Josh Williams, of Kingston, Oklahoma, and Michael Roger, of Lafayette, Louisiana, weighed 22.66 pounds to win the final regular-season event of the Texas Team Trail presented by Cabela’s (TXTT) on April 29 at Lake Texoma. The winning anglers won a brand-new Triton 189TRX. By participating in the Evinrude contingency program, the anglers upgraded to a 225 horsepower Evinrude outboard. The total boat and motor package is valued at $32,395.
Windy conditions played havoc with the TXTT anglers, causing many to abandon their previous plans. This change in tactics played a key role in Williams and Roger’s win. Due to the tough conditions, the anglers gave up after an attempt to run to their primary area, instead heading to a different marina where they had one spawning bass marked on their GPS.
“We had that one marked, but we caught another bed fish that we stumbled on,” said Williams. “We could barely see the two fish we caught on beds; it was dingy. It was windy, but where we were it was somewhat protected.”
After a lull in action, the anglers left the shallows in search of more spawning bass. Williams and Roger backed away from the bank and hit the jackpot.
“From 1 to 2 p.m. we hit a flurry,” added Roger. “We finished our limit and culled two or three times.”
Williams and Roger’s late flurry came from a series of brush piles in 10 to 12 feet. Their kicker, which registered as the Big Bass of the tournament, weighed 8.70 pounds and won the anglers an additional $1,065.
“This was an old area where I set some brush piles years ago,” said Williams. “We fished some of that old brush and some new brush that someone else planted. All those brush fish were post-spawners.”
The anglers targeted the brush piles with a Texas-rigged Cajun Lures Brush Hawg in watermelon red and sight-fished with a Cajun Lures swim jig with a swimbait trailer.
“The key for us was the wind,” said Williams. “We would’ve went to a different area if it hadn’t been so windy. The wind forced us to slow down and fish thoroughly. It forced us to make multiple casts at the targets.”
In total, the anglers took home $35,290 in winnings.
Robert Lauck and Ted Martin finished a close second with a total of 21.82 pounds. The anglers won a total of $6,667 for their efforts.
Third-place finishers Doyle Idleman and Marco Vaca weighed 21.44 pounds to win $4,415, including $1,220 in Anglers Advantage cash. The duo began their morning on a shad-spawn pattern until the wind closed the window.
“Then we went bed fishing,” said Idleman. “We found them late yesterday on beds. We had probably 10 or 12 marked but we weren’t real sure on the quality because the water was so dingy, even in just two or three feet. But, every fish we weighed came from bed fishing.”
Idleman and Vaca primarily used Biffle Bugs in green pumpkin and watermelon colors. The anglers first got the spawning bass fired up by throwing swimbaits or flukes before following up with the Biffle Bug.
“Late in the day we were in this pocket looking for more beds,” said Idleman. “We came across a laydown and fired a ChatterBait up near it. A giant came up and just smoked the bait, but it only got the trailer. It was a five- to six-pound fish that would have helped us big time. It would’ve culled out a three-pounder.”
The remaining Top 10 are Strickland/Telles (fourth); Albus/Guzman (fifth): Robelia/Parrish (sixth); Reynolds/Thompson (seventh); Yowell/Schott (eighth); Burkett/Burkett (ninth); and McAlester/Alsup (tenth).
The next tournament stop for the TXTT is the championship event set for June 3-4 at Lake Livingston. The two-day championship event will feature increased payouts and higher contingency opportunities. The TXTT Team of the Year race will also be settled on Lake Livingston.
For additional information, anglers are encouraged to call 210-788-4143 or check out the TXTT website at www.texasteamtrail.com. Site visitors can register for events, review the television schedule, get official Texas Team Trail gear, view results and learn more about what’s in store for 2017.
Texas Team Trail events are made possible through the sponsorship and continued support of these well-respected brands: Cabela’s, Ranger Boats, Lucas Oil, RAM, Evinrude, Mercury, Minn Kota, Triton Boats, Power-Pole, Arctic Ice, Stratos Boats, Lowrance, Protect the Harvest, General Tire, SuperClean, Garmin, Valley Fashions, T-H Marine, Atlas, G-Juice, Powertex Group.
By: Greg Duncan, Blue Heron Communications
