Clearly unstoppable

Lucas wins back-to-back Western Series titles, clinches Co-angler of the Year

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Friday, it was said that the Wal-Mart FLW Series Western Division title sponsor, the National Guard, has somehow rigged the outcome of these events. But no, the Guard just has an eye for talent. That point was driven home at Clear Lake when 20-year-old Justin Lucas, who fishes for Team National Guard, won his second consecutive Western Series Co-angler Division title.

The young co-angler from Folsom, Calif., who won last month’s event at the Columbia River, opened the Clear Lake tourney in the lead and never looked back. He caught his third solid limit of the week Friday – 17 pounds, 7 ounces – lead the tournament wire-to-wire and took home the $25,000 winner’s check with a three-day weight of 54-1.

That means, over the duration of two events, no co-angler has been better than Lucas for four days straight. It also means that, in just two months, the 20-year-old has earned $50,000 by fishing for bass.

“I think I’m going to buy a new truck with this one,” Lucas said. “A Chevy truck.”

Asked how he’s able to manage such consistent catches from the back of the boat, where luck of the draw plays a huge role in the outcome, Lucas gave that shrug familiar to anyone who’s been “in the zone.”

“I don’t know,” he said. “Right now I feel like I just know which bait to throw in any given situation.”

Lucas’ zone at Clear Lake involved a lot of worm fishing. Many pros fished slowly on deeper rock humps this week, which played right into some co-anglers’ hands. It allowed them more water to fish and time to be patient with their finesse baits.

For Lucas, who fished behind pro Lewis Milligan Friday, that hand came up aces.

“The whole deal to my win was my 8-pound Pro Grade Berkley fluorocarbon line and my hand-poured, 6-inch, Triple Margarita Berkley finesse worms,” said Lucas, who has clearly learned the fine art of sponsor promotion in just two years of competitive fishing. “We were fishing rocks, and when (Milligan) told me where he was going today, it was a place where I caught a bunch of fish in practice. So I was right at home.”

With today’s win, Lucas also clinched the co-angler standings victory in the 2007 Western Division. For the season, he finished 14th at Lake Havasu, 52nd at the California Delta, first at the Columbia River and first at Clear Lake.

So what’s next for an aspiring young angler who has the Western Series Co-angler Division by the horns, a Co-angler of the Year title, a full sponsorship from the National Guard and two big tournament wins already under his belt?

“I don’t know how it gets any better than this,” Lucas said, “unless I was fishing from the front of the boat.”

Williamson nearly out-youngs a young winner

Lucas didn’t exactly coast to victory Friday, however. He had heavy pressure in the form of Kenny Williamson of Peoria, Ariz., who at just 19 years old is even younger than the young winner.

Williamson caught the second-heaviest co-angler limit of the day – 19 pounds even – and climbed into the runner-up slot with a three-day total of 50-11. He earned $9,835.

“I was using the same bait all week,” Williamson said. “I threw a weightless fluke all three days, and today we fished at 22 feet. That takes a lot of patience, especially for someone my age.”

Rest of the best

Ken Schmitt of Livermore, Calif., caught a limit weighing 17 pounds, 7 ounces Friday and finished third with a three-day total of 50-10. He earned $8,851.

Co-angler Hideki Maeda of Japan finished in fourth place with a total weight of 49 pounds, 11 ounces and won $7,868. He caught a limit weighing 15-10 Friday.

Paul Fontaine of Brentwood, Calif., rounded out the top five co-anglers with a total weight of 48 pounds, 3 ounces and earned $6,884. He caught four bass weighing 13-3 Friday.

Rounding out the top 10 co-angler finishers at Clear Lake:

6th: Mike Iloski of Escondido, Calif., 47-1, $5,901

7th: Brian Stafford of Fairfield, Calif., 46-9, $4,917

8th: J.R. Wright of Truckee, Calif., 45-2, $3,934

9th: Bert Whittington III of Winchester, Calif., 44-15, $2,950

10th: Anthony Klonowski of Eagle, Idaho, 44-7, $1,967