Lake History Pays for Pierce

Boggs brings home co-angler title on Barren River

SCOTTSVILLE, Ky. – Mark Pierce of Cadiz, Kentucky, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 19 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to win the fourth Walmart Bass Fishing League Mountain Division tournament of 2015 on the Barren River. For his victory, Pierce earned $4,729.

“For me, this tournament was about patience and instinct,” said Pierce, who earned the first victory of his career after two previous top-10 finishes in BFL competition. “I didn’t get any decent bites until after 8 a.m. and even then they were sporadic.”

Using a sexy shad-colored Strike King Pro Model 6XD Silent Crankbait, Pierce caught three keepers at an offshore rock patch in approximately 12 feet of water.

“It wasn’t a big school, but the bass were good sized,” Pierce said. “I’m a firm believer that silent baits perform the best on this lake when the fish are postspawn.”

Around 10:30, Pierce ran to a mid-lake point where he casted a Strike King 10XD Crankbait and pulled in a 4-pounder. To cap off his stringer, Pierce said he finished his day targeting areas near the Barren River Dam with a blueback herring-colored Big Bite Baits BB Kicker Swimbait.

“I truly believe that my knowledge of fish activity on this lake served me better than my electronics,” Pierce concluded. “Sometimes history is a better indicator of behavior.”

The top 10 boaters:

1^st:          Mark Pierce, Cadiz, Ky., five bass, 19-14, $4,729

2^nd:         Lloyd Pickett Jr., Bartlett, Tenn., five bass, 19-4, $2,364

3^rd:          Jason Bean, Scottsville, Ky., five bass, 18-2, $1,576

4^th:          Drew Boggs, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 17-0, $1,103

5^th:          Steve Cornett, Manchester, Ky., five bass, 16-10, $946

6^th:          Jason Cooper, Shelbyville, Tenn., five bass, 16-9, $867

7^th:          Dwight Fox, Gainesboro, Tenn., five bass, 16-4, $788

8^th:          John Hunter, Shelbyville, Ky., five bass, 15-14, $709

9^th:          Danny Davis, Scottsville, Ky., five bass, 15-9, $631

10^th:        Flint Fivecoait, Corbin, Ky., five bass, 15-8, $552              

Complete results can be found here.  

Fox and T.J. McDonald of Prestonsburg, Kentucky, tied for the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division. Both caught fish weighing 5 pounds, 2 ounces to split the Big Bass Award and each earn $352.

Boggs wins co-angler title

Michael Boggs of Lily, Kentucky, weighed in five bass totaling 16 pounds, 7 ounces Saturday to win $2,364 in the co-angler division.

The top 10 co-anglers:

1^st:          Michael Boggs, Lily, Ky., five bass, 16-7, $2,364

2^nd:         Brett Graham, Cold Spring, Ky., five bass, 14-15, $1,182

3^rd:          Tracy Helton, London, Ky., five bass, 13-14, $788

4^th:          Steve Ward, Simpsonville, Ky., five bass, 13-0, $552

5^th:          Jake Cross, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 12-13, $473

6^th:          Timothy Ernst, Mount Eden, Ky., five bass, 12-3, $433

7^th:          Chad Stephens, Stearns, Ky., five bass, 12-0, $374

7^th:          Codie Trone, Berea, Ky., five bass, 12-0, $374

9^th:          Fred Moore, Hazard, Ky., four bass, 11-4, $295

9^th:          Jason Ratcliff, Eubank, Ky., five bass, 11-4, $295

Steve Kellam of Crittenden, Kentucky, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $352.

The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 15-17 Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.