BROOKELAND, Texas (Sept. 23, 2019) – Boater Glen Freeman of Zwolle, Louisiana, brought a two-day total of 10 bass to the scale weighing 43 pounds, 13 ounces, to win the two-day T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Cowboy Division super-tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir Sunday. Freeman earned $8,211 for his efforts.
“I think the key to my win was that I stayed old-fashioned,” said Freeman, who earned his 11th career win in BFL competition. “Nowadays everyone is throwing crankbaits and Carolina rigs, and I feel like the fish hardly see Texas rigs anymore. I was up on the north end – around the Highway 147 bridge, fishing slopes and drop-offs of ridges in 15- to 20-feet-of-water.”
Freeman estimated that he caught around 25 keepers throughout the weekend – 15 on day one and 10 on day two. He targeted isolated pieces of timber and brush on the slopes with a redbug-colored, Texas-rigged Mister Twister worm with a ½-ounce Elite Tungsten weight.
“I just slowed down and bumped the timber with the heavy weight,” Freeman said. “I was able to find the little pieces of timber using my Lowrance unit, and just soak the worm in the little bitty brush. The bites were very sensitive, and my Lews rod and reel combos made a big difference in allowing me to detect those subtle bites.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Glen Freeman, Zwolle, La., 10 bass, 43-13, $6,211 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Eric Leger, Mamou, La., 10 bass, 35-9, $3,106
3rd: Kevin Lasyone, Dry Prong, La., 10 bass, 34-11, $2,002
4th: Albert Collins, Nacogdoches, Texas, 10 bass, 30-12, $1,403
5th: Skeeter Fowler, Grand Saline, Texas, nine bass, 30-10, $1,202
6th: Philip Crelia, Center, Texas, nine bass, 30-3, $1,352
7th: River Lee, Nacogdoches, Texas, 10 bass, 29-9, $1,002
8th: Ryan Pinkston, Center, Texas, 10 bass, 29-4, $1,727
9th: Todd Castledine, Nacogdoches, Texas, 10 bass, 29-3, $1,102
10th: Marcus Parker, Pearland, Texas, 10 bass, 28-6, $701
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Pinkston caught an 8-pound, 8-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the event’s Boater Big Bass award of $825.
Deport Texas’ Lat Nichols won the Co-angler Division and $3,206 Sunday after catching a two-day total of nine bass weighing 22 pounds, 2 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Lat Nichols, Deport, Texas, nine bass, 22-2, $3,206
2nd: Steven Ramsey, Diberville, Miss., 10 bass, 20-5, $1,553
3rd: Hannah Gryder, Milam, Texas, seven bass, 20-4, $1,004
4th: Tim Woodard, Rosepine, La., 10 bass, 18-12, $701
5th: Ty Haymon, Oakdale, La., eight bass, 18-5, $601
6th: David Beason, Evans, La., seven bass, 18-2, $551
7th: Bill Fussell, Thibodaux, La., seven bass, 16-8, $501
8th: Ryan Bourque, Slidell, La., seven bass, 15-13, $451
9th: Don Johnson, Lufkin, Texas, seven bass, 14-13, $401
10th. Brandon Begnaud, Bacliff, Texas, six bass, 14-12, $351
Garrett Tunks of Sulphur, Louisiana, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 7 pounds, 15 ounces. The catch earned him the event’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $412.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Cowboy Division super-tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir was hosted by the Jasper County Development District.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 24-26 BFL Regional Championship on Grand Lake in Grove, Oklahoma. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.