Beckley wins co-angler title
Nick Lebrun of Bossier City, Louisiana, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 22 pounds, 13 ounces, Saturday to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Cowboy Division tournament on Toledo Bend Lake presented by Minn Kota. For his victory, Lebrun took home $4,866.
Lebrun said he spent his day targeting shallow hay grass on the south end of the lake.
“I ended up making my way through two areas that I knew had fish in them,” said Lebrun, who earned his second win in BFL competition this season. “I originally had four, but due to the severe weather, two of my main-lake stops were blown out. I had to make do with what I had.”
Lebrun said he used one bait to catch his limit – a black and blue-colored V&M Wild Craw Jr.
“When I pitch and flip in shallow water, I commit to a lure that I’m confident with,” said Lebrun. “I caught an 8-pounder at 8:30 a.m. and a 3- and a 4-pounder from my second area – all before 10:30 a.m. After that, bites were hard to come by. For me, it was recognizing the productivity of the cover I was fishing, and knowing when to move on.”
The Louisiana angler said he ended up catching 10 keepers.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Nick Lebrun, Bossier City, La., five bass, 22-13, $4,866
2nd: Glen Freeman, Converse, La., five bass, 20-1, $2,136
3rd: Terry Cole, Houston, Texas, four bass, 19-13, $1,424
4th: Darold Gleason, Leesville, La., five bass, 18-10, $997
5th: Zack Gagnard, Pineville, La., five bass, 17-10, $854
6th: Jarred Williams, Bunkie, La., five bass, 16-6, $783
7th: Dean Lee, Longview, Texas, five bass, 14-11, $712
8th: Dicky Newberry, Houston, Texas, five bass, 14-7, $641
9th: Eason Dowden, Many, La., four bass, 14-3, $569
10th: Jeff Bridges, Lumberton, Texas, five bass, 14-1, $498
Lebrun also caught an 8-pound, 12-ounce brute – the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $595.
Hogan Beckley of Grayson, Louisiana, weighed in five bass totaling 14 pounds even Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $2,136.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Hogan Beckley, Grayson, La., five bass, 14-0, $2,136
2nd: Jason Chance, Houston, Texas, three bass, 10-3, $1,365
3rd: David Cox, Silsbee, Texas, five bass, 8-13, $712
4th: Garry Fisher, Wylie, Texas, four bass, 8-12, $462
4th: Jacob Harrison, Nash, Texas, four bass, 8-12, $462
6th: Joe Marino, Bryan, Texas, four bass, 8-11, $392
7th: Bobby Liles, Texarkana, Ark., three bass, 8-6, $356
8th: Michael Cotter, Arlington, Texas, four bass, 7-12, $320
9th: Zachary Burns, Prairieville, La., three bass, 7-7, $285
10th: Chris LaBorde, Bossier City, La., four bass, 7-6, $249
Chance caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 8 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $297.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 27-29 Regional Championship on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Arkansas. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 50 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and 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. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
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
By: Brian Johnson, FLW
