BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 24, 2017) – Local angler Josh Osborne of Bristol, caught a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 10 ounces to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Volunteer Division tournament on South Holston Reservoir. Osborne pocketed $3,766 for his efforts.
“I basically fished one spot the entire day,” said Osborne, who earned his first career-win in FLW competition. “It was a hump with isolated rock where smallmouth were bedding. I knew it was something special when I found it in practice.
“I was catching them a little deeper than most people,” continued Osborne. “I actually saw anglers fishing the area in practice, but they were at the very top of the hump. I found a 15-yard section a little deeper and that’s where the big fish were. It was a rough patch of rock and they were all around it.”
Osborne said the top of the hump was between 4 to 6 feet deep, while he sat in 16 to 18 feet of water.
“The 8- to 12-foot range was where most of my big fish were,” said Osborne. “I caught everything that I weighed on a Texas-rigged 4-inch green-pumpkin Berkley Straight-Tail Worm.”
Osborne said he had most of his winning weight in the boat by 10 a.m.
“I knew the fish were there, so I slowed down and took my time,” said Osborne. “I think that helped me get the win.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Josh Osborne, Bristol, Va., five bass, 21-10, $3,766
2nd: Doug Austin, Bristol, Va., five bass, 21-7, $1,883
3rd: James Barlow, Jonesboro, Tenn., five bass, 19-7, $1,256
4th: Craig Powers, Rockwood, Tenn., five bass, 19-5, $879
5th: Jonathan Bowling , Harriman, Tenn., five bass, 17-11, $953
6th: Corey Neece, Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 17-9, $759
6th: Kevin Edwards, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 17-9, $659
8th: Willie Browning, Saltville, Va., five bass, 17-6, $565
9th: Nick Tate, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 17-2, $502
10th: Brian Hollaway, Gray, Tenn., five bass, 17-0, $439
Willie Bryan of Sevierville, Tennessee, caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 8 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – which earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $500. Steven Brady of Woodlawn, Virginia, won the Co-angler Division and $1,840 Saturday after bringing a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 7 ounces to the scale.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Steven Brady, Woodlawn, Va., five bass, 17-7, $1,840
2nd: Donnie Holder, Mooresburg, Tenn., five bass, 16-15, $920
3rd: Allen Hicks, Castlewood, Va., five bass, 16-8, $612
4th: David Shreve, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 16-3, $429
5th: Richard Casey, Honaker, Va., five bass, 16-2, $368
6th: Matthew Rasnick, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 15-6, $337
7th: Matt Brown, Harriman, Tenn., five bass, 15-0, $507
8th: Charles Roberts, Lebanon, Va., five bass, 14-11, $276
9th: Bill King, Maryville, Tenn., five bass, 14-10, $245
10th: Colton Chambers, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 14-5, $204
10th: Nick Coker, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 14-5, $254
Richard Pugh of Knoxville, Tennessee, caught the biggest bass among Co-angler Division anglers, a fish weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $240.