2023 Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Presented by Shore Lunch on Lake Norman Day 2: Edwin Evers Jumps into Lead!

2019 REDCREST champion Edwin Evers leads the field of 20 into the final leg of the tournament. Photo by Garrick Dixon.

Jody White

BASS PRO TOUR

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Through the first two days of Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Presented by Shore Lunch, Lake Norman has proven to be a confusing playing field. Local aces Bryan Thrift and Andy Montgomery made it through the Qualifying Round by the skin of their teeth, we’ve seen big bags of spotted bass, some big largemouth, and some of the big hitters really back off.

Case in point, Dustin Connell and Jacob Wheeler were first and fourth on Day 1, and finished the round in fourth and 18th, with both spending their afternoon scouting far up the river.

Winning the round with 29 pounds, 15 ounces, Edwin Evers is looking for his second REDCREST trophy and seems to have practiced his way into back-to-back impressive days on the Carolina lake. Ending the round in second with 28-8, Casey Ashley has been strikingly consistent fishing exactly how he wants to fish, and practicing for the latter half of Day 2.

With $300,000 and a trophy on the line, the next three days are sure to be interesting. Weights won’t zero, the local favorites are in the hunt, and the weather is about to get rowdy.

Evers eyeing more Norman success

The winner of a 2005 Bassmaster Tour event and a 2010 PAA event on Norman, Evers has fished a nearly perfect tournament so far – at least, as things traditionally go on Norman. A 6-pound largemouth on Day 1 keyed his weight and is the biggest fish of the event by far. Though he’s starting from scratch now, the Oklahoma pro sure sounds like he has a good idea of how to be successful.

“This is one of those lakes where you try to duplicate your patterns, and I’m just trying to really narrow down where the bites are coming from,” Evers said. “It’s been pretty random, from the back of a pocket to a point and everything in between.

Lee Livesay Wins 2022 Bassmaster Elite at Lake Fork!

Canadian Chris Johnston 10th.

Lee Livesay of Longview, Texas, has won the 2022 Simms Bassmaster Elite at Lake Fork with a four-day total of 113 pounds, 11 ounces. (Photo: BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

QUITMAN, Texas — Lee Livesay definitely expected to do well; he just never expected his second consecutive victory on his home waters to be fueled by a “junk” spot.

 

But that’s exactly what happened, as the Longview, Texas, pro turned in a four-day total of 113 pounds, 11 ounces to win the Simms Bassmaster Elite at Lake Fork.

 

Livesay caught 32 pounds on Day 1 and finished just 5 ounces out of the top spot. A second-round limit of 28-10 then gave him the lead with a 4-pound margin over Brandon Palaniuk of Rathdrum, Idaho.

 

Livesay added 27-5 on Semifinal Saturday and entered Championship Sunday with a 3 1/2-pound advantage over Palaniuk. Then his final limit of 25-12 sealed the victory and pushed him past Palaniuk and Gerald Swindle of Guntersville, Ala. — both with 102-2 — by a margin of 11-9.

 

Ties are broken by the heaviest single-day weight. Palaniuk’s 30-1 limit on Day 2 topped Swindle’s Day 1 limit of 29-7.

 

“This week is the most stressful week ever for me because I want to do good for every single person in this crowd that supports me — friends, family, sponsors, everybody,” Livesay said. “This place is special to a lot of people, but it’s special to me because it’s home.

 

“It’s hard to win on your home lake, but I’m a very blessed man.”

 

It marked the third Elite title for Livesay, who won at Lake Fork in 2021 and Chickamauga Lake in 2020. In addition to the $100,000 first-place prize, Livesay claimed his second Century Club belt for breaking 100 pounds in a four-day event. His first was for last year’s Lake Fork winning total of 112-5.

 

Despite intimate Lake Fork knowledge earned through a lifetime of fishing and several years of guiding, Livesay lamented a tough tournament. The lake is down 5 1/2 feet for dam repairs, so many of the spots he fished last year were inaccessible, if not high and dry.

2022 Bassmaster Elite at Lake Fork Day 1: Prince Takes Narrow Lead On Windy Lake Fork

BASS PRESS RELEASE

QUITMAN, Texas. — Early success gave Cliff Prince the comfort and confidence to look for the big bites he needed to amass an eye-popping Day 1 limit of 32 pounds, 5 ounces that leads the Simms Bassmaster Elite at Lake Fork.

 Hailing from Palatka, Fla., site of the Elite season opener on the St. Johns River, Prince leads last year’s Lake Fork champion, local pro Lee Livesay of Longview, Texas, by 5 ounces.

 

“I had one place when I was working my way to the back of a pocket, and I caught 25 to 26 pounds off of that spot by about 9:30,” Prince said. “I caught everything I had off that first spot in about 20 minutes.

 

“I caught 10 fish there and they were still biting when I left.”

