DEL RIO, Texas - Charging up from third place, 41-year-old hunting outfitter and lodge owner Trent Huckaby of Fort Stockton, Texas, pulled off his first BASS win Saturday at the Bassmaster Central Open bass fishing tournament on Texas' Lake Amistad out of Del Rio.
His prize was $6,000 in cash and a Triton/Mercury boat package valued at $50,000.
Huckaby's tournament total of 53 pounds, 12 ounces, squeaked past Robert McFarlane of San Antonio, Texas, who finished with 52 pounds, 9 ounces.
Friday's leader, Jami Fralick, 31, of Martin, S.D., fell to third with 51-10. Doug Garrett of Cabot, Ark., was fourth with 51-5 and Mike Bates of Canyon Lake, Texas, scored fifth with 49-7.
"I knew I had to do something different every day to win," said Huckaby, who fishes Amistad regularly. "I didn't think I even had a shot at winning today, although my wife told me I was going to win. She dreamed of little green fish, and told me that meant I was going to win."
He said his "confidence" bait was a 1 1/4-ounce Oldham's Jig in a camo finish rigged with a Twin Tail Bass Pro Shops grub in a smoke color with a copper flake.
"I thought I was being hard-headed to drop a jig in grass," he said. "There's very little grass in Amistad now, and the fish aren't bunched up like they normally are."
McFarlane advanced on Saturday from 10th place to secure his best finish in a BASS event. The key was consistency with the same pattern: targeting suspended bass in small holes of "an underwater forest of trees."
"I threw the same bait all three days in Castle Canyon and San Pedros areas in water 8 to 12 feet deep," said the 50-year-old whose wife, Robin McFarlane, competes on the Mercury Marine Women's Bassmaster Tour. "It was a Wave Worm Tiki Stik in watermelon red. I think what made a big difference was that I dipped the tip of the worm in a chartreuse dye."
In the co-angler division, the winner of the top prize of $2,000 cash and a $32,000 Triton/Mercury boat package was Gennaro "Jerry" DiCola of Bedford, Texas, who moved up from fourth place for the win with 36 pounds, 11 ounces.
He said his primary lures were a green-pumpkin finesse worm and a jerkbait. He hit schooling fish in shallow water as well as bass in water as deep as 25 feet.
Second place was a tie at 35 pounds, 13 ounces, between Thursday leader Eric Sheley of Longmont, Colo., and Friday's leader Johnny Denny of Lancaster, Ky. Fourth and fifth were two Texans: Jerry Eichler of Granbury with 35-07, and Raymond Balcerowicz of Crosby with 35-00.
2008 BASSMASTER OPENS SCHEDULE
2008 Southern Open:
Jan. 24-26 Lake Okeechobee, Okeechobee, Fla.
May 8-10 Santee Cooper Reservoir, Manning, S.C.
Oct. 16-18 Lake Guntersville, Guntersville, Ala.
2008 Central Open:
April 24-26 Red River, Shreveport/Bossier City, La.
Sept. 25-27 Kentucky Lake, Paris, Tenn.
