NEWS

2015 Pickwick Lake Tournament Recap

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

 

Kyle and Luke Glasgow Win Alabama Bass Trail Northern Division Finale at Pickwick Lake
John Welborn and Wesley Sams Claim Northern Division Angler of the Year Title

Florence, Ala. – June 7, 2015 – There was much to be decided when the fifth and final Northern Division event of the Alabama Bass Trail’s 2015 season took off into the early morning light onto the waters of Pickwick Lake from McFarland Park in Florence, Ala.  At stake were not only the day’s winnings, but also the Northern Division Anglers of the Year race, 50 spots into the 2015 ABT Championship and eight slots into the Bassmaster Team Championship.

The top end weights were expected to be strong as Pickwick’s largemouth had begun to gather on the ledges.  However, unlike year’s past, the weights throughout the field were expected as the schools of bass were smaller than usual and not as easy to locate.  This would mean that the team that won the tournament would certainly earn it.  The other potential meaning was that the Anglers of the Year title and all of the qualifying spots could be wide open.

Early in the weigh-in, the team of Kyle and Luke Glasgow brought 1 26.27-pound limit to the stage.  While some thought the weights might be higher, the Glasgow’s solid limit was enough to withstand all comers to hold on for the win.

The father / son team said that their day went better than they had anticipated.  “We didn’t have a great practice, and didn’t think this would be the outcome,” said the elder Glasgow.  “My wife told me that we would have a great tournament because we had a difficult practice.  We didn’t expect to do well, but to win with my son means the world to me.”

They reported using Ben Parker Magnum spoons and Profound Outdoors Z-Boss 25 crankbaits to catch their fish.  “We caught a 20-pound-limit early on the spoon, and were pretty happy with that,” they said.  “We went to some other areas later in the day and culled a few on the crankbait; it was really a fun day.”  The Glasgows earned $10,000 for their win, and after contingency programs, could earn as much as an additional $10,000 for their day.

Damien Willis and Mark Steward finished the day in second place with a limit weighing 24.86 pounds, earning $5,000 and the third place team of Brandon Staggs and Jerry Wright produced 22.65 pounds and earned $4,000.  The teams of Joe Alexander and Leon Tidwell Jr. and Gary Thompson and Marty Gentry each caught a 7.14-pound largemouth as a part of their limits and tied for the Diet Mountain Dew Big Bass of the tournament.

John Welborn and Wesley Sams came into the event in second place; three points behind, in the Anglers of the Year standings behind Rusty Strickland and Charles Hemm.   Both teams struggled in the season finale, and in the end, Welborn and Sams were the benefit of a dead fish penalty that cost Strickland and Hemm.  They were able to overcome the deficit and win the Northern Division Anglers of the Year title by five points.

“This is something that ranks right up there with winning the event at Smith Lake this year,” said the pair.  “We spent our day thinking about trying to do well in this tournament, and never really stopped to think about the AOY title.  Now that it’s over and we’ve won it’s really something that we are really proud of.”  They just have to wait for the Southern Division season finale at Lay Lake to see if they can become the overall Anglers of the Year and walk away with the $5,000 prize for the title.

The top 10 in the standings are as follows: the complete standings can be found at http://dev-alabama-bass-trail.pantheonsite.io/tournament-series/pl-results/ and the Northern Division season standings can be found at http://dev-alabama-bass-trail.pantheonsite.io/tournament-series/north-division-standings/

Place	Team	Fish	Penalty	Big Bass	Total Weight	Points	Winnings
1	Kyle Glasgow/Luke Glasgow	5/0	26.27	0.00	6.81	225	10000
2	Damien Willis/Mark Steward	5/0	24.86	0.00	0.00	224	5000
3	Brandon Staggs/Jerry Wright	5/0	22.65	0.00	0.00	223	4000
4	Jeff Shelton/Tim Arnold	5/0	22.60	0.00	0.00	222	3000
5	Justin Marlow/Tom Frink	5/1	22.28	1.00	0.00	221	2000
6	Justin Atkins/Drew Long	5/0	21.69	0.00	0.00	220	1000
7	Craig Grubbs/Matt Ferguson	5/0	21.64	0.00	0.00	219	900
8	William Davis/Tim Cummings	5/0	20.91	0.00	5.36	218	800
9	Blake Hall/Dustin Connell	5/1	20.16	1.00	0.00	217	700
10	Jeremy Christian/Logan Johnson	5/0	20.00	0.00	0.00	216	600

 

As with last season, each of Alabama Bass Trail’s tournaments will feature the live streaming video, but new for the 2015 season will be a live leaderboard so that friends, families and fans can keep up with each event.  Follow along on www.alabamabasstrail.org.

The sponsors of the 2015 Alabama Bass Trail include Bill Penney Toyota, the Alabama Tourism Department, Phoenix Bass Boats, Inc., Academy Sports & Outdoors,  Garmin, T-H Marine Supplies, Inc., Costa Del Mar , Boat US, LEER Truck Caps and Tonneaus, Alabama Power Company, Garmin VIRB Elite, Buffalo Rock, Inc., Jet-Pep, Inc., Tennessee Valley Authority, Power-Pole, Frogg Toggs, Inc., AFS, Window World, E3 Sports Apparel, HydroWaveTM, Vicious Fishing, Navionics, Hydrowave, and Yeti Coolers.