OKEECHOBEE, Fla., Oct. 18, 2003 - The lake he once guided on wasn't as kind to tournament leader J.T. Kenney Saturday as it had been earlier in the week, but the Maryland pro still boated enough Lake Okeechobee bass to run away with the $50,000 top prize in the $300,000 Florida Bassmaster Southern Open.
"This is awesome," the 29-year-old angler said of his first BASS victory. "I've won national tournaments before, but this is terrific. Okeechobee was good to me this week."
After posting a pair of 20-pound-plus five-bass limits, Kenney struggled to catch 15 pounds, 4 ounces Saturday. But on a day when fishing was slow throughout the 730-square-mile lake, that proved to be the fourth best catch overall and paved the way to an 8-pound, 12-ounce victory with a three-day total of 61-12.
North Carolina pro Chris Baumgardner finished second with 53 pounds, followed by Mark Shepard of Florida with 49-13 and Tennessee's David Walker with 47- 14. The Missouri father and son team of Denny (46-15) and Chad (47-11) finished sixth and fifth, respectively.
In the end, it was Kenney's ability to locate and land bragging-sized largemouths that sealed his victory. He took the big-bass award the first two days of the tournament with trophies weighing 8-9 and 9-11; and his Saturday catch included a 6-pound-plus bass that prompted him to exclaim, "The ballgame's over, boys!" once it was safely in his boat at about 9:12 a.m.
Kenney's success came on a 3-inch Gambler Crickett plastic crawfish fished in thick beds of hydrilla in 5 feet of water in the King's Bar area of the lake. On Friday, Kenney claimed he was targeting floating mats of hyacinths, but it turned out to be a ploy to mislead the competition.
Baumgardner, a 42-year-old past BASS winner, finished second on the strength of a Zoom Speed Worm worked briskly along the top of shallow hydrilla in the Moonshine Bay area. "I'm ecstatic about second," he said. "I wasn't really on much in practice. But sometimes that's when you do well in a tournament. And that's what happened to me."
Shepard, a 38-year-old part-time Lake Okeechobee guide, was thrilled about finishing third in just his second BASS appearance. "This is great," he said. "I never expected to do this good in this tournament, and it has me fired up for (Lake) Eufaula (site of the next and last Southern Open Nov. 6-8)."
In the amateur division, Florida's Nathan Bloom earned the top prize (a fully rigged boat valued at $24,000) with a three-day total of 32-12. Vincent Renew of South Carolina was second with 27-5, followed by Kentucky's Les Underwood (26-13).
Georgia's Duke McCardle took Saturday's big-bass honors with a 7-12 largemouth.
