Humphrey wins co-angler title
Local angler Robert Reagan of Byrdstown, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 10 ounces, Saturday to win the first FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Music City Division tournament of 2016 on Dale Hollow Lake. For his victory, Reagan took home $7,155.
Reagan said he caught his winning stringer out of mid-lake chunk rock scattered throughout 20 different areas. He said he was able to catch four bass fairly quickly using a homemade jig rigged with a green-pumpkin Zoom Super Speed Craw.
“I caught them shallow in 3 to 4 feet of water,” said Reagan, who earned his second career win in FLW competition. “After that, my goal was to find the largest kicker possible.”
Around noon, Reagan said the jig bite slowed down so he began targeting channel banks within his areas using an umbrella rig with SXE Shad-colored Roboworm EZ Shad swimbaits.
“The bass were near the surface and bit as soon as the rig hit the water,” said Reagan. “I was only able to get two in the boat, but they were decent-sized fish.
“My biggest bass came on the umbrella rig and that put me on top,” Reagan went on to say. “I don’t think I would’ve won without it.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Robert Reagan, Byrdstown, Tenn., five bass, 20-10, $5,155 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Jonathan Green, East Bernstadt, Ky., five bass, 19-6, $2,078
3rd: Daniel Johnson, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 18-12, $1,383
4th: Gary Bowens, Byrdstown, Tenn., five bass, 17-9, $970
5th: Rick Looper, Livingston, Tenn., five bass, 17-0, $831
6th: William Merrick, Mount Juliet, Tenn., five bass, 16-10, $727
6th: Brock Jones, Livingston, Tenn., five bass, 16-10, $727
8th: Darryl Nelson, Rickman, Tenn., five bass, 16-8, $623
9th: Jake Cross, Byrdstown, Tenn., five bass, 16-6, $554
10th: Chris Gerrein, Villa Hills, Ky., five bass, 16-0, $485
Todd Yocum off Danville, Kentucky, caught a 6-pound, 8-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $570.
Darryl Humphrey of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, weighed in five bass totaling 18 pounds, 8 ounces Saturday to earn $2,341 and win the co-angler division.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Darryl Humphrey, Murfreesboro, Tenn., five bass, 18-8, $2,341
2nd: Josh Bates, Pulaski, Tenn., five bass, 15-8, $1,030
3rd: J.P. Sims, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 14-2, $687
4th: Greg Trobaugh, Rickman, Tenn., four bass, 13-15, $480
5th: Matthew McKinney, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 12-15, $412
6th: Michael Birdwell, Granville, Tenn., five bass, 12-5, $378
7th: Jon Wills, Danville, Ky., four bass, 11-0, $343
8th: Jacob Isaacs, Lexington, Ky., four bass, 10-15, $309
9th: Scott Watkins, Allons, Tenn., four bass, 10-2, $275
10th: Brian Dillard, Bowling Green, Ky., three bass, 9-11, $240
Humphrey also caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 2 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $282.
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
