2021 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers on the Potomac River Day 2: Hibdon Continues Lead!

Canadian Erik Luzak 109th

Another generation of the Hibdon clan using a jig to claim the
lead for a second day. (Photo: MLF) 

Kyle Wood

TACKLE WAREHOUSE PRO CIRCUIT 

Press Release 

Day 2 of the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers on the Potomac River was tougher for some, but not for leader Lawson Hibdon, who bested his Thursday weight and added another 17 pounds, 8 ounces to his total to bring himto 34-8 after two days. Extending his lead to more than 2 pounds, Hibdon is looking to keep on pace for a win in his rookie season, though it won’t be an easy road as some certified hammers sit in the rearview waiting to strike.

Still, Lawson has proven to be one of the most consistent pros in the field, though he says his Day 2 looks better on paper than it actually was.

“It started off a lot slower than I was hoping,” Hibdon said. “I really thought that I was going to be able to pull up to a stretch of docks and catch about 12 pounds in the first 30 minutes and I didn’t.

“It was a lot tougher day today, and it doesn’t look like it, but it was. I only caught eight or nine keepers and had about 15 bites but they were just missing it and it was a weird day.”

With years of experience on Ozark fisheries, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Hibdon has been catching fish off docks. What may come as a surprise is the fact he’s leaning on grass as well and doing a good job of it.

“It’s probably a 50-50 split,” he said of his grass and hard-cover pattern. “Some of the bigger ones I’ve caught have been around docks, rocks and basically anything that looks right. I’m just going until I see something that looks right, but about half of ‘em have been out of the grass too.”

2021 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers on the Potomac River Day 1: Hibdon Leads with 17lb!

Lawson Hibdon grabs lead in bass fest first day!
(Photo: MLF

Kyle Wood

TACKLE WAREHOUSE PRO CIRCUIT 

Press Release 

Day 1 of the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers on the Potomac River was a certified banger. Federal Ammunition Stop 5 Presented by Lucas Oil featured not only a strong leading weight, but more than 20 bags over 15 pounds on the first day. Leading the pack, Lawson Hibdon put 17 pounds even on the scale to edge ahead of Zell Rowland’s 16-15 by just 1 ounce. Going into Day 2, the pressure could slow things down a bit, but there’s no reason to think the fishing will drop off too much, which should make for a fun race well into the weekend.

Lawson, who’s the son of legendary pro Dion Hibdon, is far from his home in the Ozarks of Missouri, but he’s not letting that stop him from making hay on the Potomac.

“I’ve been [to the Potomac] three or four times I think, never as a pro,” says the 26-year-old rookie. “I’ve fished as a co-angler and practiced with dad a lot, but I don’t have a lot of experience.

“I’m trying to stay away from people a bit, but I still had to fish around ‘em a time or two today. The biggest thing I figured out was that I had to slow way down. I really expected to weigh 12, 13 pounds like you’re seeing a lot of those stringers, but I slowed down with a worm and caught some better ones today. It was very unexpected, I was not ready for it at all, but it worked out today.”

Those with experience on tidal fisheries like the Potomac tend to make a game plan to run the tide to maximize their time in certain stretches of the river during prime times. Hibdon is certainly not one of them.

2021 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk, on Lake Ray Roberts Pre-Classic Summary

Lake Ray Roberts in transition

By Luigi De Rose 

Texas legend, Zell Rowland explains Ray Roberts.
(Photo: Zell Rowland) 

The 51st. Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk, on Lake Ray Roberts and hosted in Fort Worth Texas on June 11-13, is set to be as exciting and spell bounding as the 50 Classics before it.  Originally planned for March, it was rescheduled to June due to Covid 19. The 54 Classic anglers will fish Lake Ray Roberts, a 29 350-acre reservoir north of Denton, Texas, and the weigh-in will be held in Fort Worth.

A shining star, Lake Ray Roberts isn’t a popular venue on the national tournament circuits yet is should make Texas proud. Overshadowed by legendary San Rayburn, Lake Fork and Toledo Bend, Ray Roberts is a strong fishery. With an excellent largemouth population, Ray Roberts has good numbers and plenty of 5-to-7-pound bass making it a great venue.  

Zell Rowland, a Texas native with 4 decades of tournament angling along with 5 BASS wins and 16 Classics and 1 FLW Cup under his belt predicts that the 2021 Classic winner will have to play the current water conditions and weather to perfection.

Weather

The entire State of Texas has experienced wild and weird weather since the very beginning of 2021. A severe winter storm in February, which saw temperatures plummet well below freezing, set the precedent. A slow thaw prolonged the spawn delaying the typical timetable anglers are accustomed to fishing. Along with a drawn-out spring, the rains have yet to stop coming. Many of the State’s big reservoirs are at flood levels; San Rayburn, in Jasper, Texas, is 11 feet above normal pool. As of Sunday, June 6, Ray Roberts is above normal pool but not at a catastrophic stage yet. Jeff “Gussy'' Gustafson, the 2021 Tennessee River BASS Elite Champion and a Classic qualifier states “that most of the trees have at least 3 feet of water around them and many of the local boat ramps are down due to the high water.”

The weather forecast called for rain and chances of thunderstorms for much of the official Classic practice period. For Monday, June 7, there is a Flash Flood warning for much of the Ray Roberts area.  Luckily, the storm weather looks like it will subside during the three tournament days, greeted anglers with sunny, hot days and light winds.

There is a fear that the lake level might need to be drawn down suddenly to offset the highwater level especially if the flash flood warning comes into fruition.   