Oct. 30-Nov. 1 Lake Texoma, Denison, Texas
2007 Bassmaster Central Open- Lake Amistad
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Trent Huckaby Fort Stockton, TX 15 53-12 305 $57,880.00
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 15-03 Day 3: 5 15-06
2. Robert McFarlane San Antonio, TX 15 52-09 295 $14,700.00
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 21-08 Day 3: 5 19-06
3. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 15 51-10 295 $12,760.00
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 22-06 Day 3: 5 08-04
4. Doug Garrett Cabot, AR 15 51-05 285 $9,800.00
Day 1: 5 21-05 Day 2: 5 13-13 Day 3: 5 16-03
5. Mike Bates Canyon Lake, TX 15 49-07 280 $8,820.00
Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 5 16-05 Day 3: 5 18-05
6. David Sherrer Shreveport, LA 15 48-05 276 $7,840.00
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 19-13 Day 3: 5 14-11
7. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 15 48-02 272 $6,860.00
Day 1: 5 16-10 Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 5 18-01
8. Robert Byrd Dallas, TX 14 48-01 268 $5,880.00
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 18-15 Day 3: 4 10-11
9. Timmy Reneau Del Rio, TX 15 47-12 264 $4,900.00
Day 1: 5 12-05 Day 2: 5 19-06 Day 3: 5 16-01
10. Sammy Burks Joplin, MO 11 47-03 265 $4,920.00
Day 1: 5 27-04 Day 2: 1 02-15 Day 3: 5 17-00
11. Ray Hanselman Del Rio, TX 15 46-05 257 $3,430.00
Day 1: 5 18-10 Day 2: 5 16-04 Day 3: 5 11-07
12. Thomas Law Abilene, TX 15 44-13 254 $2,940.00
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 18-05 Day 3: 5 10-12
13. Randy Dearman Onalaska, TX 15 44-12249.5 $2,205.00
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 11-10 Day 3: 5 14-10
13. Jj Ducharme San Antonio, TX 14 44-12249.5 $2,205.00
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 4 15-05 Day 3: 5 12-10
15. Johnny Grice Frisco, TX 15 43-06 245 $1,715.00
Day 1: 5 15-10 Day 2: 5 12-10 Day 3: 5 15-02
16. Ishama Monroe Hughson, CA 15 42-10 243 $1,470.00
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 13-14 Day 3: 5 13-07
17. Larry Byrd Lake Charles, LA 13 41-01 241 $1,470.00
Day 1: 4 09-14 Day 2: 5 19-14 Day 3: 4 11-05
18. Clark Reehm Russellville, AR 15 40-14 239 $1,470.00
Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 5 13-05 Day 3: 5 11-10
19. Tony Chachere Opelousas, LA 15 40-09 237 $1,470.00
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 14-02 Day 3: 5 11-06
20. Charles Haralson Laredo, TX 15 40-06 234 $1,323.00
Day 1: 5 09-02 Day 2: 5 19-15 Day 3: 5 11-05
20. Bobby Myers Tulsa, OK 15 40-06 234 $1,323.00
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 14-05 Day 3: 5 11-07
22. Corey Waldrop Fort Worth, TX 10 39-14 231 $1,176.00
Day 1: 5 23-05 Day 2: 5 16-09 Day 3: 0 00-00
23. Jonathan Garrie Nacogdoches, TX 15 39-08 229 $1,176.00
Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 12-11 Day 3: 5 08-04
24. Scott Dean Terrell, TX 15 39-07 227 $1,176.00
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 10-13 Day 3: 5 10-13
25. Monty Fralick Martin, SD 12 39-00 225 $1,176.00
Day 1: 5 19-07 Day 2: 5 15-03 Day 3: 2 04-06
26. Jay Fuller Kingston, OK 15 38-09 223 $980.00
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 13-06 Day 3: 5 08-12
27. Brandon Mosley Bethany, OK 14 35-03 221 $980.00
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 10-11 Day 3: 4 06-13
28. Marvin Wells Claremore, OK 14 34-15 219 $980.00
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 17-00 Day 3: 4 06-12
29. Larry Ford Jessieville, AR 11 34-10 217 $980.00
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 17-09 Day 3: 1 04-14
30. Tommy Durham Whitney, TX 11 33-10 215 $980.00
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 12-15 Day 3: 1 01-07
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Big Bass
Day
1 Trent Huckaby Fort Stockton, TX 08-15 $1,000.00
2 Jami Fralick Martin, SD 07-15 $1,000.00
3 Sammy Burks Joplin, MO 06-06 $1,000.00
Trent Huckaby Fort Stockton, TX 08-15 $1,000.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 105 634 1587-02
2 100 620 1547-14
3 22 130 341-02
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227 1384 3476-02
2007 Del Rio, TX 9/27-9/29
Lake Amistad, Del Rio TX.
