner of each Open earns a berth in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by GoPro, contingent upon his or her fishing the other two events in that Opens division.
The tournaments feature fields of 150-200 pros and the same number of co-anglers fishing trying to amass the heaviest limits of bass — five for the pros and three for the co-anglers — for two days. The field is cut to the Top 12 in each division for the final day, with weigh-ins usually held at a nearby Bass Pro Shops.
It all begins on the Harris Chain of Lakes in Leesburg, Fla., on Jan. 19-21 with the first of three 2017 Southern Opens. The last tournament of the year will be the final Central Open, scheduled for Oct. 5-7 on the famed Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees in Grove, Okla.
“The Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens is not only a great way for an angler to make his mark in professional bass fishing, but these are also fun and rewarding tournaments in their own right,” said Bruce Akin, B.A.S.S. CEO. “We’re especially proud of being able to offer events on some of the most outstanding bass fisheries in the world, including three that have hosted the GEICO Bassmaster Classic.”
Anglers in each Opens tournament will compete for a portion of more than $250,000 in cash and prizes, including a boat and motor package in each division, to be awarded at each event. The winning pro gets more than $50,000 in cash and prizes, including a chance to compete in the Super Bowl of bass fishing, the Bassmaster Classic.
“Many of the most competitive Elite Series pros fishing today qualified through the Bassmaster Opens,” said Chris Bowes, Opens tournament director. “There’s not a better way to prove you’re ready to fish on the national stage.”
Deadlines for registration and other details about participation will be posted later this month on Bassmaster.com.
SOUTHERN OPENS
No. 1 — Harris Chain of Lakes, Leesburg, Fla., Jan. 19-21
The Harris Chain is one of the more popular stops for B.A.S.S. The chain is made up of nine lakes connected by a system of canals, and it covers approximately 80,000 acres in central Florida just north of Orlando. Chris Lane won this event in 2012 with a whopping three-day total of 72 pounds, 11 ounces. Lake County Tourism is host of the event.
No. 2 — Lake Chickamauga, Dayton, Tenn., Apr. 20-22
Lake Chickamauga is a reservoir covering just more than 36,000 acres along the Tennessee River, and was completed in 1940 as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority. BASSfest was held here in 2014, with Jacob Wheeler holding off Kevin VanDam and Matt Herren for the title. Chickamauga was also the site of the 1986 Classic, and it ranks third in the Southeastern division of Bassmaster Magazine’s 100 Best Bass Lakes list for 2016. Hosting is the Rhea Economic and Tourism Council Inc.
No. 3 — Smith Lake, Jasper, Ala., Sept. 28-30
A Bassmaster Southern Open returns to Smith Lake in 2017, after the lake was home to a rain-shortened tournament earlier this year. The 21,000-acre lake in north-central Alabama produced a $53,000 payday in cash and prizes to winner Jesse Wiggins. It is noted for its giant spotted bass and ranks 23rd in the Southeast on the 100 Best Bass Lakes list. The Chamber of Commerce of Walker County is the host.
CENTRAL OPENS
No. 1 — Table Rock Lake, Branson, Mo., March 2-4
Bassmaster Elite Series pro Mike McClelland broke a six-year drought by winning a tour stop here in 2014. Table Rock, which at 43,000 acres is plenty big enough for Open anglers to spread out, also was host to a Central Open in 2015. The fishery offers some compelling side trips for visitors, including the popular tourist destinations in Branson and the flagship Bass Pro Shops store in Springfield. The massive Wonders of Wildlife museum and aquarium at Bass Pro Shops should be open by tournament time. Host organizations are Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau.
No. 2 — Sabine River, Orange, Texas, June 15-17
This river forming the southern portion of the border between Texas and Louisiana is a playground for Elite Series anglers, and it will welcome competitors in the second Central Open in 2017. Just navigating the network of bayous, sloughs, canals and backwaters is a challenge. Catching the heaviest limits of black bass can be tricky as well. Opens anglers will want to study the tactics of Elite Series standouts Chris Lane (who won in 2015) and Todd Faircloth (winner in 2013). The Greater Orange Chamber of Commerce is hosting the event.
