THE LATEST NEWS
LSU-Shreveport Wins FLW College Fishing Southern Conference Opener
BRENHAM, Texas (Jan. 17, 2016) – The Louisiana State University-Shreveport team of Christian Brown of Pelican, Louisiana, and Jared Rascoe of Stonewall, Louisiana, won the FLW College Fishing Southern Conference opener on Somerville Lake Saturday with five bass weighing 18 pounds, 7 ounces. The victory earned the club $2,000 and advanced the team to the 2017 FLW College Fishing National Championship.
“It feels absolutely amazing to win this tournament,” said Brown, a junior majoring in petroleum engineering. “To come out here and see all of our hard work payoff is truly special.”
“After the practice we had, we thought it would take a lot less weight to qualify. But, the conditions changed so we had to step up our game,” said Rascoe, a junior majoring in secondary education.
“We decided to focus on bass that were in an odd prespawn pattern,” Rascoe continued. “We ended up fishing in three spots that were a lot shallower than we originally had planned.”
The duo said their hot spots were in an area along the edges of mid-lake reeds. They said they used one bait all day long – a green-pumpkin V & M Chopstick – to nab their fish.
“The reeds needed to be in about four feet of water for the fish to be active,” said Brown. “If the wind was blowing on them, it was even better.”
The team said they were able to catch seven keepers throughout the day, with four of five stringer fish coming between noon and 2 p.m.
“We were definitely surprised by the weights that other teams were bringing in,” said Brown. “Luckily the five we had were heavy enough to win the whole thing.”
The top 10 teams that advanced to the 2017 College Fishing National Championship are:
1st: Louisiana State University-Shreveport – Christian Brown, Pelican, La., and Jared Rascoe, Stonewall, La., five bass, 18-7, $2,000 Club Scholarship
2nd: Louisiana State University– Levi Sharp, Haughton, La., and Dakota Sparks, Denham Springs, La., five bass, 18-0, $1,000 Club Scholarship
3rd: Stephen F. Austin State University – Tyler Woods, Mansfield, Texas, and Robert Tweed, Round Rock, Texas, five bass, 17-9, $500 Club Scholarship
4th: Louisiana Tech University – Tyler Wilk, Ruston, La., and Scott McClellan, Leesville, La., five bass, 17-0, $500 Club Scholarship
5th: Lamar University – Brandon Simoneaux, Bridge City, Texas, and Colby Ogden, Kountze, Texas, five bass, 15-13, $500 Club Scholarship
6th: Texas Tech University – Adam Estlack, Lubbock, Texas, and Matthew Bowden, Spring, Texas, four bass, 14-4
7th: Sam Houston State University – Dillon Harrell, New Caney, Texas, and Dustin Moreno, Shepherd, Texas, five bass, 13-15
8th: Angelo State University – Scott Halbrooks, San Angelo, Texas, and Chase Gibson, Denver City, Texas, five bass, 13-12
9th: Louisiana Tech University – Gunner Durrett, Simsboro, La., and Austin Watkins, Boyce, La., four bass, 13-7
10th: Tarleton State University-Stephenville – Zach Ziober and Dakota Ebare, both of Stephensville, Texas, five bass, 13-4
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
This FLW College Fishing Southern Conference event was the first regular-season qualifying tournament. The next event for Southern Conference anglers is a tournament scheduled for April 30 on Fort Gibson Lake in Wagoner, Oklahoma.
FLW College Fishing teams compete in regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top ten teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the top 15 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open will advance to the 2017 FLW College Fishing National Championship.
College Fishing is free to enter. All participants must be registered, full-time students at a college, university or community college and members of a college fishing club.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow College Fishing on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing. Visit FLWFishing.com to sign up or to start a club at your school.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2016 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 235 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Periscope: @FLWFishing.
Okuma Fishing Tackle Welcomes Clent Davis
ONTARIO, CA: Okuma Fishing Tackle has added Alabama based B.A.S.S. Elite Series angler Clent Davis to the Okuma factory Pro-Staff. Davis will be utilizing Okuma’s Helios tournament bass rods and reels as he enters his rookie season on the Elite Series after five successful seasons on the FLW Tour. Davis earned seven top ten finishes and over $325,000 in earnings with FLW prior to successfully qualifying for the Elite Series last year through the B.A.S.S. southern opens.
