Stevens Wins Walmart Bass Fishing League Bama Division on Lake Eufaula
OutdoorHub 03.19.12
Terry Stevens of Marianna, Fla., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 7 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Bama Division event on Lake Eufaula. For his victory, Stevens earned $3,592.
“The weather was absolutely perfect for sight-fishing,” said Stevens. “Sunny and 80 degrees, not much wind; It was beautiful. I was using a Green Bluegill-colored Big Bite Baits Warmouth, and I caught most of my bass off of the beds with it sight fishing. I had some success throwing a Senko around the shallows, and I caught my last bass, a nice 5-pounder, with a black and blue swimming jig. Most of my keepers came on the Warmouth, though.
I caught at least 15 keepers today,” Stevens continued. “There were a lot of fish up shallow. It seemed the bass were in all different patterns. Some were still spawning, some were post-spawn, and it looked to me like there was still some that were coming up. The bass were not in real good shape last year on Eufaula, but they seem to be making a nice comeback.”
This victory was especially sweet for Stevens because he edged out second-place finisher FLW Tour pro Micah Frazier by a mere two ounces. Frazier is fresh off of cashing a $35,000 check for a second-place finish at the Walmart FLW Tour event on Lake Hartwell last weekend.
“He made it really close, but he came up a little short,” Stevens said about Frazier. “I’ve been on that side of it many times, so it’s nice to get the win. The BFL tournaments are very hard to win and they are certainly not lacking top competition.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Micah Frazier, Newnan, Ga., five bass, 20-5, $1,796
3rd: M. Keith Bardolf, Enterprise, Ala., five bass, 17-8, $1,201
4th: Shane Powell, Midland City, Ala., five bass, 17-7, $838
5th: Scott Montgomery, Eufaula, Ala., five bass, 16-12, $718
6th: Yancy Windham, Reform, Ala., five bass, 15-15, $659
7th: Jason Nixon, Wetumpka, Ala., five bass, 15-0, $599
8th: Scott Hayes, Newnan, Ga., five bass, 14-9, $539
9th: Bobby D. Padgett, LaGrange, Ga., five bass, 14-3, $479 + $1,000 Evinrude Bonus
10th: Dylan Wylie, Carrollton, Ga., five bass, 14-1, $419
Complete results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Gregory Nunnelly of Ohatchee, Ala., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 13 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to win $1,796 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Jay Galimore, Auburn, Ala., five bass, 12-9, $898
3rd: John Drew Jr., Sherman Oaks, Calif., five bass, 11-13, $598
4th: Mike Mahady, Kennesaw, Ga., five bass, 10-10, $419
5th: Randy Campbell, Cataula, Ga., five bass, 10-2, $359
6th: Timothy Carter, Lanett, Ala., five bass, 10-0, $329
7th: Josh Hughes, Summertown, Tenn., three bass, 8-10, $299
8th: Frank Alexander, Leroy, Ala., two bass, 8-8, $269
9th: Jeff Williams, Alexandria, Ala., four bass, 8-3, $239
10th: Frank Chappell, Sterrett, Ala., three bass, 7-15, $210
The next BFL Bama Division tournament is scheduled for April 14 on Lake Martin in Alexander City, Ala. After the fifth Bama Division tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 4-6 Regional Championship on Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Ga. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 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. The 2012 BFL All-American is being held May 17 – 19 on the Potomac River in National Harbor, Md. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
