Jeff Jennings of Rock Hill, S.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 21 pounds, 12 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Piedmont Division event on High Rock Lake. For his victory, Jennings earned $3,545.
“The day started a little hard for me, but I just kept trying. I didn’t have a fish by 10:00,” said Jennings. “Then I went to one place and caught three good fish in an hour. In practice the same thing happened. I’d have a hard morning and then catch good fish in the afternoon.”
Jennings said he pitched a beaver-style bait to docks and wood cover in up to 10 feet of water. “You could go and hit 25 places without a bite and then catch two or three off the same dock or in the same little stretch.”
Even though Jennings won by more than 2 pounds, he didn’t think he’d have enough to win. “I had a 14-inch fish in my limit and I thought I had 18 or 19 pounds. I thought that 14-inch fish would cost me the tournament”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
| 2nd: | Randy Childers | Anderson, S.C. | five bass | 19-8 | $1,773 |
| 3rd: | Kevin Chandler | New London, N.C. | five bass | 18-8 | $1,004 |
| 4th: | Scott Threadgill | Troy, N.C. | five bass | 18-1 | $1,004 |
| 5th: | Jarrett Freeze | Rockwell, S.C. | five bass | 17-10 | $709 |
| 6th: | Steve Sink | Winston-Salem, N.C. | five bass | 17-6 | $650 |
| 7th: | Scott Guyot | Wagram, N.C. | five bass | 17-4 | $591 |
| 8th: | Ray Griffin | Henderson, N.C. | five bass | 17-3 | $532 |
| 9th: | Eric Moser | Salisbury, N.C. | five bass | 16-9 | $473 |
| 10th: | Jeff Queen | Catawba, N.C. | five bass | 16-3 | $414 |
Marty Daniel of Butler, N.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 15 ounces Saturday to win $1,773 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
| 2nd: | Greg Deal | China Grove, N.C. | five bass | 12-13 | $886 |
| 3rd: | Robert Barrett | Youngsville, N.C. | five bass | 11-15 | $591 |
| 4th: | Arthur Ferguson | Lexington, N.C. | five bass | 11-14 | $414 |
| 5th: | Wayne Smelser | Rural Retreat, Va. | five bass | 11-1 | $355 |
| 6th: | Bradley Chandler | New London, N.C. | four bass | 10-10 | $325 |
| 7th: | Anthony Rife | Woodlawn, Va. | five bass | 9-10 | $295 |
| 8th: | Chuck Morton | Danville, Va. | four bass | 9-6 | $266 |
| 9th: | Wayne Austin | High Point, N.C. | three bass | 9-2 | $236 |
| 10th: | Dennis Middleton | Madison Heights, Va. | four bass | 8-8 | $207 |
The next BFL Piedmont Division tournament is scheduled for September 28-29 on Lake Gaston in Bracey, Va. After the last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct.17-19 Regional Championship on Lake Hartwell in Lavonia, Ga. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 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 40 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 presented by Chevy. The 2013 BFL All-American is being held June 27-29 on Nickajack Lake in Chattanooga, Tenn. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart 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 2013 over the course of 220 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. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water.” For more information about FLW visit the FLWOutdoors website and look for FLW on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube.By: Jody White, Communications Specialist / FLW Outdoors