(NON_BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Gennaro DiCola Bedford, TX 13 36-11 305 $33,960.00
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 5 16-00 Day 3: 3 11-03
2. Eric Sheley Longmont, CO 15 35-13297.5 $4,410.00
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 5 08-13 Day 3: 5 09-00
2. Johnny Denny Lancaster, KY 11 35-13297.5 $4,410.00
Day 1: 3 05-00 Day 2: 5 23-14 Day 3: 3 06-15
4. Jerry Eichler Granbury, TX 13 35-07 285 $3,240.00
Day 1: 4 08-06 Day 2: 5 15-11 Day 3: 4 11-06
5. Raymond Balcerowicz Crosby, TX 15 35-00 280 $2,450.00
Day 1: 5 07-14 Day 2: 5 14-01 Day 3: 5 13-01
6. Jim McDevitt Eldon, MO 15 34-08 276 $2,505.00
Day 1: 5 08-06 Day 2: 5 14-07 Day 3: 5 11-11
7. Brad Hopper San Angelo, TX 15 33-05 272 $1,960.00
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 09-03 Day 3: 5 13-01
8. Morris Hymel Covington, LA 11 32-02 268 $1,715.00
Day 1: 2 03-14 Day 2: 5 17-13 Day 3: 4 10-07
9. Joel Newman North Little Rock, AR 13 32-00 264 $1,470.00
Day 1: 3 06-02 Day 2: 5 14-02 Day 3: 5 11-12
10. Tony Bickham Cedar Park, TX 14 31-13 260 $1,225.00
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 10-03 Day 3: 4 08-09
11. Jay Gaines Austin, TX 13 31-11 257 $980.00
Day 1: 4 08-03 Day 2: 5 12-08 Day 3: 4 11-00
12. Hideki Maeda Sakai-City Osaka, Japan 13 30-13 254 $882.00
Day 1: 3 05-11 Day 2: 5 14-10 Day 3: 5 10-08
13. Gary Carr San Angelo, TX 12 30-11 251 $784.00
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 15-13 Day 3: 2 04-00
14. Ray Webb Greenwood, AR 15 30-09246.5 $662.00
Day 1: 5 08-04 Day 2: 5 13-00 Day 3: 5 09-05
14. Tony Gibson San Angelo, TX 15 30-09246.5 $662.00
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 07-14 Day 3: 5 11-05
16. Matthew Weaver Sweetwater, TX 13 30-06 243 $588.00
Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 5 09-00 Day 3: 3 06-06
17. Scott Rebholz El Dorado, KS 15 29-11 241 $588.00
Day 1: 5 08-02 Day 2: 5 12-03 Day 3: 5 09-06
18. Manuel Abrego Del Rio, TX 12 28-13 239 $588.00
Day 1: 5 08-05 Day 2: 5 16-12 Day 3: 2 03-12
19. Robert Bogard Conway, AR 15 28-02 237 $588.00
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 5 08-04 Day 3: 5 09-09
20. Ryon Donaldson Grapevine, TX 12 27-10 235 $588.00
Day 1: 5 09-01 Day 2: 5 14-11 Day 3: 2 03-14
21. Brian Mcginty Pekin, IL 12 27-03 233 $490.00
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 2 03-06
22. Jeff Hoff Sealy, TX 13 26-04 231 $490.00
Day 1: 4 12-06 Day 2: 5 08-09 Day 3: 4 05-05
23. Kevin Hanson Pineville, LA 14 26-03 229 $490.00
Day 1: 4 09-08 Day 2: 5 09-05 Day 3: 5 07-06
24. George Fister Lake Charles, LA 13 25-12 227 $490.00
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 4 07-00 Day 3: 4 06-13
25. Gayland Heard Vidor, TX 11 24-11 225 $490.00
Day 1: 4 11-01 Day 2: 5 10-03 Day 3: 2 03-07
26. Maruo Naohiro Takamatsu JAPAN 13 24-04 223 $392.00
Day 1: 5 08-06 Day 2: 5 10-09 Day 3: 3 05-05
27. Randy Caddell Andrews, TX 9 23-03 221 $392.00
Day 1: 4 06-13 Day 2: 5 16-06 Day 3: 0 00-00
28. David Cortinas North Richland Hill, TX 11 22-13 219 $392.00
Day 1: 5 07-11 Day 2: 5 13-13 Day 3: 1 01-05
29. James White Montgomery, TX 7 20-13 217 $392.00
Day 1: 2 08-09 Day 2: 4 09-15 Day 3: 1 02-05
30. Robert Chandler Vinton, LA 7 18-06 215 $392.00
Day 1: 3 08-02 Day 2: 4 10-04 Day 3: 0 00-00
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Big Bass
Day
1 Ron Castle Del Rio, TX 06-14 $300.00
2 Jim McDevitt Eldon, MO 07-00 $300.00
3 Jerry Eichler Granbury, TX 06-12 $300.00
Trent Huckaby Fort Stockton, TX 08-15 $1,000.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 39 443 879-13
2 54 460 976-04
3 11 103 221-06
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104 1006 2077-07