Familiar Faces Reel in Win at the Louisiana Saltwater Series Tournament in Slidell
OutdoorHub 07.17.12
This weekend’s top prize at the Louisiana Saltwater Series tournament in Slidell was claimed by the familiar team of brothers Joe and John Barcelona, taking home $2650 in prize money, bringing their 2012 grand total to nearly $6,000.
“We see a lot of familiar faces at our tournaments,” said LASS Tournament Coordinator Danica Williams. “If they didn’t love doing it, they wouldn’t come back.”
After a rough start Saturday morning due to motor troubles, the duo hit the jackpot. “Joe caught three 8-pound fish in a row,” explained John Barcelona. “I wanted to head back but Joe convinced me to try our other spot. I was able to upgrade us by catching an 8.5-pound fish. We headed back for our first early weigh-in ever.”
It was also a successful weekend for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries in their efforts to increase the amount of conventional tags in game fish. Through this partnership between tournament anglers and the Department, 109 redfish were tagged, bringing the 2012 tournament total to 646 redfish.
The top finishing teams, taking home over $10,000 in cash and prizes, include: 2nd place, Nash Roberts and Luke Landry; 3rd place, Brandon Treadaway and Ryan Dolese; 4th place, Barnie White and Steve White; 5th place, Sean O’Connell and Joshua Romig; 6th place, Gary Wilson and Gus Wilson; 7th place, Dewey Holloway and Britt Ordes; 8th place, Jacob Leininger and Jeff Rogers; 9th place, Kris Robert and Benny Sanchez; and 10th place, Bryson Bratcher and Justin Hinote.
Brendan Carter took home first place in the tournament’s youth division.
For redfish tournaments, teams may consist of one, two, three or four members. For teams consisting of three or more members, only two of the members may be 16 or older. There is a $200 entry fee per team for each event. There is a 90 percent payout for the first six events with 10 percent retained for the championship. Payout is determined separately for each event based upon the total number of boats entered.
The next redfish tournament is scheduled for Saturday, August 25 in Cocodrie at Boudreaux’s Marina. For complete information, including rules, regulations and registration go to www.lasaltwaterseries.com.
