Birr wins co-angler title
Brandon Gray of Bullock, North Carolina, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 14 pounds, 3 ounces Sunday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Piedmont Division Super Tournament on Kerr Lake with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 32 pounds, 14 ounces. For his victory, Gray earned $5,886.
Gray said he focused on managing fish in two main areas near Nutbush Creek in order to catch his fish and earn his fourth career win in FLW competition.
“I was running between spots where the fish were near stumps and rock, in the front of grass lines,” said Gray. “I was able catch them in the grass but the bigger-sized bass came right in front of it. I had a couple of other areas with similar cover where I caught several fish, but it really came down to two primary locations.”
Gray said he caught the majority of his bass on a green-pumpkin-colored Shooter Jig rigged with a Zoom Super Chunk and a green and white-colored Old Poe’s crankbait.
“On day one I brought in close to 30 keepers and about 11 on day two,” said Gray. “I just stayed focused. Luckily it all came together and worked out like I hoped.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Brandon Gray, Bullock, N.C., 10 bass, 32-14, $5,886
2nd: Scooter Lilley, Williamston, N.C., 10 bass, 29-12, $2,943
3rd: Chris Daves, Spring Grove, Va., 10 bass, 27-9, $1,964
4th: Shane Burns, Durham, N.C., 10 bass, 26-15, $1,373
5th: Greg Lahr, Fayetteville, N.C., 10 bass, 26-8, $1,177
6th: William Shelton III, La Crosse, Va., 10 bass, 26-7, $1,079
7th: Brian Calloway, Danville, Va., 10 bass, 26-1, $981
8th: Ryan Harrell, Emporia, Va., 10 bass, 25-5, $883
9th: Dennis Burdette, Lindside, W. Va., 10 bass, 25-4, $785
10th: Mike May, Sims, N.C., 10 bass, 24-2, $687
Jeffrey Thomas of Broadway, North Carolina, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 2 ounces and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $795.
Michael Birr of Franklinton, North Carolina, won the co-angler division and $2,943 with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 26 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Michael Birr, Franklinton, N.C., 10 bass, 26-8, $2,943
2nd: Conner Davis, Bear Creek, N.C., seven bass, 24-11, $1,472
3rd: Pat Kendrick, Bumpass, Va., 10 bass, 21-4, $980
4th: Brian Stack, Nanjemoy, Md., eight bass, 20-3, $687
5th: Tony Toombs, Drakes Branch, Va., nine bass, 19-1, $589
6th: Rob Hilliard, Roanoke, Va., nine bass, 18-9, $540
7th: Brian Langford, Petersburg, Va., seven bass, 17-12, $491
8th: James Stowers, Narrows, Va., seven bass, 17-9, $441
9th: Dexter Andrews, Louisburg, N.C., seven bass, 16-1, $392
10th: Derek Brown, Charlottesville, Va., eight bass, 15-6, $343
Davis caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $397.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will now qualify for the Oct. 8-10 Regional Championship on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland. 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 compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Rayovac FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
ABOUT FLW
FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2015 over the course of 240 tournaments across five tournament circuits, four of which provide an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
By: Brian Johnson, FLW
