Beck Dominates at Wheeler Lake
ATHENS, Ala. – Donny Beck of Florence, AL won the American Bass Anglers Open Series AL North tournament, held March 17th on Wheeler Lak. Running out of Joe Wheeler State Park, Beck had an amazing day Saturday. He weighed in and impressive five bass limit that weighed 27.8 pounds to take home $5000 prize.
“It was a great day but slow. I don’t think I even had a bite after 10:30 or 11:00. We caught them all pretty quick. I had a great Co-Angler, he finished second and had an opportunity to win” stated Beck.
Second place for the boaters was Austin Weaver from Sheffield, Alabama. He landed five fish weighing in at 21.86 pounds. Weaver was awarded $800 for his catch.
“My day was pretty slow, real slow actually. Didn’t cull any fish. Lost one that would have helped but that was about it” said Weaver.
Andy Kilgore of Kingston, Georgia took third place with a five-fish limit that weighed 19.83 pounds. Kilgore took home a check for $600 for his fish.
In fourth place for the boaters, Nicholas Reeves from Moulton, Alabama weighed in five bass for 17.64 pounds. Rounding out the top five was Eddie Jewell from Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. Jewell had five fish that weighed 16.04 pounds.
Thomas Henshaw of Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia came in eleventh for the day with just three fish but brought in Big Bass for the tournament. Henshaw’s bass weighed 6.81 pounds and earned him $510.
In the Co-Angler division, Mark Pirkle from Cleveland, Tennessee took the win with a three-fish tournament limit that weighed 10.73 pounds. Pirkle earned $1,200 for the win.
“I fished with Andy Parkinson. We had a good day. He caught several fish and culled once. I caught 3 fish, that was it. Caught my last fish 7 minutes before the tournament was over so it was close. Chatterbait and a Shaky-head is what we caught them on” said Pirkle.
Taking second for the co-anglers was Nic Carter from Ohatchee, Alabama. Carter brought three bass to the stage that weighed 9.66 pounds. His three-fish limit earned him a check for $500.
“I had a good day and a really good boater. We had a good time and caught our fish on swim baits” said Carter.
Jett Loach came in third with just 2 bass weighing 9.39 pounds. One of those bass weighed 6.35 pounds which was more than enough to earn Loach the Big Bass pot among the Co-Anglers. Loach took home $350 for third place along with $195 for Big Bass.
“I had a pretty good day all except for that one fish” said Loach.
In fourth place among the co-anglers, Justin Parker of Calhoun, Georgia weighed in three bass that weighed 8.62 pounds. Rounding out the top five was Michael Jones of Rome Georgia who had a three-fish bag weighing 7.67 pounds.
The third Alabama North Division tournament of the season is scheduled for April 28, 2018 on Neely Henry. Launching out of Coosa Landing in Gadsden, Alabama. Anglers will be competing for a chance to win $5000 and a shot at fishing the Ray Scott National Championship which is set for the first week in April on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, AL.
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers, the Open Series, the American Fishing Tour or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.
American Bass Anglers Inc. is supported by Triton Boats, Mercury Outboards, Geico, Berkley, ABU Garcia, T-H Marine, Livingston Lures, Best Western Hotels, Maui Jim, Garmin, Optima Batteries and Sirius XM Marine weather. American Bass Anglers can be contacted at (256) 232-0406 or by visiting americanbassanglers.com