Off the waitlist into the winner’s circle
Co-angler Beasley wins EverStart in his first FLW Outdoors event
FLORENCE, Ala. – A lot of anglers compete for years in the hunt for that brass ring – and that big check. But some guys, like Darrell Beasley of Lawrenceburg, Tenn., have all the luck. He won the Co-angler Division of the EverStart Series Central Division tournament at Pickwick Lake Saturday with five bass weighing 7 pounds, 9 ounces.
Not only did he come off the waitlist to compete and eventually win this tournament, this was his first-ever FLW Outdoors tournament at any level.
That’s right. The BFLs, EverStarts, FLWs – he’s never fished any of them before until this week. And he won $5,000 in his first attempt.
“I just showed up Tuesday night (at registration) and they had a spot open,” Beasley said. “It was more or less a lucky weekend, that’s what I call it.”
There was certainly some skill involved, too. The co-angler champion used a Zoom brush hog, switching back and forth between a Carolina rig and a Texas rig, to catch his winning stringer fishing about an hour’s run down the lake near Pickwick Dam.
“That’s what won me the tournament,” he said. “A my partner (pro Larry Steeby of Parsons, Kansas) was great.”
Beasley was one of just two co-anglers to catch limits in the finals. The other, Clark Wolfe of Grove City, Ohio, gave Beasley a run for the money with a five-bass weight of 7 pounds, 7 ounces, but he fell two ounces short and finished in second place. He collected $4,000.
“I fished with (pro) Clark Wendlandt (of Cedar Park, Texas, who also finished second on the pro side),” Wolfe said. “He’s just a great guy.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-angler finishers were Don Houston of Saltillo, Miss., (third place, $3,500) with one bass weighing 3-6; Bruce Dale of Jamestown, Ohio, (fourth, $2,500) with three bass weighing 3-2; semifinal-round leader Kerry Barnett of Waldron, Ark., (fifth, $2,000) with one bass weighing 2-3; Mark King of Gurdon, Ark., (sixth, $1,900) with one bass weighing 1-10; Mark Schuman of Greenwood, Ark., (seventh, $1,800) with one bass weighing 1-1; Brian Burch of Florence, Ala., (eighth, $1,700) with one bass weighing 1-0; day-one leader Shane Phillips of Franklin, Ky., (ninth, $1,600) with no bass; and Gary Whiteley of Catoosa, Okla., (10th, $1,500) with no bass.
Coming up
The next EverStart Series tournament is an Eastern Division contest at Santee Cooper lakes in Manning, S.C., April 2-5. The Central Division will visit Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Ky., April 30-May 3 for its third regular-season event.
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