Flippin’ Judy
Israel wins Atchafalaya Co-angler Division, becomes first female FLW champion
MORGAN CITY, La. – Competitive bass fishing has come a long way in a short time. The proof: On Friday, a 58-year-old grandmother from the South Bronx won $20,000 in a national tournament on the Louisiana bayou.
Judy Israel won the Co-angler Division in Wal-Mart FLW Tour competition at the Atchafalaya Basin, becoming the first woman ever to be crowned champion on tour.
“I’ve dreamt about this moment for so long,” an emotional Israel said Friday afternoon, “I can hardly talk – and, you know me, I always have words to say.”
Speechless or not, it was Israel’s flipping stick that did all the talking in Friday’s co-angler finals. Fishing with pro Dean Rojas, she caught three bass weighing 6 pounds, 9 ounces and beat runner-up Donald Braud by almost 3 pounds.
The remarkable thing about Israel’s win isn’t her gender, it’s that she pulled it off at Atchafalaya where flipping and pitching was the dominant technique. She admits that she hates flipping, but that’s exactly what she did – using a 4-inch Gambler worm with a ¼-ounce weight, not to mention a borrowed flipping stick – to win the trophy.
“Usually, I throw a spinnerbait around and I don’t flip,” she said. “But this week I said, `Girl, you’ve got to go do it.’ … Normally, when I look at a tournament, I say, `I can win that one,’ but not here. This is the one that never in a million years did I think I could win. I guess I’m going to have to buy my own flipping stick now.”
While novel in its storyline, Israel’s win was no mere fluke. She initially made waves in fishing when, as a co-angler at Lake Okeechobee in 1999, she became the second woman ever to finish in the top 10 in an FLW event. Since then, she has racked up no fewer than two more FLW top-10s (this week included) and six EverStart Series top-10s, including two runner-up finishes, from the back of the boat. In 2002 she also won a BFL Northeast Division tournament. Israel is one of the few co-anglers on tour with official FLW sponsorship backing: She fishes with Team Land O’Lakes.
Even more remarkable, Israel, a former elementary schoolteacher, started bass fishing with artificial baits just seven years ago – about the same time the FLW started. She took it up while on vacation with her husband, Abbie (who also fishes FLW Outdoors events as a co-angler), in South Florida. Soon after, she moved from the Bronx to Clewiston, Fla., and began entering tournaments – and making history.
“I just try to learn as much as possible every time I go on the water,” Israel said. “If my partner is talkative, I ask a million questions. All of the great professionals I’ve fished with are part of this win.”
Soon enough, Israel will be the one answering co-anglers’ questions. She is registered to fish the EverStart Northern Division as a pro this year, which will be her first competitive foray from the front of the boat.
Rest of the best
Just four co-anglers caught keeper bass in Friday’s finals.
Braud of Woodville, Miss., finished second and collected $10,000 with two bass weighing 3 pounds, 13 ounces.
Leon Williams of Fairdale, Ky., finished third and collected $9,000 with one bass weighing 2 pounds, 7 ounces.
Arch Cornett of Huntsville, Ala., finished fourth and collected $8,000 with one bass weighing 1 pound, 8 ounces.
The rest of the co-angler finalists at Atchafalaya failed to catch a keeper Friday. Final places were awarded based on opening-round positions: opening-round leader William Bridges of Tallapoosa, Ga. (5th place, $7,000); Greg Gulledge of Monticello, Ark. (6th, $6,000); Simon Morrow of Alexander City, Ala. (7th, $4,000); Asa Godsey of Clewiston, Fla. (8th, $3,000); William Drown of Roseland, Fla. (9th, $2,500); and Mark Martin of Vidor, Texas (10th, $2,000).
The final day of FLW Tour competition at the Atchafalaya Basin begins Saturday at 7 a.m. CST as the 10 pro finalists take off from Belle River Boat Launch in Belle River, La. The heaviest two-day weight from Friday and Saturday combined will determine the tournament’s $100,000 winner.