The 2019 U.S. Angler’s Choice Championship
was held March 7th & 8th on famed Guntersville Lake, Scottsboro
Alabama. At full pool Lake Guntersville stretches 75 miles from Nickajack Dam to Guntersville Dam, covers 69,100 surface acres and
boasts 900 miles of beautiful shoreline. This would be the stage in
which 316 teams would compete, all looking for that winning pattern or
area that would lend enough weight to take home one of three Bass Cat
Boats rigged with Mercury Outboards.
The event was hosted by Mountain Lakes Chamber of Commerce and the City of
Scottsboro Alabama. The official lodging site for the event was the
Comfort Inn and Suites in Scottsboro. Scottsboro offered teams and
families plenty of entertainment while not on the water and some
fantastic places to dine. The people living in the Scottsboro community
are some of the friendliest you will find anywhere in the country.
Teams gathered Wednesday for a first class banquet followed up with a
short meeting held at the Scottsboro Goose Pond Civic Center. Southern
hospitality was in full force as teams were treated to a awesome
dinner catered by Western Sizlin.
Following the dinner teams were officially welcomed to the community and
lake by Rick Roden and J.P. Parsons from Mountain Lakes Chamber of
Commerce. Dallas Hodges of Bass Cat Boats then spoke to
the anglers after which executive director Rick Byrnes started the
receipt draw where thousands of dollars in prizes where awarded
including a Power-Pole, Fury prop, 36v MotorGuide Trolling motor, free
entries, Fitzgerald Rods, cases of oil donated by Bass Cat dealers and
more. The evening was then finalized by recognizing the Fitzgerald Rods
Divisional Champions and awarding two Fitzgerald rods to each team along
with plaques for their accomplishments. Lastly a brief review of the
water and event specific rules were covered and then teams were released
to make last minute preparations.
Temperatures during practice were cool and running twenty degrees
or more under seasonal averages. The cool temps were accompanied with
rain and rising waters. As teams woke on the first day of competition
they were greeted with clear skies and a crisp morning, with temps near
freezing at take off and ending up in the fifties at weigh
time. The weigh-in started at 3pm and it wouldn't take long to see why
Lake Guntersville is a bass anglers must go to destination.
When the scales closed after day one the
Indianapolis team of Kevin Allen & Chris Rhodes found themselves leading the
way with a massive Big G bag weighing 28.86lbs. The team however struggled a bit on day two weighing
9.42lbs
dropping them to twenty-first place. That day one bag however earned the
team the Etic USA Big Stringer of the event worth $2,500.00.
Day two the weather although warmer, was accompanied by overcast and off
and on showers throughout the day and a more steady rain near weigh in.
Kevin Reynolds & Marc Sheffer 2019 U.S. Angler's Choice Champions!
The final day weigh-in concluded minutes
after the last flight checked in. The Cedar Lake Division team of Marc
Sheffer and Kevin Reynolds put together two strong days and took
the win and were crowned U.S. Angler's Choice Champions. The team brought
heavy bags to the scales on both days. On day one they weighed in 28.48
lbs and followed it up on day two with 23.08 lbs even, giving them a two
day total of 51.56 lbs and the title. The team focused their efforts on
a main lake current break. The team
reported fishing lipless crankbaits and chatterbaits in water
depths of two to six feet. They stuck to this area for both days and all
of their fish weighed came from this hundred yard stretch with the
exception of one key bite on the final day which was fooled by a swim
jig off a dock.
Marc and Kevin hauled home a new Bass Cat Pantera II rigged with a Mercury 200
ProXS and more cash and prizes for their win!
2nd Place Shawn Penn and Toby Corn
The second place team of Shawn Penn and
Toby Corn fishing out of the Smithland Pool Division reported a poor
practice but found some fish a couple days prior to the event that turned things around. The
team focused their efforts in and around Town Creek on both bridges and
shallow flats. The
weapons of choice were swimbaits, vibrating jigs and lipless rattle
baits. The team brought
24.51 lbs to the scale on day one and followed it up with one of the
larger bags of the event weighing 26.66 lbs on day two. They finished
just four tenths of a pound back with a total of 51.17 lbs and take home a new Bass Cat Classic rigged
with a Mercury ProXS 150 for the finish.
Power-Pole Top Contenders Third place
finish went to John Frugo and Eric Rasmussen
The Power-Pole Top Contenders Third place
finish went to the Fox Chain team of John Frugo and Eric Rasmussen. They
reported a tough practice but found one spot that seemed to be holding
fish. The team focused their efforts on a main lake current break. The team
reported fishing lipless crankbaits in water
depths of two to six feet. They stuck to this area for both days and all
of their fish weighed came from this hundred yard stretch. Sound
familiar? Yep, both the first and third place catches came from this
spot. The two teams worked together to protect and share the area. John
and Eric weighed in 25.65 lbs on day one and followed it up with
19.04 lbs on day two giving them a two day total of 44.69 lbs. The team earned $14,400.00 for their finish.
Draw Boat Ricky Thompson and Gerald Duracz
The luckiest team at the
event had to be Ricky Thompson and Gerald Duracz as they won a Bass Cat
Pantera Classic with a Mercury 150 ProXS by DRAW by simply being present
at the final day weigh-in, they didn't even have to catch a fish!!
Lunker Lure Classic Big Bass Greg Coleman and Travis Gillett 10.50
lbs
The Lunker Lure Classic Big
Bass went to the team of Greg Coleman and Travis Gillett it weighed in at
10.50 lbs and earned the team $1,560.00 for day one Big Bass and
$1,500.00 for the overall biggest. That one fish earned the team
$3,060.00
If you were unable to fish last season or make it to the championship
come join us in 2019! Call 618-496-3610 for a trail near you.
|
.png){kind=logo}
