Jones Wins Walmart Bass Fishing Ozark Division Event on Table Rock Lake
OutdoorHub 05.19.14
Matthew Jones of Spokane, Mo., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 15 pounds, 11 ounces Saturday to win the third Walmart Bass Fishing League Ozark Division tournament of 2014 on Table Rock Lake. For his victory, Jones earned $3,247.
“I caught all of my fish off of beds,” said Jones, who had two previous top-10 finishes on Table Rock Lake in FLW competition before earning his victory. “After takeoff I made a 15 minute run to the dam area. I went there during my pre-fish on Friday and had found quite a few bass on beds. I’m glad I looked on Friday, because the conditions were cloudy on Saturday and you couldn’t see them anymore. That probably helped me, though, because I knew where they were but they couldn’t see me.”
Jones said that he caught just seven keepers throughout the day and all came by throwing a green-pumpkin-colored Zoom Critter Craw.
“My batteries ended up being pretty crucial for me,” Jones said. “I needed to cover a lot of water and I was using my trolling motor pretty hard and heavy. Battery Outfitters took care of me and made sure that I had the power I needed to fish all day long.
“Table Rock is my home lake, and I usually get to fish on it twice a week,” Jones went on to say. “When I would fish in tournaments five or six years ago I used to avoid bed-fishing because I was not very good. I have been really working hard at improving over the last two or three years, though, and I feel like it is now one of my strengths.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Paul Brunson, Mountain Home, Ark., five bass, 14-6, $1,623
3rd: B.J. Davis, Mountain Home, Ark., five bass, 14-2, $1,082
4th: Rick Johnston, Webb City, Mo., five bass, 13-13, $758 + $300 Evinrude Bonus
5th: J.D. Marlar, Chester, Ark., five bass, 13-5, $649
6th: Craig Dort, Rogersville, Mo., five bass, 12-14, $595
7th: David Short, Washington, Mo., five bass, 12-10, $541
8th: Ronnie Dobbs, Shell Knob, Mo., five bass, 12-2, $460
8th: Larry Stoafer, Leavenworth, Kan., five bass, 12-2, $460 + $300 Evinrude Bonus
10th: Marty Bohlke Jr., Nixa, Mo., five bass, 11-15, $379
Complete results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Dewey Larson of Fayetteville, Ark., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 11 pounds, 2 ounces Saturday to win $1,623 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: James Tucker, Pacific, Mo., five bass, 11-1, $812
3rd: Kevin Manion, Park Hills, Mo., five bass, 10-8, $541
4th: Wes Proctor, Manhattan, Kan., five bass, 10-0, $379
5th: Sam Bremmerkamp, Joplin, Mo., five bass, 9-15, $325
6th: Chris Klenke, Labadie, Mo., five bass, 9-10, $298
7th: Jay Myers, Hillsboro, Mo., five bass, 9-7, $271
8th: Craig Hulsey, Park Hills, Mo., five bass, 9-6, $244
9th: Donnie Agnew, Farmington, Mo., five bass, 9-5, $202
9th: Roger Edwards, Tuscumbia, Mo., five bass, 9-5, $202
The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 16-18 Regional Championship on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Jasper, Texas. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, 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 40 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 presented by Chevy. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Rayovac FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
