GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (Sept. 13, 2004) - Boater Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz earned $6,551 Sunday as winner of the two-day, season-ending Bass Fishing League LBL Division Super Bass Tournament on Kentucky and Barkley lakes. His two-day total of 28 pounds, 15 ounces topped 111 fellow competitors in the Boater Division.
Colson caught 14 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to advance to Sunday's competition, where he caught 14 pounds, 6 ounces to post the heaviest two-day weight and claim the win. He caught his tournament-winning bass fishing ledges on Barkley with a 10 1/2-inch Zoom Ole Monster worm. Colson also earned a $1,000 bonus from Garmin for using Garmin electronics exclusively during the event, and he earned another $1,000 from Bombardier for using an Evinrude Direct Injection outboard.
Rounding out the top five boaters are Tim Griggs of Paducah (28 pounds, 13 ounces, $3,276); Ernie Travillian of Floyds Knobs, Ind. (22 pounds, 15 ounces, $1,774); Terry Bolton of Paducah (21 pounds, 15 ounces, $1,501); and Gerald Andrews of Benton (19 pounds, 7 ounces, $1,228).
Jeff Evans of Benton earned $1,110 as the Boater Division big-bass winner, thanks to a 6-pound, 15-ounce bass he caught around shallow stumps with a 3/4-ounce Rat-L-Trap.
Charles Stallard of Louisville earned $3,276 as winner of the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of 28 pounds, 1 ounce. He caught his bass on a Carolina-rigged Brush Hog in Barkley Lake.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Chris Winston of Barnhart, Mo. (19 pounds, 13 ounces, $1,638); James Anderson of Dawson Springs (13 pounds, 11 ounces, $887); Monty Lane of Princeton (12 pounds, 7 ounces, $751); and James Backer of Henderson (12 pounds, $614).
Charles Surprenant of Marion claimed co-angler big-bass honors with a 5-pound, 7-ounce bass he caught on a white spinnerbait. He earned $555 for his big bass.
Each of the BFL's 24 nationwide divisions features four one-day tournaments and one two-day Super Tournament within the regular season. In Super Tournament competition, the entire field competes on day one and the top 20 percent advances to day two, with the winners determined by the heaviest two-day catch weights. More money is awarded at Super Tournaments as well as more points that count toward year-end angler standings. In a Super Tournament, 300 points are awarded for first place, 299 for second, 298 for third, and so on.
Billy Schroeder of Paducah earned $1,000 as the Yamaha "Be the Best" boater points champion in the LBL Division with 1,041 points for the season. Autry Hensley of Scottsville earned Yamaha "Be the Best" points champion honors and $500 in the Co-angler Division. He earned 955 points this season.
The top 30 boaters and co-anglers in the LBL Division will advance to the Wheeler Lake regional, which will be held Oct. 19-23 in Rogersville, Ala. There they will compete against qualifying anglers from the Bulldog, Mountain and Shenandoah divisions for one of six slots in the 2005 All-American. The All-American awards a $100,000 cash prize to the winning boater and $50,000 to the winning co-angler.
Anglers who compete in all five regular-season events within a division but do not advance to regional competition are eligible to fish the Wild Card for an All-American berth. Six nationwide regionals plus the Wild Card will each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the All-American for a total field of 84 competitors.