No. 3 — Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees, Grove, Okla., Oct. 5-7
Grand Lake has been home to not one, but two Bassmaster Classics (in 2013 and again in 2016). In 2013, Cliff Pace won the Classic with a three-day total of 54 pounds, 12 ounces. Earlier this year, it was Oklahoma’s own Edwin Evers earning a Classic win with a 60-pound, 7-ounce total. Kevin VanDam and Mike McClelland have won previous Elite Series events on this 46,500-acre impoundment, which ranks eighth in the central divisions of Bassmaster’s Best 100 Lakes listing. Hosting the tournament is the City of Grove, Okla.
NORTHERN OPENS
No. 1 — Oneida Lake, Syracuse, N.Y., June 29-July 1
B.A.S.S. heads to upstate New York for the first Northern Division Open of the 2017 season. Elite Series pro Randy Howell won an Open on Oneida in 2015 with a three-day haul of 49 pounds, 2 ounces, and this July, Wil Hardy won there with 53-13 over three days of fishing. At more than 50,000 acres, Oneida is the largest lake located entirely in New York, and this will be the 13th Bassmaster event on the fishery. It ranks 11th among bass fishing in the Northeast. Visit Syracuse is hosting the event.
No. 2 — James River, Richmond, Va., Aug. 3-5
The James River has hosted an even dozen Bassmaster events through the years, including a three-year string of Classics from 1988-1990. Guido Hibdon won the first Classic held here in 1988, and Hank Parker claimed the title in 1989. The legendary Rick Clunn won his fourth Classic on this river in 1990. In 2013, Randy Howell won an Open on the James to qualify for the 2014 Bassmaster Classic, which he won, and former Elite angler Charlie Hartley earned a return trip to the Classic with his James River win in August. Host is the Richmond CVB.
No. 3 — Douglas Lake, Dandridge, Tenn., Sept. 7-9
The final Northern Open stop of 2017 will be on this reservoir in eastern Tennessee. Douglas was home to an Open tournament in May 2016, and in 2012, pro Jeremy Starks boated a four-day total of 81 pounds, 2 ounces to win the Elite Series Douglas Lake Challenge and a $100,000 check. The Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce is host.
2016 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops
2016 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2016 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Series Premier Sponsors: Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, GoPro, Huk, Humminbird
2016 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Series Supporting Sponsors: Power-Pole, Rapala, Shell Rotella, Shimano, A.R.E. Truck Caps, Carhartt, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Livingston Lures, Lowrance
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 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, B.A.S.S. Nation, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by GoPro.
Cal Coast Fishing Signs FLW Tour Pro James Watson
Nixa, MO – Cal Coast Fishing has partnered with FLW Tour Pro James Watson to promote their line of tackle management products.
Cal Coast is a Southern California based company offering two products that protect baits from damage while not in use. Those products consist of ‘The Bait Sack’, which is a premium lure protector, and the ‘Cali Clip’, which secures lures to fishing rods when not in use. These products are now available exclusively online.
David Romanus, Cal Coast Fishing CEO is excited for James to join the team. He believes with James’ outgoing personality and genuine use of Cal Coast products, he will be able to share with bass anglers worldwide how The Bait Sack and Cali Clip are beneficial to every angler.
James Watson, FLW Tour Pro declares, “Cal Coast products are really cool! They keep my boat organized and my baits comfortable.”
James also mentions that Cal Coast products help keep his rods and baits tangle free allowing easy access during those high pressure moments on the water. The Cal Coast Fishing goal is to provide quality, easy to use products that enhance the fishing experience for every angler at any level. Which is why James is excited to join the team of anglers that are also helping to promote such great products.
Cal Coast products are affordable for every angler. For more information on Cal Coast Fishing’s Bait Sack and Cali Clip products please visit calcoastfishing.com.
Got Social? Check out James Watson Professional Angler and Cal Coast Fishing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.