Robertson wins co-angler title
Ryan Powroznik of Prince George, Virginia, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 18 pounds even Saturday to win the second FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Shenandoah Division tournament of 2016 on Lake Gaston. For his victory, Powroznik took home $6,665.
“I started out sight-fishing on the lower end of the lake in Pea Hill Creek,” said Powroznik, who earned the third win of his FLW career. “It was just about the only place on the lake where the water wasn’t stained, so I knew I wanted to be there for the tournament. I was able to get two decent bass in the boat using a green-pumpkin-colored Zoom Trick Worm rigged on a custom shaky-head jig.
“Around 9 o’clock I began skipping docks in Pea Hill and Lee’s Creek that had produced for me in the past,” Powroznik continued. “I probably hit 50 of them and used the shaky-head to catch my first limit. I almost had my weight by 10:30 a.m.”
Powroznik said he relocated to the north end of the lake around 1:30 p.m. to fish docks, laydowns and rocks. He said he caught his final bass with minutes to spare on a green-pumpkin jig rigged with a green-pumpkin Zoom Super Chunk.
“I figured I needed one more bite to push me over the top and that was it,” said Powroznik. “Even though it was just over 3 pounds, it was the difference maker at the scale. Those ounces earned me the win.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Ryan Powroznik, Prince George, Va., five bass, 18-0, $6,665
2nd: Brandon Abernathy, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 17-13, $2,582
3rd: Sean Lewis, Baskerville, Va., five bass, 17-0, $1,722
4th: Les King, Owings, Md., five bass, 16-13, $1,205
5th: Chris Dillow, Waynesboro, Va., five bass, 16-12, $1,333
6th: Ryan Harrell, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 16-7, $947
7th: Michael Garner, Skippers, Va., five bass, 16-5, $861
8th: Rob Uzzle, Hampton, Va., five bass, 16-3, $775
9th: Bo Grosvenor, Forest, Va., five bass, 16-1, $689
10th: Shane Burns, Durham, N.C., five bass, 15-10, $603
Ricky Bomar of Lynchburg, Virginia, caught a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $805.
Mark Robertson of Henderson, North Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 13 pounds, 14 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $2,582.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Mark Robertson, Henderson, N.C., five bass, 13-14, $2,582
2nd: Scott Howard, Bedford, Va., five bass, 13-13, $1,291
3rd: Jamaine Brown, Halifax, Va., three bass, 13-8, $863
4th: Lew Jenkins, Waldorf, Md., three bass, 12-10, $961
4th: Stevie Mazingo, Bedford, Va., five bass, 12-10, $559
6th: Garrett Towler, Powhatan, Va., four bass, 11-15, $473
7th: Angello Bryant, Wake Forest, N.C., four bass , 10-13, $430
8th: Joe Rinaldi, Ashburn, Va., five bass, 10-9, $387
9th: Brett Stewart, Hopewell, Va., two bass, 10-6, $344
10th: Gregory Dawson, Rustburg, Va., five bass, 10-1, $301
Jenkins caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 15 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $402.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 6-8 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North 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