Davis is an outstanding addition to the Okuma family. “We’re very excited to have Clent on board,” begins Dave Brown, Okuma Promotions Manager, “His resume speaks volumes to his ability as an angler, and of equal importance, Clent is an individual we’re proud to work with as a person. Clent is a guy that’s a fierce competitor on the water, but exceptionally kind an approachable when the weigh-in is over. We’re proud to stand behind his fishing, his young family and his goals.”
Davis will be fishing a broad selection of Okuma Helios Tournament Bass rods and Helios baitcaster reels. “This is an amazing product line,” says Davis, “With Helios rods beginning at 3.6-ounces and the 6.3-ounce Helios reel, the combo weighs less than 10-ounces total. The rods actions are fast and the sensitivity is amazing. From a tournament perspective, Helios reels deliver the out-of-the-box performance I need. The frame and both side plates are aluminum, which is definitely a step up. Then on the inside, ABEC-5 spool bearings are standard, as well as full aluminum gears and a carbon fiber drag system. There’s nothing that needs upgrading, these reels have it all.”
Davis is in the final preparation stage for his initial Elite Series season on March 17th on the St. John’s River in Palatka Florida. Davis said, “I have never been so pumped up for a season to start. I will be fishing on the biggest stage in the sport, against the biggest names in the sport. This season is somethingI’ve been prepping for my entire career. By adding Okuma rods and reels to my my boat for 2016, I think I have the tools necessary to succeed, now I justneed to get out there and get it done. You can’t compete against these guyswithout the very best equipment on the market, and the Okuma Helios rods and reels are at the top of the game.”
Okuma Helios rods and reels along with the full line of Okuma fresh and saltwater gear is available at tackle stores everywhere. For a detailed list of retailers, and more information about Okuma products please visit OkumaFishing.com.
It’s the Little Things that Matter……
Every now and then, someone the fishing industry releases an idea so simple and so effective that causes anglers to scratch their heads and say, “Now, why didn’t I think of that?” Well, the first head-scratcher of 2016 comes from Bayou Rattler Products, and they are called “Sonar Balzz”.
Everyone knows how effective a carolina rig can be, or how adding a small glass bead to your flipping baits can produce that “clack” designed to mimic the sound of crayfish in the water. Bayou Rattler’s Sonar Balzz take lure enhancement to another level, offering a bead that is filed with micro pellets – essentially a bead filled with beads. The result? Near constant, subtle noise emanating from your bait, loud enough to attract the fish and natural enough to keep from “spooking” them away from your presentation.
Available in an array of colors, Sonar Balzz are one of the simplest modifications you can make to any bait that add an extra stimulus for the bass to key in on, making your presentation more attractive. From slower presentations like flipping baits to moving presentations like spinner baits – Sonar Balzz can enhance any lure, and may just result in more fish in your live well.
Now why didn’t I think of that…….
Good fishing, Chris Murphy
TX State Record Spotted Bass Caught
On January 9, 2016 Texas angler Josh Helmstetler fishing on 2,880 acre Lake Alan Henry near Lubbock, TX caught what has been certified by Texas Parks & Wildlife as a new TX State Record Spotted Bass with a 5.98 pound fish. This fish also became the lake record Spotted Bass for Lake Alan Henry.
The record catch came on a LIVETARGET BaitBall Glass Minnow jerkbait, model GFB120S in color 950 which is a Silver/Natural color pattern in the BaitBall design.
Helmstetler, who fishes the lake about six to ten times a year, almost didn’t go on that day. “Yeah, it was supposed to be very cold, about 37 for a high, so my buddy had to talk me into going” described Helmstetler. “We fished for about an hour and caught about 10 fish, then the bite died. We moved out over some flooded timber in a creek channel that had been productive for me in the past, and that is where the big one struck. I thought it was going to be a double-digit largemouth it pulled so hard.” Right away Helmstetler identified it as a Spotted Bass via inspection of the tongue, which was later confirmed by TPWD. The Texas angler was fishing a small local bass tournament which he was able to also win with his total creel, and his partner finished in second place.