2003 Florida Southern Open BO 10/16-10/18 Lake Okeechobee, Okeechobee Fla. (BOATER) Standings Day 3 Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$ 1. J T Kenney Frostburg, Md. 15 61-12 175 $52,000.00 Day 1: 5 22-10 Day 2: 5 23-14 Day 3: 5 15-04 2. Chris Baumgardner Gastonia, N.C. 15 53-00 174 $40,000.00 Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 19-09 Day 3: 5 11-14 3. Mark Shepard Labelle, Fla. 15 49-13 173 $15,000.00 Day 1: 5 20-00 Day 2: 5 21-12 Day 3: 5 8-01 4. David Walker Sevierville, Tenn. 15 47-14 172 $12,000.00 Day 1: 5 26-01 Day 2: 5 12-15 Day 3: 5 8-14 5. Chad Brauer Osage Beach, Mo. 15 47-11 171 $7,500.00 Day 1: 5 26-14 Day 2: 5 10-14 Day 3: 5 9-15 6. Denny Brauer Camdenton, Mo. 13 46-15 170 $6,800.00 Day 1: 5 18-03 Day 2: 5 22-15 Day 3: 3 5-13 7. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, Ala. 15 45-13 169 $5,500.00 Day 1: 5 17-15 Day 2: 5 19-11 Day 3: 5 8-03 8. Mike Gough Gainesville, Fla. 15 44-03 168 $5,000.00 Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 16-10 Day 3: 5 15-15 9. Gregory S MacLean Okeechobee, Fla. 15 41-13 167 $4,500.00 Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 20-10 Day 3: 5 7-12 10. Robert Duke McCardle Marietta, Ga. 15 41-07 166 $5,000.00 Day 1: 5 7-01 Day 2: 5 17-02 Day 3: 5 17-04 11. Felton Langley Lafayette, Ala. 11 41-06 165 $3,500.00 Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 23-06 Day 3: 1 5-13 12. Peter E Thliveros Jacksonville, Fla. 15 40-15 164 $3,000.00 Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 11-05 Day 3: 5 17-09 13. Tom Hamlin, Jr Macon, Ga. 15 39-13 163 $2,500.00 Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 16-04 Day 3: 5 12-06 14. Charlie Hartley Grove City, Ohio 15 37-13 162 $2,400.00 Day 1: 5 11-05 Day 2: 5 17-14 Day 3: 5 8-10 15. Todd Ary Birmingham, Ala. 15 37-11 161 $2,300.00 Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 14-01 Day 3: 5 9-12 16. Terry Segraves Kissimmee, Fla. 15 36-14 160 $2,200.00 Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 14-01 Day 3: 5 9-15 17. Sandy Melvin Boca Grande, Fla. 14 36-06 159 $2,200.00 Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 13-06 Day 3: 4 11-04 18. Terry Goggans Ft. Payne, Ala. 15 35-05 158 $2,200.00 Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 13-09 Day 3: 5 10-03 19. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 15 34-09 157 $2,200.00 Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 5 14-15 Day 3: 5 6-13 20. Mike Goodman Nebo, N.C. 15 34-06 156 $2,150.00 Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 10-10 Day 3: 5 10-01 20. Eddie Hicks Centreville, Ohio 13 34-06 156 $2,150.00 Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 5 11-06 Day 3: 3 7-13 22. Gerald Swindle Hayden, Ala. 14 33-09 154 $2,100.00 Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 12-03 Day 3: 4 6-15 23. Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 15 33-08 153 $2,100.00 Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 11-13 Day 3: 5 11-00 24. