JASPER, TEXAS (Feb. 17, 2018) – A dense fog on Sam Rayburn Reservoir forced the cancellation of the final day of competition Saturday at the FLW Series Southwestern Division tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir. Dry Prong, Louisiana boater Kevin Lasyone, who led the first two days of competition and was set to start Day Three with a 10½-pound lead, was declared the winner. Lasyone’s two-day total of 10 bass weighing 53 pounds, 1 ounce, earned him the victory and a winner’s check worth $54,200.
The final 10 boaters were in the water for most of the morning, waiting for the fog to dissipate and competition to resume. When the fog did not lift, Tournament Director Ron Lappin and FLW officials made the decision to cancel the final day of competition shortly before 11 a.m., due to safety concerns.
“We didn’t see conditions improving,” Lappin said. “So, we opted on the side of safety.”
Tournament winner Lasyone said he agreed with the decision and was happy to earn his first career FLW Series win, but was still disappointed that he wasn’t going to be able to fish the final day of competition.
“I was really looking forward to fishing all day at my spot,” Lasyone said. “The past few days I’ve left the area early, trying to manage my fish for three days of competition. I was planning to fish there all day today. It’s great to get the win, though. The Good Lord blessed me and when it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.”
Lasyone said his spot was a 150-yard stretch located in the middle of a community hole. He sat his boat in depths of about 25 feet while he made casts up to depths of 12 to 15 feet, dragging his black, blue and gold-colored ¾-ounce V&M Sneaky Snake jig amid a few isolated stumps.
“The fish that I caught were prespawn – fat and healthy,” Lasyone said. “There was a younger guy near me, but he was fishing shallow. I was making sure to keep my boat out in 25 to 30 feet. The key was really slowing down. I had to fish extremely slow.”
Lasyone said he added in a V&M Wild Thang worm with a ½-ounce weight on Friday.
“On Thursday my co-angler and I put around a dozen keepers in the boat. Friday, we caught 20 to 25. The fish were pulling in and reloading. I knew when I found this big school in practice that it had potential, but I didn’t realize that they were that big.”
When asked about the jig trailer that he had been throwing, Lasyone was coy.
“I don’t mind talking about the Sneaky Snake jig, but I’m going to keep my trailer close to the vest at this point. I will say that I was planning to throw a different one today.”
The top 10 pros on Sam Rayburn finished:
1st: Kevin Lasyone, Dry Prong, La., 10 bass, 53-1, $54,200
2nd: T.J. Goodwyn, Center, Texas, 10 bass, 42-9, $22,600
3rd: Scotty Villines, Ponca, Ark., 10 bass, 41-3, $15,500
4th: Kris Wilson, Montgomery, Texas, 10 bass, 39-5, $13,500
5th: Darold Gleason, Many, La., 10 bass, 37-11, $12,500
6th: Jon Englund, Farwell, Minn., 10 bass, 36-9, $9,750
7th: Billy Billeaud, Lafayette, La., 10 bass, 35-14, $8,400
8th: Garrett Hilton, Beaumont, Texas, 10 bass, 35-12, $7,400
9th: Jason Bonds, Lufkin, Texas, 10 bass, 35-9, $6,400
10th: Christopher Jones, Bokoshe, Okla., 10 bass, 35-6, $5,000
Jones caught a 9-pound, 5-ounce bass Thursday, the biggest of the tournament in the Pro Division, and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $300. Louis Ferguson of Woodville, Texas, won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger Z175 with a 90-horsepower outboard motor with a two-day total catch of 10 bass weighing 35 pounds, 14 ounces. Keith Honeycutt of Temple, Texas, finished runner-up with 10 bass weighing 30-11, good for $6,750.
The top 10 Co-anglers on Sam Rayburn finished:
1st: Louis Ferguson, Woodville, Texas, 10 bass, 35-14, Ranger Z175 with a 90-horsepower outboard motor
2nd: Keith Honeycutt, Temple, Texas, 10 bass, 30-11, $6,750
3rd: James Callaghan, DeBerry, Texas, 10 bass, 29-15, $5,600
4th: Michael Allbright, Athens, Texas, 10 bass, 27-13, $4,400
5th: James Allen Pruitt, Houston, Texas, 10 bass, 27-5, $3,700
6th: Zack Freeman, Russellville, Ark., 10 bass, 26-13, $3,250
7th: John Moon, Brookeland, Texas, 10 bass, 26-9, $2,700
8th: Andrew Brandstrom, White Bear Lake, Minn., 10 bass, 26-9, $2,100
9th: Austin Miller, Spring Hill, Kan., 10 bass, 26-5, $1,640
10th: Thomas Preiser, League City, Texas, eight bass, 25-12, $1,390
Ferguson also caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Friday, a giant weighing 10 pounds, 5 ounces that earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $200.