OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (Sept. 29, 2014) – Dion Hibdon of Sunrise Beach, Missouri, weighed a two-day total of 10 bass totaling 31 pounds, 2 ounces to win the Bass Fishing League Ozark Division Super Tournament on Lake of the Ozarks Sunday. For his victory, Hibdon earned $8,131.
“I caught most of my fish skipping my bait up under boat docks, around brush,” said Hibdon, a 19-year Walmart FLW Tour pro. “I just started picking apart docks. About 90-percent of my fish came on a jig with a Luck-E-Strike Guido’s Secret Bug on the back of it, or a Texas-rigged Luck-E-Strike creature bait. I just had to get on the right docks and fish slow and pay attention to get the bait way up under them. I caught fish from 1½ to 8 feet of water.”
The 2000 Forrest Wood Cup champion also said that in addition to his two main baits, he fished a Luck-E-Strike Salty Razor Worm on a shaky-head rig and also caught one keeper with a Heddon Zara Spook. Hibdon said that he was fishing up the lake in muddier water and used a variety of darker colors for his baits.
“If you look at the top-20 finishers there, most of them are the best fishermen on Lake of the Ozarks,” said Hibdon. “I’m very proud to come out on top. I’m a fisherman, and I’m going to try as hard to win 50 cents as I would an FLW Tour event.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Brian Thompson, Springfield, Mo., nine bass, 28-15, $2,915
3rd: Dennis Berhorst, Holts Summit, Mo., nine bass, 28-0, $1,945
4th: Jim Stamper, Montreal, Mo., 10 bass, 27-14, $1,361
5th: Lance Williams, Billings, Mo., 10 bass, 27-8, $1,166
6th: Roger Fitzpatrick, Eldon, Mo., eight bass, 25-8, $1,069
7th: Steve Ruff, Wentzville, Mo., eight bass, 25-0, $972
8th: Larry Caldwell, St. Peters, Mo., nine bass, 22-8, $875
9th: B.J. Miller, Adams, Neb., 10 bass, 22-5, $777
10th: Nalon Jones, Marshfield, Mo., eight bass, 22-3, $680
Dewey Larson of Fayetteville, Arkansas, weighed in a two-day total of eight bass totaling 18 pounds, 13 ounces to win $2,916 in the co-angler division Sunday. Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Brian Hansen, Fenton, Mo., six bass, 16-10, $1,458
3rd: John Buchanan, Jefferson City, Mo., eight bass, 15-9, $971
4th: Earl Malone, Wichita, Kan., four bass, 13-13, $680
5th: Brent Haas, Warrenton, Mo., five bass, 11-11, $583
6th: Tad Huff, Harrison, Ark., five bass, 10-15, $535
7th: Will Spurgeon, Jefferson City, Mo., five bass, 9-3, $486
8th: Chris Klenke Sr., Wildwood, Mo., five bass, 9-3, $437
9th: Stewart Bigelow, Columbia, Mo., four bass, 9-2, $389
10th: Chris Klenke, Labadie, Mo., five bass, 8-14, $340
The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 16-18 Regional Championship on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Jasper, Texas. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.