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TEAM TOURNAMENT
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| Date: | | May 1, 2010 |
| Region: | | 2010 South Region |
| Tournament: | | Choke Canyon #1 2010 |
| Tournament Trail: | | 2010 Bass Champs Tournament Trail |
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| Smoot & Meyer WIn a Tough Choke Canyon with 26.60 lbs. |
| By: Patty Lenderman |
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Choke Canyon set the scene for the South Region of Bass Champs event #4 on May 1, 2010. The wind came from every direction throughout the day keeping every team on the move. Scott Smoot and David Meyer used this to their advantage to win over $20,000.
Scott Smoot and David Meyer discovered their edge while pre-fishing a week prior to the tournament. “The water looked real good for shallow fishing. The grass and other vegetation are all in good shape.” They caught a lot of fish in practice, the problem was that they were all small. “We determined that they had moved out to deeper water. Figuring that out was our advantage.” That wasn’t the only decision they made. “The plan was to stay on the move. Run and gun. Cover a lot of territory.” They tried football head jigs and crank baits, but that wasn’t working. Changing their tactics, they tied on Carolina rigged senko’s and lizards, targeting depths of 10’-12’. One fish, one spot at a time, they started putting a limit together. At 10:30, David got the bite that would ultimately anchor their win. “I was using a lizard, and these areas were deep with gravel and rock bases.” They had four small fish in the livewell, then added a 9.6 lb bass to their creel. “After that we started upgrading the rest of our limit.” Ending up with 26.60 lbs, they won 1st place by just under a pound. The team has fished the Bass Champs tournament trail for several years and earned many checks. This marks their first win and $20,000 payday. They also received the $200 Sure Life Live Release Bonus for using the product in their livewell. “We’d really like to thank Bass Champs for having such a great tournament trail. We really enjoy fishing the tournaments. We would also like to thank our wives, Tresha Smoot and Sheila Meyer. They give us a lot of support.”
Will Welch and John Basinger bagged a 25.74 lb limit for a 2nd place finish. Their day started out with a bang – no – make that a splash! “First thing this morning before take-off, we were getting things ready to go. Another boat went by and made a big wake. John lost his balance and fell in the water!” Will was laughing so hard he was barely able to help his partner back in the boat. Settling back down the team had to make some decisions about their day. “We went out and practiced for this tournament about two weeks ago. Since then, the lake has come up about 6 feet. Everything changed.” They decided to hit some old spots they’ve fished before. “The first spot happened to have some fish, and we put a small limit together. Our second spot didn’t do anything for us.” These guys normally fish in depths of around 25’. They decided to go shallower, 10’-15’ in drains and at points using light Texas rigs. “When we went to our 3rd spot, we started catching bigger fish. The bass were biting really light. Our Power Tackle Rods played a key role in feeling them.” Before days end they had two seven pounders in the livewell, and 5# but couldn’t cull their last two smaller ones. “Our smallest was a two pounder. If we could have culled it we may have won this one.” Bass Champs presented them with a $3,000 check for their 2nd place finish. “This is a great circuit. You guys do a really good job with these tournaments and we always enjoy fishing with Bass Champs.” They would also like to thank Pro Line Trolling Motors for keeping them going on the water.
23.92 lbs won 3rd place, caught by Timothy and James Griffin. Rounding out the top 5 were Dustin Day and Mark Williams in 4th place with 21.98 lbs, then Jeff Lynch and Lyle Larson in 5th with 19.60.
Dustin Day and Mark Williams turned a 4th place $1,200 win into a $3,600 finish! How? 4th place paid $1,200. They doubled that being the highest finishing team in a qualified Skeeter Boat. That’s $2,400. Now figure in their $1,000 Big Bass winnings for their 10.06 lb kicker, plus the $200 Costa Bonus for wearing the right sunglasses to weigh it in – voila – their winnings are now tripled!
$47,550 was paid out in this tournament, an incredible 103% payback! Twenty three teams received a paycheck, the last two tied with 13.36 lbs each.
It’s been an exciting season so far! There is only one tournament left for the South Region, back on Choke Canyon May 22. One more shot at the Anglers of the Year title, and waived entry fees for the 2011 season. Here’s how the points are stacking up:
752 Terry Oldham & Jaime Buitron
710 Timothy Griffin & James Griffin
691 Tim Reneau & Judy Churchill
669 Charles Whited & Jeffrey Piel
668 Tom Gridley & Scott Meads
For complete standings, schedules and other Bass Champs hosted events click to www.BassChamps.com or call 817-439-3274.
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