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, Va. 11 33-05 152 $2,100.00 Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 14-15 Day 3: 1 1-01 25. Bobby Padgett Columbus, Ga. 15 33-03 151 $2,100.00 Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 12-13 Day 3: 5 8-11 26. Thomas C Lynch Birmingham, Ala. 13 33-01 150 $1,700.00 Day 1: 5 11-02 Day 2: 5 13-03 Day 3: 3 8-12 27. Charles Pippin, Jr Altamonte Springs, Fla 8 32-14 149 $1,700.00 Day 1: 3 12-14 Day 2: 4 17-08 Day 3: 1 2-08 28. Aaron Martens Castaic, Calif. 15 32-09 148 $1,700.00 Day 1: 5 8-05 Day 2: 5 13-11 Day 3: 5 10-09 29. Matt Herren Trussville, Ala. 15 32-05 147 $1,700.00 Day 1: 5 6-14 Day 2: 5 15-11 Day 3: 5 9-12 30. Danny Kirk Bartow, Ga. 15 32-03 146 $1,700.00 Day 1: 5 8-11 Day 2: 5 13-14 Day 3: 5 9-10 31. Chris Daves Spring Grove, Va. 12 31-11 145 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 7-02 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 2 7-08 32. Roger Crafton Boca Grande, Fla. 14 31-10 144 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 9-00 Day 3: 4 4-15 33. Brendan Smith Kennesaw, Ga. 15 31-04 143 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 8-12 Day 2: 5 14-14 Day 3: 5 7-10 34. Jerry Shawver, II Jacksonville, Fla. 15 31-03 142 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 11-09 Day 3: 5 9-01 35. Koby Kreiger Okeechobee, Fla. 15 31-02 141 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 9-13 Day 2: 5 11-00 Day 3: 5 10-05 36. Gene Mobley Plant City, Fla. 15 30-14 140 $1,300.00 Day 1: 5 9-01 Day 2: 5 13-08 Day 3: 5 8-05 37. Chet Douthit Clewiston, Fla. 15 30-10 139 $1,300.00 Day 1: 5 5-00 Day 2: 5 16-06 Day 3: 5 9-04 38. Ronnie Ray Phenix City, Ala. 15 30-04 138 $1,300.00 Day 1: 5 8-14 Day 2: 5 11-14 Day 3: 5 9-08 39. Danny R Bishop Buchanan, Ga. 15 29-15 137 $1,300.00 Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 11-07 Day 3: 5 8-08 40. Jack L Wade Knoxville, Tenn. 15 29-10 136 $1,300.00 Day 1: 5 7-15 Day 2: 5 15-01 Day 3: 5 6-10 41. Butch Tucker Moultrie, Ga. 15 29-09 135 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 9-12 Day 2: 5 11-06 Day 3: 5 8-07 42. Scott Sills Danlonega, Ga. 15 29-08 134 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 9-01 Day 2: 5 12-07 Day 3: 5 8-00 43. Mark Rose Marion, Ark. 15 28-02 133 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 6-13 Day 2: 5 14-13 Day 3: 5 6-08 44. Kenny Holloway Eatonton, Ga. 15 27-11 132 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 9-09 Day 3: 5 5-04 45. Chris Lane Lakeland, Fla. 12 26-05 131 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 4 9-09 Day 3: 3 3-06 46. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, Ark. 13 25-07 130 $1,100.00 Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 9-12 Day 3: 3 3-10 47. David A Castleberry Chapin, S.C. 11 24-15 129 $1,100.00 Day 1: 4 6-03 Day 2: 5 16-07 Day 3: 2 2-05 48. Larry Hopson Hamilton, Ala. 7 24-11 128 $1,100.00 Day 1: 2 4-02 Day 2: 5 20-09 Day 3: 0 0-00 49. Barry Macchione Winter Haven, Fla. 10 23-05 127 $1,100.00 Day 1: 5 9-10 Day 2: 5 13-11 Day 3: 0 0-00 50. Bo Fraser Lorton, Va. 9 20-13 126 $1,100.00 Day 1: 4 12-09 Day 2: 5 8-04 Day 3: 0 0-00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Big Bass Day 1 J T Kenney Frostburg, Md. 8-09 $1,000.00 2 J T Kenney Frostburg, Md. 9-11 $1,000.00 3 Robert Duke McCardle Marietta, Ga. 7-12 $1,000.