 

Knowing he had positioned himself well, Prince transitioned to a more aggressive strategy. Essentially, he became more discerning, as he sought quality over quantity.

 

Crowding throughout the lake, plus a strong Southwest wind blowing 15 to 20 mph, compelled him to remain in the creek where he started and diligently seek its greatest potential.

 

“Having 25 pounds early allowed me to go find what I found this afternoon,” he said. “I wasn’t in a hurry to go anywhere because I knew the wind was going to wipe out a lot of the stuff. I knew (big fish) live in that creek, and I knew it was the right place to be.

 

“I fished around in that area and tried to find something else and, late this afternoon, I tried to duplicate (my morning spot) and I ran across two other points that had some fish. On the second one I fished, I caught two 7-pounders. That’s what made the difference.”

Jon Canada Wins 2022 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit on Pickwick!

MLF PRESS RELEASE

COUNCE, Tenn. – Pro Jon Canada of Helena, Alabama, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 20 pounds even – his biggest limit of the event – to win Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Lithium Pros Stop 3 at Pickwick Lake Presented by Covercraft in Counce, Tennessee. Canada edged out the second-place angler Abu Garcia pro Justin Lucas of Guntersville, Alabama, by 1 pound, 2 ounces to earn the top payout of $100,000. 

After ending Day 1 in 74th place with only 12 pounds, 13 ounces, Canada weighed in the largest limit of Day 2 – five bass totaling 19-15 – to catapult into seventh place. He brought another solid limit of 17-8 to the scale on Day 3, putting him in third place and qualifying him into Championship Sunday. 

“This win is just the good Lord above, I don’t know what else to say – it was just meant to be,” Canada said. “I came here and practiced for two days when the water was down, idling up and down this thing – marking every stump, shell bed, everything you can think of on a 5- to 8-mile stretch of the river and I ended up catching them in some of the areas where I did my homework. 

“I spent most of the event fishing around the same areas as Lucas and (Andrew) Loberg, just fishing a little bit of grass and isolated stumps,” Canada said. “I caught two of the biggest bass I’ve ever caught on Pickwick in this one area during pre-practice for another tournament – a 7-pounder and an 8-pounder.

“I only had two fish at lunchtime on Day 2 and decided to change it up and run out to that spot. I’m not typically a drop-shot guy; but if it works, I’ll do it. I pitched the first couple stumps and had 19 or 20 pounds within 40 minutes, and I knew there was something special going on.” 

With weights zeroed on the final day, the tournament was anyone’s to win, but Canada found himself trailing behind Lucas in the No. 2 spot on the unofficial leaderboard throughout most of the day.

“I felt like the stumps I’d been fishing had a little extra pressure yesterday,” Canada said. “I could see the fish, but they wouldn’t bite and just kept running around and picking at my worm. I decided to idle to a new spot today that I’d never fished before, marked about 20 stumps and caught two big ones.” 

This last-minute move upriver proved very profitable for the Alabama pro, who caught a good kicker fish in the final hour of Championship Sunday to finally push him over the top.  

“Catching that fish this afternoon absolutely saved my tail,” Canada said. “I didn’t realize it was the winning fish, and knew it was going to be close, but I also knew that it definitely put me in contention for the top spot.”

Canada said most of his fish were caught on isolated stumps in 4- to 8-feet of water.

“I spent the first two days swimming a jig with a Reactions Innovations Twerk on the back of it, white-colored with chartreuse tipped ends, then I flipped a Reaction Innovations Spicy Beaver. I caught a lot on the first day doing that,” Canada said. “When I went offshore, I threw a shaky head with a Reaction Innovations Flirt Worm, green-pumpkin colored, and caught a 4-pounder. I decided to switch to a drop-shot because it was faster and allowed me to work the stumps more quickly and thoroughly.” 

Canada said he’s been fishing pretty good this year, but everything just finally came together during this event. 

“The win hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Canada said with a laugh. “It feels great to finally win one. This has been a long time coming.”

The Top 10 pros at the Lithium Pros Stop 3 on Pickwick Lake finished:

• 1st:           Jon Canada of Helena, Ala., five bass, 20-0, $100,000
• 2nd:          Justin Lucas of Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 18-14, $30,000
• 3rd:          Mitch Crane of Columbus, Miss., five bass, 15-14, $25,000
• 4th:           Ron Nelson of Berrien Springs, Mich., five bass, 15-3, $20,000
• 5th:           Nick Hatfield of Greeneville, Tenn., four bass, 14-4, $19,000
• 6th:           John Hunter of Shelbyville, Ky., five bass, 13-12, $18,000
• 7th:           John Cox of DeBary, Fla., five bass, 11-10, $17,000
• 8th:           Andrew Loberg of Rocklin, Calif., four bass, 9-15, $16,000
• 9th:           Nick LeBrun of Bossier City, La., four bass, 7-10, $15,000
• 10th:        Troy Stokes of Trenton, Mich., zero bass, 0-0, $14,000

2022 Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite on Chickamauga Lake Day 1: Jocumsen Score Lead!

