Arkadelphia’s Hillard Grabs Co-angler Title
Boater Donnie Cobb of Russellville, Arkansas, caught five bass Saturday weighing 18 pounds, 7 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Arkie Division opener on Lake Ouachita presented by GEARED. For his win, Cobb took home $4,266.
According to post-tournament reports, Cobb caught his fish upriver on shallow points using a spinnerbait.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Donnie Cobb, Russellville, Ark., five bass, 18-7, $4,266
2nd: Josh Ray, Alexander, Ark., five bass, 15-4, $2,083
3rd: Wayne Dixon, Morrilton, Ark., five bass, 15-3, $1,256
4th: Scott Hardin, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 15-1, $979
5th: Mike Rhinehart, Pottsville, Ark., five bass, 14-3, $753
6th: Randall Clark, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 14-0, $690
7th: Dennis Bean, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 13-12, $628
8th: Lance Crawford, Broken Bow, Okla., five bass, 13-10, $565
9th: Spencer Shuffield, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 13-5, $502
10th: Todd Thomas, Fouke, Ark., five bass, 13-4, $439
Cobb also caught a 7-pound, 8-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $500.
Almonzo Hillard of Arkadelphia, Arkansas, won the Co-angler Division and $1,859 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 12 pounds, 4 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Almonzo Hillard, Arkadelphia, Ark., five bass, 12-4, $1,859
2nd: Ryan Spicer, Sheridan, Ark., two bass, 10-8, $1,171
3rd: David Hardin, Bethel, Okla., two bass, 10-1, $619
4th: Robert Janes, Springdale, Ark., four bass, 9-10, $534
5th: Demetric Johnson, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 9-9, $372
6th: Kristopher Klecz, Saint Charles, Ill., four bass, 9-0, $341
7th: Alex Allen, Bryant, Ark., three bass, 8-10, $310
8th: Matt Tucker, Pottsville, Ark., three bass, 8-8, $329
9th: Kyle Hess, Wynne, Ark., three bass, 8-6, $248
10th: Steve McDonald, Greenwood, Ark., three bass, 7-11, $217
Spicer caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 8 pounds, 7 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $242.
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.
The 2019 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will be held May 30-June 1 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism and the Commissioners of Charles County. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com.
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 2019 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct more than 290 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros.
By: Brian Johnson, FLW
