GAINESVILLE, Ga. (Sept. 17, 2018) – Boater Roger Vinson of Flowery Branch, Georgia, won the Bass Fishing League (BFL) Bulldog Division tournament on Lake Lanier Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 28 pounds, 11 ounces. For his win, Vinson earned $6,891.
“I live about 10 minutes from Lake Lanier and have been fishing it for a long time. I have some top-10 finishes in BFL competition, so it’s nice to finally win one,” said Vinson, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “I knew that with the conditions, the fish would be scattered. I fished both deep and shallow. I think most of the field was fishing out deep, but I’d say I fished shallow 30-percent of the time. Changing things up was crucial for my win.
“I fished from the mid-lake area down to the lower end each day,” continued Vinson. “I targeted places like the mouths of creeks and places they would pull up when they are scattered because of the weather. Out deep, I fished humps and points. I targeted more rock on Sunday.”
Vinson said he caught fish on a Pearly White-colored Zoom Super Fluke, a Roboworm Straight Tail Worm on a shaky-head rig, a MegaBass 110 Ito Vision jerkbait and a Pearl White-colored SuperFish Underspin with a Zoom Fluke Jr. of the same color.
“My big fish – a 4-pound, 12-ounce spotted bass – came Sunday morning about 10:30 (a.m.) around the mouth of Two Mile Creek,” said Vinson. “I caught it on a homemade jig with a green pumpkin-colored (Zoom) Creepy Crawler trailer. I felt like I needed 17 pounds (after Saturday) to win and it was a game-changer.”
Vinson said he caught 19 keepers throughout the weekend and weighed all spotted bass. He said that bass both deep and shallow liked the jerkbait best on Saturday, and that on Sunday it was more about the jig and the SuperFish Underspin.
“I used a Kistler rod and (InvizX Seaguar) fluorocarbon line combo which helped me feel when they grabbed onto the bait,” said Vinson. “They didn’t feel like normal bites, but the sensitivity of that combo helped me feel them.”
Vinson noted that his 19-year-old son, Peyton, finished seventh on the co-angler side.
“I think I’m more proud of him and his finish than my own,” said Vinson.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Roger Vinson, Flowery Branch, Ga., 10 bass, 28-11, $6,891
2nd: Rob Jordan, Flowery Branch, Ga., 10 bass, 25-15, $3,445
3rd: Guy Jordan, Gainesville, Ga., 10 bass, 24-10, $2,229
4th: Brad Wiley, Alto, Ga., eight bass, 24-6, $1,561
5th: J.R. McCay, Robertstown, Ga., 10 bass, 24-2, $1,338
6th: Jeremy Eaton, Dahlonega, Ga., 10 bass, 22-5, $1,227
7th: Undre Montgomery, Lawrenceville, Ga., 10 bass, 22-2, $1,115
8th: Terry Adams, Mansfield, Ga., 10 bass, 21-10, $1,004
9th: Kip Carter, Mansfield, Ga., 10 bass, 20-12, $892
10th: LaMontie Walters, Warner Robins, Ga., 10 bass, 19-7, $781
Eric Aldrich of Cumming, Georgia, caught a bass weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $960. Justin Bythwood of Waycross, Georgia, caught a two-day total of seven bass weighing 16 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $3,287.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Justin Bythwood, Waycross, Ga., seven bass, 16-10, $3,287
2nd: Glenn Martin, Gainesville, Ga., eight bass, 14-9, $1,644
3rd: Benjie Winkler, Cleveland, Ga., seven bass, 13-6, $1,096
4th: March Glenn, Decatur, Ga., six bass, 12-10, $867
5th: Spencer Sato, Warner Robins, Ga., six bass, 10-14, $657
6th: Ben Smith, Lula, Ga., five bass, 10-12, $653
7th: Peyton Vinson, Flowery Branch, Ga., five bass, 10-3, $548
8th: Andrew Fisher, Alexandria, Ala., six bass, 9-14, $493
9th: Wayne Hancock, Cumming, Ga., five bass, 9-11, $438
10th: Devereaux Adams, Powder Springs, Ga., five bass, 9-9, $384
Jack Fowler of Coleman, Georgia, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 5 pounds, 5 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $465.