| |
|
|
|
|
|
1st Place
|
MURPHY
MEISS and DOUG VANDERWALL
|
|
2nd Place
|
JEFF
DENTON and CHRIS SCHULTZ
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3rd Place
|
BOB
BREIVOGEL and DANIEL CHOPP
|
|
|
|
U.S. ANGLER'S CHOICE NORTHERN
REGIONAL
COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI
By Dave Kilby
With overcast skies and a stiffel
breeze from the south, temperatures remained steady, with
a 50-degree morning climbing to 65 degrees by mid-afternoon.
Thankfully, the rain and thunderstorms predicted did not materialize
until weigh-in was over. Conditions were certainly more favorable
for catching bass than Friday.
Angler's Choice VP and tournament
director Tom Shockley stepped to the podium as the first flight
of angler's arrived at the Columbus Marina Docks at 3:00pm.
Several angler's risked the accurate opening of the locks
and actually had about a half hour to fish, while others chose
to sit at the dock and wait for the official opening of the
scales. While second day weights were not as high as anticipated,
3 teams brought in 5-bass limits that were over 10 lbs.
After the official closing of
the scales at 3:49 pm, a high level of anxiety loomed over
the large crowd as VP of Operations Alton Forthe tabulated
the results. After the polygraph examination was completed
it was time to crown the champions of the 2002 US Angler's
Choice Northern Championship.
Finding them in 3rd place after
Friday's competition, Indiana's Murphy Meiss and Doug Vanderwall
brought a 5-bass limit to the weigh-in platform that totaled
10.46 lbs. Coupled with their day-one weight; their grand
total of 19.52 lbs. gave them the victory by just over a pound.
For their efforts, Murphy and
Doug were awarded 2 fully rigged BassCat Pantera Classics
with a Mercury 200 EFI.
Making a huge leap to claim the
runner-up position was the team of Jeff Denton and Chris Schultz,
who compete in the North Indiana Division. Sitting in 11th
place after Friday's competition, Jeff and Chris brought the
largest bag of the event to the scales weighing 11.94 lbs,
which locked up second place. Their total weight was 18.48
lbs. They took home a BassCat Sabre with a Mercury 150 EFI.
Finishing third and fishing the
Indiana division was Bob Breivogel and Daniel Chopp, also
making t tremendous jump from 18th place on Friday to claim
the top cash prize from the side pot. Their limit weighed
10.78 lbs. today and gave them a total of 16.40 lbs.
After 2 steady days of fishing,
Angler's Choice is pleased to announce that ALL fish caught
during the tournament were released alive back into Columbus
Lake. A 100% release obviously sustains this and any other
fishery and shows the scrutinizing public how much care is
taken to maintain their lakes and rivers.
Spinnerbaits, jigs, and tube
baits were responsible for the top 3 finishes. This was in
contrast to Friday where crankbaits were the dominant bait.
|
