FLORENCE, Ala. (June 5, 2014) – Marcus Sykora of Osage Beach, Mo., took the early lead at the BFL All-American on Wilson Lake with a five-bass limit that weighed 26 pounds, 11 ounces. He now holds a comfortable 5-pound, 6-ounce lead over second place angler Timothy Feller of Coral Springs, Fla., in one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing.
Hosted by Florence/Lauderdale Tourism, the tournament features the top 49 boaters and top 49 co-anglers from across the country casting for top awards of up to $120,000 in the Boater Division and $60,000 in the Co-Angler Division, plus the opportunity to compete in the most lucrative tournament in bass fishing – the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart on Lake Murray, Aug. 14-17. Sykora said that he got off to a quick start and had his weight by about 9 a.m. He caught most of his fish on a crankbait and followed up with a jig to catch a few more.
“I showed up on my first spot and it was going crazy,” Sykora said. “I had 18 pounds and my co-angler (Evan Barnes, second place) had 15 pounds in the first six minutes.”
The top 10 boaters after day one on Wilson Lake are:
1st: Marcus Sykora, Osage Beach, Mo., five bass, 26-11
2nd: Timothy Feller, Coral Springs, Fla., five bass, 21-5
3rd: Todd Castledine, Nacogdoches, Texas, five bass, 20-8
4th: David Nichol, Gainesville, Ga., five bass, 19-12
5th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., five bass, 19-5
6th: Chris McCall, Brookeland, Texas, five bass, 18-14
7th: Kevin Edwards, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 18-2
8th: Dino Moutogiannis, Newington, Conn., five bass, 17-15
9th: Mark Richardson, Eastanollee, Ga., five bass, 17-14
10th: Lloyd Pickett Jr., Bartlett, Tenn., five bass, 17-6
Overall there were 241 bass weighing 704 pounds, 6 ounces caught by 49 boaters Thursday. The catch included 45 five-bass limits. Brandon Maynard of Cookeville, Tenn., leads the co-angler division with five bass weighing 21 pounds, 3 ounces followed by Evan Barnes of Hot Springs, Ark., in second place with five bass weighing 20-7. The top 10 co-anglers are:
1st: Brandon Maynard, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 21-3
2nd: Evan Barnes, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 20-7
3rd: Brett Anderson, Woodlawn, Ill., five bass, 19-3
4th: Ethan Flack, Cullman, Ala, five bass, 18-9
5th: John Bedingfield, Loganville, Ga., five bass, 15-13
6th: Lee Black, Danville, Ala., five bass, 15-10
7th: Jim Budde, Waterloo, Ill., five bass, 15-8
8th: Daniel Brock, Anna, Texas, five bass, 14-15
9th: Sam Overton, Heiskell, Tenn., five bass, 13-12
10th: James Wilcox, Cincinnati, Ohio, five bass, 13-5
Overall there were 212 bass weighing 507 pounds, 11 ounces caught by co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 34 five-bass limits.
Anglers will take off from Waterfront Marina located at 4451 Florence Boulevard in Florence at 7 a.m. each morning. Friday’s weigh-in will be held at Waterfront Marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held following the Walmart FLW Tour weigh-in at Walmart located at 2701 Cloverdale Road in Florence beginning at 5:30 p.m.
Fans will also be treated to the FLW Expo at Walmart on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. prior to the final weigh-ins. The Expo includes Ranger boat simulators and the Chevy Truck Tour plus the opportunity to interact with professional anglers and enjoy interactive games, activities, and giveaways provided by sponsors. Fans can also learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public.