Practice

“I’ve tried to make the deep bite work but the fish don’t seem to be out here.” Explains Gustafson.  “It’s been a difficult practice for me and my buddies. It’s been tough to catch a big one.” For any southern angler, June translates to fishing out deep. Humps, creek channels, long points and main lake ledges are the norm.  Jeff, a 2 time Classic qualifier, feels that under the current fishing conditions, a lot of good anglers will not be able to catch a 5 bass limit every day of the Classic.  

Jeff "Gussy" Gustafson hunting for this first Classic win.
(Photo: Brandon Palaniuk) 

When the announcement was made that the Classic was postponed to June, Jeff Gustafson took notice. An award-winning smallmouth angler, he loves probing the depths for bass. A June Classic with a consistent deep-water bite fit Gustafson’s fishing style well. “I’d prefer to fish deep as I like it and its my preference but I’ve put a lot of time out deep and haven’t be able to make it work.” Summarizes Jeff. (He was actually idling over deep-water locations while we spoke on the phone.)

Learn to fish topwaters better with Zell Rowland and IBASSIN

Tournament pro Zell Rowland is called Mr. Topwater. Learn from the master as he explains to IBASSIN.com how to become better at fishing a top water plug. Zell Rowland explains how to modify your baits for spring, summer or fall and how to adjust to changing water temperatures. He'll advises on how to get the best action from poppers, devil horse prop baits and spooks. Zell also explains how line size will change lure action.

Jason Christie Wins the 2014 Bassmaster Elite Lake Dardanelle Event!

Christie Wins by 4-ounces!
by Deb Johnson

Bass press release

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Jason Christie pulled off a 4-ounce “wonder” win Sunday in the Bassmaster Elite at Lake Dardanelle.

It wasn’t a case of anyone thinking that a Christie victory would be a wonder. After all, the pro from Park Hill, Okla., was already an Elite champ from the 2013 season, and has a very successful career going. It was Christie himself who was kept guessing.

Jason beats out G-man to win. His win also includes
a free pass to the 2015 Classic.
(Photo: Seigo Saito BASS)

“At what point did you know you’d won this?” a reporter asked Christie, who had started out the championship round in fourth place.

“When they announced on stage I was the winner,” Christie replied. “To be 3 pounds back, and feeling like I needed low 20s (pounds) to win, makes the win special,” he said.

His prize was $100,000 and a win-you’re-in qualification for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic.

Christie produced a final-day weight close to what he thought he needed to win: 19 pounds, 2 ounces. His four-day total was 72 pounds, 3 ounces.

His margin of victory was 4 ounces over Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala., finishing in second place with 71-15 after producing the day’s largest weight of 20-1.

2014 Bassmaster Elite Lake Dardanelle Day 3: Greg Hackney Hold onto First, Clunn Closing

Greg and Rick Clunn battle it out!

by Deb Johnson

Bass press release

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Saturday, after holding on to the lead in the May 15-18 Bassmaster Elite at Lake Dardanelle by 13 ounces, Greg Hackney said he might be left with too many choices for Sunday’s final round.

“I honestly couldn’t even say what I’m going to do tomorrow,” he said after weighing 16 pounds, 10 ounces for a three-day total of 56-8 and the tournament lead for two days running.

“I know too many places,” said the Arkansas native now living in Gonzales, La. “Should I go here, should I go there? You’re liable to pull up and catch them anywhere, with the good conditions we have right now — if you’re doing the right thing. The lake is full of fish.”

Not every bass made it into Greg Hackney's boat but the
ones that did counted.
(Photo: James Overstreet BASS)

Born in Star City, Ark., Hackney cut his fishing teeth on the Arkansas River, including its Lake Dardanelle impoundment. That ingrained knowledge of the river fishery has helped him immensely at this Elite event.

Every bass angler knows the name of the angler behind Hackney by 13 ounces -- Rick Clunn. From Ava, Mo., Clunn is a 32-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier and holder of 14 Bassmaster titles, including four prestigious Classic crowns.

In the Dardanelle event — the 401st Bassmaster competition of his storied career — Clunn moved up from fifth place after posting 19 pounds, 8 ounces Saturday for a three-day weight of 55-11, enough to launch a serious bid for the win. It would be his first Bassmaster victory since 2002.

2014 Bassmaster Elite Lake Dardanelle Day 2: Greg Hackney Leaps into Lead.

by Deb Johnson

bass press release 

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Patience certainly does have its virtues. Just ask Greg Hackney, the new leader in the Bassmaster Elite Series at Lake Dardanelle.

After landing a 4-pound largemouth soon after competition began Friday, Hackney stuck it out in the same area the rest of the day, working through a series of dry spells without a bite. By day’s end, he was rewarded with five largemouth that weighed in at 18 pounds and 1 ounce.

Hackney enjoys lead after many poor tournaments. This could be his turn around tournament.
(Photos: BASS)

“There were flurries when it was better, but overall it was pretty slow fishing,” Hackney said. “I wasn’t necessarily fishing dead slow, but I was thorough. This lake is full of fish, but you can go a while between bites.”

Hackney, in second place after Thursday’s first round, changed places with John Crews, the first-day leader. Hackney’s two-day total was 39-14 to Crews’ 39-5, for a spread of 9 ounces between them. On Thursday, Crews had 12 ounces on Hackney.

Zell Rowland of Montgomery, Texas, was Friday’s biggest mover. In 87th place after Thursday, Rowland produced 25-5 Friday to rocket into third place with a total of 37-1.