Cook wins co-angler title
David Millsaps of Ranger, Georgia, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 19 pounds, 11 ounces, Saturday to win the third FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Bama Division tournament of 2016 on Lake Mitchell. For his victory, Millsaps took home $6,414.
Millsaps said he spent the majority of his day fishing a bluff wall stretch on the upper end of the lake.
“I had one area that was really active, especially after the sun came out,” said Millsaps, who earned his third win in FLW competition. “It was a long, straight bluff wall with a dip in it where fish could get out of the current.”
Millsaps said he used a custom brown and black-colored jig to catch approximately 15 keepers throughout the event.
“I was sitting in about 20 feet of water and I’d let the jig slide down the wall,” said Millsaps. “That’s when they’d get it. My biggest bass – a 6-pounder – came from a seawall that had rocks on it. After that, I caught most of my fish between 1 and 3 p.m. – all on the jig.”
The Georgia angler said he filled his five-bass limit with just minutes to spare.
“I boated three in a row on a rocky point which protruded from the bluff wall and ended up weighing two of them,” said Millsaps.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: David Millsaps, Ranger, Ga., five bass, 19-11, $4,414 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Jason Nixon, Wetumpka, Ala., five bass, 16-8, $1,944
3rd: Morgan Brown, Spanish Fort, Ala., five bass, 12-13, $1,297
4th: Michael Smith, Andalusia, Ala., five bass, 12-12, $907
5th: Dustin Connell, Clanton, Ala., five bass, 12-9, $778
6th: Coby Carden, Shelby, Ala., five bass, 12-4, $713
7th: Daniel Graham, Childersburg, Ala., five bass, 11-13, $648
8th: Chris Baxter, Winder, Ga., five bass, 11-12, $883
9th: Kenny Everette, Villa Rica, Ga., five bass, 11-8, $519
10th: David Parsons, Dothan, Ala., five bass, 11-7, $454
Millsaps also caught a 6-pound, 1-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $525.
Jerry Cook of Prattville, Alabama, weighed in five bass totaling 15 pounds even Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $1,944.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Jerry Cook, Prattville, Ala., five bass, 15-0, $1,944
2nd: Jeff Huddleston, Ohatchee, Ala., five bass, 13-13, $972
3rd: Geoff Percival, Lincoln, Ala., five bass, 10-12, $649
4th: Tanner Ellison, Clanton, Ala., five bass, 10-11, $716
5th: Randol Stone, Marianna, Fla., three bass, 8-15, $389
6th: Slaton Jemison, Mathews, Ala., five bass, 8-0, $356
7th: Marcus Corbett, Anniston, Ala., five bass, 7-11, $324
8th: Alvin Hammonds, Hampton, Ga., five bass, 7-6, $275
8th: Bill Hawkins, Piedmont, S.C., five bass, 7-6, $275
10th: Mike Chirico, Brundidge, Ala., five bass, 7-3, $227
Ellison caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 3 pounds, 13 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $262.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 27-29 Regional Championship on Lake Hartwell in Seneca, South Carolina. 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
