Troy Morrow of Toccoa, Ga., caught four bass weighing 8 pounds, 11 ounces Saturday to win $120,000 at the 2010 BFL All-American presented by Chevy on DeGray Lake. Morrow had a three-day catch of 14 bass weighing 38-13.
The catch gave him a solid 8-pound, 1-ounce win over Tee Watkins of East Point, Ky., who caught a total of 11 bass weighing 30-12 and earned $30,000.
“This lake fit me to a ‘T’,” said the self-employed Morrow, who won his first BFL All-American tournament in two tries. “I had a great practice and found over 90 spots, so I spent the entire week running the lake from spot to spot. I was fishing off shore all week with a fluke in the morning and crankbatis in the afternoon.
“I think the one thing I was doing all week differently than the locals was steadily reeling the fluke with a small quiver. That quiver made the tail move which is what got ?em; they didn’t want anything loud, all my noise makers had rubber rattles.. All my big fish I caught using a crankbait, Spro Little John DD.
“This was a life changing event for me. I can’t wait to get to the Forrest Wood Cup. Lake Lanier is only 35 minutes away from my house and I like my chances.”
Morrow opened the tournament in second place Thursday with five bass weighing 13-12. He then caught five bass weighing 16-6 on Friday to make the crucial top-10 cut in first place.
“I have been fishing by the seat of my pants all week,” said Tee Watkins, who was fishing in his first All-American and placed second. “I took a bit of a gamble and fished shallow the entire time. I knew I had to fish a perfect tournament and I lost two nice ones on day one and that is what cost me the tournament; but I am thrilled to be here and proud to finish second.”
Rounding out the top-10 boaters are:
| 3rd: | Keith Green | Arkadelphia, Ark. | 13 bass | 30-8 | $16,000 |
| 4th: | Chris Darby | Mount Ida, Ark. | 12 bass | 29-6 | $21,000* |
| 5th: | Jason Threadgill | Norwood, N.C. | 14 bass | 29 | $13,000 |
| 6th: | Richie | Nauvoo, Ill. | 13 bass | 27-1 | $17,000* |
| 7th: | Brandon Palaniuk | Rathdrum, Idaho | 10 bass | 23-11 | $15,500* |
| 8th: | Shonn Goodwin | Moore, Okla. | 9 nine bass | 20-13 | $9,000 |
| 10th | Jason Grape | Southside, Ala. | 6 bass | 19-4 | $11,000* |
*Includes Ranger Boat bonus
Overall there were 25 bass weighing 50 pounds, 13 ounces caught by five pros Saturday. The catch included one five-bass limits.
Brett Rudy of Burlington, Iowa, won the Co-angler Division and $60,000 on Saturday with a three-day total of six bass weighing 21 pounds, 4 ounces followed by Jeremy Rasnick of Point Lookout, Mo., in second place with 12 bass weighing 18-7 worth $17,000.
“I caught my big fish at about 10 this morning. I was using a deep diving crankbait that I have never thrown before,” said Rudy, who is a firefighter/paramedic making his first BFL All-American appearance. “I am so glad this is over, now my heart can start beating normally again!”
Rudy caught one bass weighing 3-6 on Thursday while fishing with boater Eric Guimond of Standish, Maine. Today he caught his three fish while fishing with Jay Keith of Camden, S.C.
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
| 3rd: | Matt King | Olathe, Kan. | 9 bass | 15-11 | $6,500 |
| 4th: | Ray Holloway | Snellville, Ga. | 9 bass | 14-11 | $5,000 |
| 5th: | Randy Pierson | Oakdale, Calif. | 6 bass | 13-14 | $6,000* |
| 6th: | Ben Due | Mauston, Wis. | 7 bass | 13-11 | $4,000 |
| 7th: | Jerry Pyles | Middletown, Md. | 8 bass | 11-11 | $3,500 |
| 8th: | Charlie Russler | Falling Waters, W.Va. | 8 bass | 11-6 | $4,200* |
| 9th | David Hamilton | Rogers, Ark. | 4 bass | 9-15 | $2,500 |
| 10th: | Adam Williamson | Ridgeway, S.C. | 6 bass | 9-2 | $2,000 |
*Includes Ranger Boat bonus
Morrow and Rudy also earned a spot at the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Forrest Wood Cup will be held Aug. 5-8 at Lake Lanier in Atlanta, Ga.
Coverage of the BFL All-American tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” will air Nov. 28 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.
ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, call (270) 252-1000.By: Julie Huber,