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 114 755 1417-03 2 147 856 1845-06 3 34 204 407-02 ---------------------------------- 295 1815 3669-112003 Florida Southern Open NB 10/16-10/18 Lake Okeechobee, Okeechobee Fla. (NON-BOATER) Standings Day 3 Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$ 1. Nathan Bloom Winter Park, Fla. 15 32-12 175 $24,000.00 Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 8-04 Day 3: 5 7-10 2. Vincent Renew N. Augusta, S.C. 15 27-05 174 $12,000.00 Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 5-13 Day 3: 5 9-13 3. Les Underwood Louisville, Ky. 12 26-13 173 $4,500.00 Day 1: 3 7-04 Day 2: 4 11-08 Day 3: 5 8-01 4. John Windham Lake Worth, Fla. 15 26-07 172 $3,600.00 Day 1: 5 7-11 Day 2: 5 9-14 Day 3: 5 8-14 4. Frank Woodley Kissimmee, Fla. 15 26-07 172 $3,600.00 Day 1: 5 9-05 Day 2: 5 9-06 Day 3: 5 7-12 6. Tyrus Hester Russellville, Ala. 15 26-05 170 $2,900.00 Day 1: 5 6-06 Day 2: 5 6-06 Day 3: 5 13-09 7. Darren Gay Concord, N.C. 15 25-12 169 $2,000.00 Day 1: 5 5-04 Day 2: 5 11-14 Day 3: 5 8-10 8. Michael Birge Florala, Ala. 14 25-05 168 $1,800.00 Day 1: 4 5-07 Day 2: 5 13-01 Day 3: 5 6-13 9. Billy Schwach Charleston, S.C. 15 25-04 167 $1,500.00 Day 1: 5 7-01 Day 2: 5 11-14 Day 3: 5 6-05 10. Jeff Campbell Cincinnati, Ohio 13 23-07 166 $1,350.00 Day 1: 4 13-01 Day 2: 5 5-09 Day 3: 4 4-13 10. Russ Ritter Lexington, Ala. 12 23-07 166 $1,350.00 Day 1: 2 2-04 Day 2: 5 9-15 Day 3: 5 11-04 12. Todd Lee Jasper, Ala. 12 23-04 164 $1,200.00 Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 2 2-09 Day 3: 5 8-01 13. David Kilgore Jasper, Ala. 13 22-13 163 $1,100.00 Day 1: 3 6-11 Day 2: 5 8-01 Day 3: 5 8-01 14. Clint Sterling Orlando, Fla. 10 22-11 162 $1,400.00 Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 3 8-09 Day 3: 2 2-01 15. Jeff Hutchins Seminole, Fla. 14 22-08 161 $900.00 Day 1: 4 4-07 Day 2: 5 9-07 Day 3: 5 8-10 16. Bradley Dortch Atmore, Ala. 14 21-14 160 $800.00 Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 4 6-01 Day 3: 5 5-02 17. Tim Little Ackworth, Ga. 15 21-02 159 $800.00 Day 1: 5 8-06 Day 2: 5 6-02 Day 3: 5 6-10 18. Keith Phillips Calera, Ala. 14 20-15 158 $800.00 Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 5-00 Day 3: 4 5-02 19. Jeff Poe Calhoun, Ga. 12 20-12 157 $800.00 Day 1: 5 6-03 Day 2: 5 9-07 Day 3: 2 5-02 20. Richard Persson Miami, Fla. 10 20-07 156 $800.00 Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 2 4-04 Day 3: 3 6-00 21. John Pettit Calhoun, Ga. 10 20-00 155 $700.00 Day 1: 1 3-11 Day 2: 5 11-03 Day 3: 4 5-02 21. Dion P Strachan Silver Springs, Fla. 9 20-00 155 $700.00 Day 1: 3 8-09 Day 2: 5 10-00 Day 3: 1 1-07 23. Jim Chapman Sebastian, Fla. 13 19-08 153 $700.00 Day 1: 5 8-11 Day 2: 4 4-04 Day 3: 4 6-09 24. Emory Dennard