Helmstetler reported being a big fan of the LIVETARGET BaitBall lures, even before this record catch; “I’ve used the crankbaits, the rattlebaits, and other versions of the jerkbait successfully in the past, so I use LIVETARGET lures quite a bit. We had caught some fish on rattlebaits earlier in the day, and I had just switched to this natural color jerkbait when we went out over the deep timber creek channel when the record fish bit. These lures just seem to excel where there is clear water.”
With certificates from TPWD already presented for the record catch, Josh Helmstetler has gotten the new fishing season off to a great start, and a cold weather morning that he’ll never forget from Lake Alan Henry.
Raymarine Signs Three Bass Pros for 2016
WILSONVILLE, OR – January 20, 2016 – Raymarine, a division of FLIR Systems and a world leader in marine electronics, is pleased to announce three additions to its roster of Bassmaster Elite Series Pro-Ambassadors for the 2016 season. Each of the Pro-Ambassadors will use Raymarine electronics equipment to compete in 2016 Bassmaster Elite events.
The new Raymarine ambassadors include:
- John Crews of Salem, Va., a 10-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier and 2010 Elite Series Champion
- Bill Lowen from Brookville, Ind., a 10-year veteran of the Bassmaster Elite Series and five-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier.
- Jay Brainard, from Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees, Okla., a first-year Bassmaster Elite Series pro whose strong 2015 earned him the Bassmaster Central Open’s Angler of the Year award, and a berth in the 2016 Bassmaster Classic.
Crews, Lowen and Brainard are among seven anglers representing Raymarine in the 2016 GEICO Bassmaster Classic, which begins March 4 in Tulsa, Okla. These Raymarine Pro-Ambassadors include Chris Zaldain, Bernie Schultz, Brandon Lester, and 2012 Classic Champion Chris Lane. Additionally, in only Raymarine’s third full season as an electronics sponsor on the Bassmaster circuit, nearly two-thirds of Raymarine’s Bassmaster Elite Pro-Ambassadors have qualified for this prestigious event.
“We are very excited to welcome three of bass fishing’s best to the Raymarine Pro-Ambassador team,” said Gregoire Outters, Vice President and General Manager of FLIR’s Maritime segment. “Our Pro-Ambassadors serve not only as product spokespeople, but they also provide critical input on Raymarine product development. We look forward to helping them earn championships on the Bassmaster Elite Series and to them partnering with our entire team of ambassadors to deliver the next great Raymarine product.”
In 2016, Raymarine’s Pro-Ambassador team will hit the water with Raymarine eS-Series Multifunction displays, powered by the LightHouse II operating system. Announced in 2015, the fast, easy-to-use displays feature built-in CHIRP DownVision™ and CP200 CHIRP SideVision™ sonars, which give team Raymarine valuable underwater visibility by marking fish and bottom structure with photo-like clarity.
To learn more about the full Raymarine Pro-Ambassador team, visit: www.raymarine.com/ambassadors. For more about Raymarine’s freshwater fishing products, visit www.raymarine.com.
About FLIR Systems
FLIR Systems, Inc. is a world leader in the design, manufacture, and marketing of sensor systems that enhance perception and awareness. FLIR’s advanced systems and components are used for a wide variety of thermal imaging, situational awareness, and security applications, including airborne and ground-based surveillance, condition monitoring, navigation, recreation, research and development, manufacturing process control, search and rescue, drug interdiction, transportation safety, border and maritime patrol, environmental monitoring, and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives (CBRNE) threat detection. For more information, visit FLIR’s web site at www.FLIR.com.
About Raymarine:
Raymarine, a world leader in marine electronics, develops and manufactures the most comprehensive range of electronic equipment for the recreational boating and light commercial marine markets. Designed for high performance and ease of use, the award-winning products are available through a global network of dealers and distributors.
The Raymarine product lines include radar, autopilots, GPS, instruments, fish finders, communications, and integrated systems. Headquartered in Fare ham UK, Raymarine is a division of FLIR Systems, a world leader in thermal imaging. For more information about Raymarine please go to www.raymarine.com.