Canadians Gustafson 17th, Chris Johnston 32nd  & Cory Johnston 82th

Carl Jocumsen of Toowoomba, Australia, is leading after Day 1 of the 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Chickamauga Lake with 24 pounds, 12 ounces. (Photo: Seigo Saito BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

DAYTON, Tenn. — Despite living just 15 minutes from Chickamauga Lake, Carl Jocumsen insists he doesn’t have a true home-field advantage on the fishery because he spends so much time traveling the country with the Bassmaster Tournament Trail.

 

But he sure seemed to feel at home Thursday.

 

Jocumsen, an Australian pro who relocated to Tennessee a few years back, caught five bass that weighed 24 pounds, 12 ounces to take the opening-round lead in the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Chickamauga Lake. He holds a narrow advantage over Japanese pro Daisuke Aoki (23-12) and Kentucky pro Matt Robertson (21-13) in an event where the conditions seem destined to change by the day.

 

“I might not get a bite tomorrow,” Jocumsen said. “A few of those bites I got today, I sort of knew I was going to get. Now, they’re not there anymore, and I’m gonna have to continually adjust.

 

“With the way the weather is shaping up, the fishing is not going to get better as the week goes on. It’s going to get harder.”

 

The 94-boat field was treated to a typical spring day on Thursday with sunny skies and an afternoon high of 65 degrees. As a result, there were 30 bags of 15 pounds or more brought to the scales and 14 bass over 5 pounds, including the 10-5 that helped Wisconsin pro Pat Schlapper win Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day.

2022 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic Presented by Huk Day 2: Jason Christie and Kyle Welcher Tie for Lead!

Canadians Chris Johnston 14th, Cory Johnston 27th & Gustafson 41th

Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., and Kyle Welcher of Opelika, Ala., are tied with 36 pounds, 7 ounces after Day 2 of the 2022 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk. 
(Photo: BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

GREENVILLE, S.C. — With one day remaining, the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk could not be much tighter, especially at the top of the standings.

 

Veteran Oklahoma pro Jason Christie and third-year Alabama pro Kyle Welcher moved into a tie for the lead during Saturday’s second round on Lake Hartwell, and only 7 pounds separate first place and 25th place as the anglers prepare for Championship Sunday.

 

Christie pushed his total to 36-7 by adding 19-6 on Saturday to the 17-1 he caught Friday. Welcher reached the mark by adding 17-10 to his Day 1 catch of 18-13.

 

After leading two previous Classics on the final day — only to fall just short of a victory — Christie joked that he was almost happy not having the lead to himself.

 

“That’s the best you can have if you feel like leading is bad luck,” he said, laughing. “All week, I’ve just felt like it’s my time. If it’s not, I don’t know when it is. I’m getting older and the fish are getting harder and these young guys are getting better.

 

“So, if this is not my time, I don’t know if it ever will be.”

 

The fishing, Christie said, was not as good as his 19-plus bag suggested. While he said he believes he’s on the right fish to win, the bites came few and far between.

 

“Right now, you feel like you could go out and get two bites more or two bites less and change your whole day,” he said. “Today, for me, if it had been two bites less, I would have weighed in somewhere between 13 or 14 pounds instead of 19.”

 

Utilizing Garmin LiveScope for offshore fishing, coupled with his vast knowledge of shallow-water tactics, Christie used two unnamed lures to catch bass from depths ranging from 6 inches to 30 feet. Unlike many of the anglers fishing this week’s event, he said he hasn’t been able to dial in a pattern around the lake’s massive number of boat docks.

2017 Bassmaster Classic Lake Conroe Day 1: Brent Ehrler Leads with 23-3lbs!

Giant 9-12 largemouth vaults Ehrler into lead. 
By Luigi De Rose

Brent all smiles as he takes the lead on Day 1!
(Photo: BASS)

A windy, cloudy first day of the greatest tournament of the year made for finicky fishing for most Classic anglers on Lake Conroe. Focusing on the morning shad spawn worked for Van Dam and Evers but many including G-man and Coombs couldn't connect making for a terrible morning. The sight fishing bite didn't seem to materialize for most. Neither did the numerous monster Texas bass that swim in Conroe. Mid-morning and into the afternoon produced more larger bass for the top 10 anglers.

Former Toyota Texas Bass Classic (TTBC) winner Brent Ehrler grabbed the lead anchored with a 9-10lb Texas giant. That bass was the Berkley Big Bass Day 1 winner. Brent spent most of the day in the mid-lake region.

