GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. (March. 8, 2003) - Lee Byrd of Moody topped 200 Bass Fishing League competitors Saturday on Lake Guntersville with five bass weighing 20 pounds, 3 ounces. The catch earned him $5,000 and 200 points in the Boater Division.
Byrd's catch topped second-place boater Gary Howington of Hokes Bluff by 15 ounces. Howington finished the one-day tournament with a five-bass catch weighing 19 pounds, 4 ounces worth $2,500.
Tim Gore of Albertville (four bass, 19 pounds, 3 ounces, $1,700); Daniel Whitaker of Phil Campbell (five bass, 18 pounds, 14 ounces, $1,300); and Carey Cranford of Gadsden (five bass, 17 pounds, 10 ounces, $1,100) rounded out the top five boaters.
Gore earned $1,000 as the Boater Division big-bass award winner thanks to a 9-pound, 8-ounce bass. Cranford earned a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program.
Stanley Morris of Boaz claimed first place and $2,500 in the 200-competitor Co-angler Division with four bass weighing 17 pounds, 6 ounces. He surpassed second-place co-angler Bill Stephens of Fort Payne by 1 pound, 4 ounces. Stephens finished with a five-bass catch weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces worth $1,250.
Corey Bradley of Chattanooga, Tenn. (five bass, 16 pounds, 1 ounce, $850); Buck Lance of Fyffe (three bass, 15 pounds, 4 ounces, $650); and Frank Patrick of Rome, Ga. (five bass, 14 pounds, 6 ounces, $550) rounded out the top five co-anglers.
Gary Garrick of Dickinson earned big-bass honors and $500 in his division with an 8-pound, 4-ounce bass.