Clark wins co-angler title
Scott Manson of Covington, Ohio, weighed four bass totaling 8 pounds, 10 ounces Saturday to win the fourth Walmart Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division tournament on the Ohio River. For his victory, Manson earned
“I started out targeting main-river fish but decided to head into the creeks,” said Manson who has four top-10 finishes in FLW competition. “I had four spots carved out but could only find shad in one creek. I had to be around the shad to get a bite.
“I caught my first bass around 10 a.m. – the biggest fish in the tournament,” continued Manson. “All four of my winning fish ended up coming from a 50- to 100-yard stretch. I just ran back and forth hitting submerged stumps and logs.”
Manson said all of his fish were congregating in about a foot of water.
“I caught three of them on a Junebug-colored Zoom Brush Hog and one on a white spinnerbait,” said Manson. “They were the only keepers I caught all day. Luckily they were heavy enough to win the tournament.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Scott Manson, Covington, Ohio, four bass, 8-10, $3,205 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Kyle Weisenburger, Ottawa, Ohio, five bass, 7-7, $1,603
3rd: Charlie Smith, Union, Ky., five bass, 7-0, $1,068
4th: Rob Cunningham, Cincinnati, Ohio, three bass, 6-5, $748
5th: Cody Seeger, Lewistown, Ohio, five bass, 6-2, $641
6th: Clint Bissonett, Beavercreek, Ohio, five bass, 5-5, $561
6th: John McCart, Williamsburg, Ohio, four bass, 5-5, $561
8th: Kenny Mitchell, Franklin, Ohio, two bass, 5-4, $481
9th: Jim Vitaro, Wooster, Ohio, two bass, 5-1, $427
10th: Jim Lovelace, Liberty Township, Ohio, two bass, 4-5, $374
Manson also caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division, a fish weighing 4 pounds, 14 ounces and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $385.
Don Clark of Cincinnati, Ohio brought three bass to the scale, while Bill Turvey of Oak Hill, Ohio, weighed in four bass, both totaling 5 pounds, 1 ounce Saturday to tie for the win and each earn $1,202 in the co-angler division.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Don Clark, Cincinnati, Ohio, three bass, 5-1, $1,202
1st: Bill Turvey, Oak Hill, Ohio, four bass, 5-1, $1,202
3rd: Darrell Carroll, Independence, Ky., three bass, 4-5, $533
4th: Brian Short, Oxford, Ohio, one bass, 4-4, $374
5th: Ryan Sykes, Hamilton, Ohio, three bass, 3-8, $321
6th: Michael Schwomeyer, Noblesville, Ind., two bass, 2-9, $294
7th: Dennis Sepeck, Bethel, Ohio, two bass, 2-4, $267
8th: B.J. Barnes, Piqua, Ohio, one bass, 2-3, $213
8th: Doyle Donnett, Minster, Ohio, two bass, 2-3, $213
8th: Tyler Waller, Coal Grove, Ohio, two bass, 2-3, $213
Short caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $192.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will 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