Winston-Salem, N.C. 14 19-04 152 $700.00 Day 1: 5 6-13 Day 2: 5 6-11 Day 3: 4 5-12 25. Tim Edgeworth Cullman, Ala. 14 18-15 151 $700.00 Day 1: 5 7-11 Day 2: 4 5-03 Day 3: 5 6-01 26. Judy Israel Clewiston, Fla. 12 18-11 150 $600.00 Day 1: 5 6-08 Day 2: 5 10-01 Day 3: 2 2-02 27. Jeromery Mason Columbiana, Ala. 11 18-10 149 $600.00 Day 1: 4 6-00 Day 2: 5 10-13 Day 3: 2 1-13 28. Scott Smith Apex, N.C. 10 18-05 148 $600.00 Day 1: 3 4-05 Day 2: 5 10-04 Day 3: 2 3-12 29. Chris E Carter Scottsburg, Ind. 11 18-03 147 $600.00 Day 1: 4 4-12 Day 2: 5 10-02 Day 3: 2 3-05 30. John Pate Grant, Ala. 11 18-00 146 $600.00 Day 1: 5 9-06 Day 2: 4 6-07 Day 3: 2 2-03 31. Joel Etheredge Springville, Ala. 8 17-10 145 $550.00 Day 1: 2 7-02 Day 2: 5 5-07 Day 3: 1 5-01 31. Rich Patterson Orlando, Fla. 9 17-10 145 $550.00 Day 1: 2 3-09 Day 2: 5 9-13 Day 3: 2 4-04 31. Robert W Stumpe Florahome, Fla. 9 17-10 145 $550.00 Day 1: 2 3-13 Day 2: 5 11-15 Day 3: 2 1-14 34. Richard Johnson Howard City, Mich. 11 17-07 142 $550.00 Day 1: 5 5-15 Day 2: 4 7-00 Day 3: 2 4-08 35. Jared Dial Lake Wales, Fla. 13 17-00 141 $550.00 Day 1: 5 7-15 Day 2: 5 5-03 Day 3: 3 3-14 36. David H Kent Lumpkin, Ga. 8 16-08 140 $500.00 Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 2 2-00 Day 3: 1 3-09 37. Jonathan Bailey Cottageville, S.C. 7 15-15 139 $500.00 Day 1: 3 11-03 Day 2: 2 1-15 Day 3: 2 2-13 38. David Childress Calhoun, Ga. 12 15-14 138 $500.00 Day 1: 5 5-15 Day 2: 5 7-04 Day 3: 2 2-11 38. Timothy Lanham Louisville, Ky. 10 15-14 138 $500.00 Day 1: 5 9-15 Day 2: 4 4-13 Day 3: 1 1-02 40. Chuck Thurlow Auburn, Ala. 11 15-11 136 $500.00 Day 1: 5 7-01 Day 2: 5 6-15 Day 3: 1 1-11 41. David Phelps New Salisbury, Ind. 7 15-00 135 $450.00 Day 1: 2 3-03 Day 2: 5 11-13 Day 3: 0 0-00 42. Brad D Wall Clarksville, Ohio 9 14-14 134 $450.00 Day 1: 4 3-08 Day 2: 4 10-00 Day 3: 1 1-06 43. James R Lamb Greenwood, Ind. 9 14-10 133 $450.00 Day 1: 4 8-05 Day 2: 4 5-03 Day 3: 1 1-02 44. Peter Babbini Kennesaw, Ga. 10 14-09 132 $433.33 Day 1: 4 7-01 Day 2: 4 5-04 Day 3: 2 2-04 44. Rob Boswell Winder, Ga. 10 14-09 132 $433.33 Day 1: 3 3-15 Day 2: 5 8-05 Day 3: 2 2-05 44. Bill Logsdon Ozark, Ala. 6 14-09 132 $433.33 Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 1 1-02 47. Randy King Auburn, Ala. 9 14-08 129 $400.00 Day 1: 3 5-07 Day 2: 5 8-05 Day 3: 1 0-12 48. A.B Battles Southside, Ala. 7 14-04 128 $800.00 Day 1: 4 4-13 Day 2: 2 7-12 Day 3: 1 1-11 49. David Johnson Marianna, Fla. 10 13-00 127 $400.00 Day 1: 5 6-02 Day 2: 5 6-14 Day 3: 0 0-00 50. Paul Keltner Columbia, Tenn. 7 12-08 126 $400.00 Day 1: 4 4-00 Day 2: 3 8-08 Day 3: 0 0-00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Big Bass Day 1 Clint Sterling Orlando, Fla. 6-14 $400.00 2 A.B Battles Southside, Ala. 6-07 $400.00 3 Tyrus Hester Russellville, Ala. 7-00 $400.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 49 531 822-07 2 73 622 965-02 3 16 144 228-08 ---------------------------------- 138 1297 2016-01