MONTICELLO, Ky. (March 17, 2003) - Rusty Smith of Somerset topped 187 Bass Fishing League competitors Saturday on Cumberland Lake with five bass weighing 9 pounds, 9 ounces. The catch earned him $4,746 and 200 points in the Boater Division.
Smith caught his limit on a jig in an area of shallow stumps. His catch topped second-place boater Tom Hill of Lexington by 13 ounces. Hill finished the one-day tournament with a five-bass catch weighing 8 pounds, 12 ounces worth $2,373.
Jeff Coots of Yeaddiss (five bass, 8 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,613); Jeffery Lewis of East Bernstadt (five bass, 7 pounds, 13 ounces, $1,234); and David Morris of Nicholasville (two bass, 7 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,044) rounded out the top five boaters.
Lewis earned a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats for being the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program. Billy Hough of Morehead earned $935 as the big-bass winner thanks to a 4-pound, 13-ounce bass.
Don Smith of Brodhead claimed first place and $2,373 in the 187-competitor Co-angler Division with two bass weighing 7 pounds, 14 ounces. Smith was fishing with a deep Suspending Rogue on the lower end of the lake. He surpassed second-place co-angler Jordan Card of Lafollette, Tenn., by 10 ounces. Card finished with a three-bass catch weighing 7 pounds, 4 ounces worth $1,186.
Jim Hallett of Springboro, Ohio (five bass, 6 pounds, 15 ounces, $807) and Randy Brown of Irvine (three bass, 5 pounds, 8 ounces, $617) rounded out the top four co-anglers. Tied for fifth were Allan Stephens of Florence and Page Powers of Unicoi, Tenn. Each caught two bass weighing 5 pounds to earn $475.
Michael Powell Jr. of Cincinnati earned big-bass honors and $468 in his division with a 4-pound, 15-ounce bass.