LANETT, Ala. (Nov. 11, 2002) - Craig Johnson of Martinez, Ga., caught five bass weighing 16 pounds, 4 ounces Friday and Saturday at the West Point Lake bass fishing tournamebnt, to lead the Wild Card field and advance to the 2003 Bass Fishing League All-American.
Johnson caught his bass in partly cloudy conditions using a spinner bait. His winning catch topped runner-up Kenneth Stone of Silver Creek, Ga., by 1 pound, 8 ounces. Stone caught 10 bass over two days that weighed 14 pounds, 12 ounces.
The top six finishers in the Wild Card earned a berth in next year's All-American, where the winning boater will take home $100,000 cash and the winning co-angler will earn $50,000 cash. Rounding out the All-American qualifiers in the Boater Division are Frank Eslinger of La Grange, Ga. (seven bass, 14 pounds, 1 ounce); Tim Peek of Sharpsburg, Ga. (five bass, 12 pounds, 7 ounces); Martie Murphy of Thomaston, Ga. (nine bass, 12 pounds, 4 ounces); and Randy Herren of Valley, Ala., (10 bass, 12 pounds, 3 ounces).
The Bass Fishing League is comprised of 26 divisions featuring five regular-season tournaments followed by postseason regional competitions featuring the top 30 boaters and co-anglers in final points standings. Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points. Seven BFL regionals, including the Wild Card, each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the All-American while an eighth regional sends three boaters and three co-anglers, and anglers who fished all five regular-season tournaments within a division but did not advance to the regional could enter the Wild Card for a chance to compete in the All-American. Over 500 boaters and co-anglers visited West Point Lake last week for Wild Card competition.
Peter Babbini of Kennesaw, Ga., topped the co-angler field with a two-day, nine-bass catch weighing 11 pounds, 4 ounces. He caught most of his bass on a crankbait. He out-fished his nearest competitor, Chris Gist of Rogersville, Ala., by just under a pound. Gist finished with a seven-bass catch weighing 10 pounds, 6 ounces.
Rounding out the All-American qualifiers from the Co-angler Division are Larry Coleman of Saint Anne, Ill. (five bass, 10 pounds, 1 ounce); Dennis Hudson of Fortson, Ga. (five bass, 10 pounds); Brian Smith of Winston-Salem, N.C. (five bass, 10 pounds); and Walter Whitman Jr. of Greensboro, N.C., (six bass, 9 pounds, 9 ounces).