Classic rookie, Bradley Roy grabbed second with 22-01lbs. Cliff Crochet, 22-08 for third, had a steady fishing day in the shallows of the upper regions of the lake. He said the fishing was consistent and matched his power fishing style well.

Mike Iaconelli, 21-02lbs for 4th had a slow morning except for the capture of a 6 lber which kept his spirits high as he remained in the lower section of the lake.

Clifford Pirch rounded out the top 5 with 20-11lbs. Clifford started along the dam among Van Dam, Ike and several others. He had a mid-moring flurry which several key bass were landed.

Experts agree that monster bass will make the difference of whom heroes or zeros. Ehrler's near 10 pound largemouth made a world of difference; without it he would be far from the lead. Ike's morning was set with a solid 6 pounder caught on a Carolina rig. He openly stated that it helped him confidently fish slowly all day.

Surprizingly, 4 of the Top 10, Brent Ehrler, Mike Iaconelli, Dave Lefebre and Matt Herren are past  Toyota Texas Bass Classic winners. Their past wins might offer them great understanding of the nuances of these Texas big bass lakes. Saturday's sunny, calmer weather should allow Classic angler great freedom to fish throughout the lake in search of a few monsters.

2017 Walmart FLW Tour Lake Travis Day 3: Thrift Retakes Lead as Rose Sit Second!

Gustafson finishes 13th. 

by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

When it comes to the top spot in an FLW Tour event, Bryan Thrift and Mark Rose seem to be getting in each other’s way a lot these days. And going into the final day of the FLW Tour presented by Quaker State on Lake Travis, this reoccurring theme has happened again.

The last time the two parted ways at Lake Guntersville just a couple weeks ago, Rose walked away with an FLW Tour trophy and Thrift was left in the runner-up spot. Going into the final day at Guntersville, Rose was the leader and Thrift the pursuer. When the day ended, Thrift came within a pound of stealing Rose’s glory.

Thrift scratches up 11-07lb limit to take lead.
(Photo: FLW)

Now the tables are turned: Bryan Thrift is now the leader and Rose will be following Thrift out tomorrow, and – ironically - the two heavyweights are separated by just a pound.

Thrift is still riding the wave of a momentous day one when he weighed in nearly 25 pounds to lead the event. Since then he has dug in his fingernails, with subsequent catches of 9-6 and 11-7 to keep himself on top. However, his last two days put together don’t equal what he caught the first day.

2017 Walmart FLW Tour Lake Travis Day 2: Patek Leads with 36-06lbs!

Gustafson 13th, Chris Johnston 32nd, Richardson 37th & Cory Johnston 134th. 
by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Pre-spawn staging area moves Patek into lead.
(Photo: FLW)

Stephen Patek of Garland, Texas is fishing his third year on the FLW Tour and for the first time in his short career he finds himself leading an FLW Tour event after day two of the FLW Tour at Lake Travis presented by Quaker State.

After loading up 20 pounds, 5 ounces on the scale on day one, Patek backed it up with 14-1 today to nudge Bryan Thrift off the lead by 4 ounces with a two-day total of 34 pounds, 6 ounces.

Patek owes the bulk of his catch to a single-cast hot spot that he found on the third day of practice while graphing.

“When I idled over it, it looked like a loaded ledge on Kentucky Lake,” he says. “I spun around, made one cast and caught a 2-pounder and left. I didn’t return until yesterday morning and caught them pretty quick.”

Matt Arey Wins the 2014 Walmart FLW Beaver Lake Tournament

Arey Arrives!
by Curtis Niedermier
FLW Press Release

ROGERS, Ark. - Prior to this week, if you tried to define the current status of Beaver Lake’s largemouth bass spawn and the career of Shelby, N.C., pro Matt Arey, you needed only one phrase: close, but not quite there.

Sticking to his strengthen allowed Arey to take win!
(Photo: FLW)

After today’s weigh-in at the John Q. Hammons center in Rogers, Ark., Arey proved that both he and the bass have arrived in a big way.

In four days, Arey hauled in a total of 59 pounds, 3 ounces of Beaver Lake bass to win the Walmart FLW Tour event presented by Rayovac and hosted by Visit Rogers.

While other pros went looking for bass stuck in those in-between transitional areas, Arey refined a perfect shallow, stained-water pattern that allowed Beaver’s prespawn and early spawning bass to come to him. Then he made the gutsy call to commit to that pattern all week despite four consecutive days of shifting weather patterns. His steadfastness earned him his first Walmart FLW Tour title as a professional and one more piece of hardware to display next to his 2006 Forrest Wood Cup co-angler trophy.

“This is what I’ve dreamed of since I was a kid,” Arey said as he choked back tears on the weigh-in stage. “I really didn’t think I had near as much as I had. I thought I might have 13 pounds, and that’s what the on-the-water crew thought. I thought I might have 14 at most. But it all came together. When it’s your time, it’s your time.”