Ming Locks Down to Win on Columbus Pool
Stegall Grabs Co-angler Title
Timmy Ming of Louisville, Mississippi, weighed five bass Saturday totaling 13 pounds, 3 ounces to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Mississippi Division tournament on the Columbus Pool. Ming took home $6,037 for his win.
“I locked from the Columbus Pool down to Aliceville and started my day on a 100-yard stretch right outside of the lock,” said Ming, who earned his first career-victory in BFL competition. “There was some riprap with grass growing on it and bass were feeding on crawfish. I put together a limit there by 9:30 (a.m.)”
Ming said he used a Putty Black-colored Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye Frog to catch his initial limit. After 9:30 a.m., he said he continued his day in an area he refers to as Pratt Creek.
“Pratt Creek is an old river run with four or five old lakes off of it,” said Ming. “I sat at the mouth of one of the lakes where there’s a flat littered with stumps. Bass were schooling on shad as they moved out of the lake and into the river. I used a (Lucky Craft LC Silent) square-billed crankbait to catch one that I ended up weighing in.”
At noon, Ming said he locked back into the Columbus Pool and made his way up Tibbee Creek. He said he switched to a Red Shad-colored Berkley Havoc Ike’s Devil Spear to finish out his day.
“The flat I hit was a lot like the previous area in Pratt Creek, but there were grass mats around the stumps,” said Ming. “I caught one more that culled, and then brought in what I had.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Timmy Ming, Louisville, Miss., five bass, 13-3, $4,037 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Chris Quaintance, Muscle Shoals, Ala., three bass, 11-8, $2,019
3rd: Taylor Ramey, Purvis, Miss., five bass, 11-6, $1,545
4th: Tim Jaynes, Ethelsville, Ala., five bass, 11-5, $942
5th: Wayne Foreman, Magnolia, Miss., five bass, 10-9, $807
6th: Randy Craft, Seminary, Miss., five bass, 8-13, $840
7th: Sawyer Woods, Caledonia, Miss., four bass, 8-7, $673
8th: Jamie Long, Okolona, Miss., three bass, 8-3, $606
9th: Charles Watts, Corinth, Miss., four bass, 8-1, $538
10th: Steve Jones, Moss Point, Miss., four bass, 8-0, $471
Pro angler big bass
Gary Wright of Booneville, Mississippi, caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – which earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $545.
Stegall grabs co-angler title
Jack Stegall of Carriere, Mississippi, won the Co-angler Division and $2,019 Saturday after weighing three bass totaling 4 pounds, 11 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Jack Stegall, Carriere, Miss., three bass, 4-11, $2,019
2nd: Dylan Wooten, Vicksburg, Miss., two bass, 4-9, $842
2nd: Daniel Sullivan, Guntown, Miss., one bass, 4-9, $1,114
4th: Christian Sullivan, Florence, Miss., two bass, 4-8, $471
5th: Chris Dye, Hickory Flat, Miss., one bass, 4-3, $604
6th: Joseph Breeden, Brandon, Miss., two bass, 4-0, $370
7th: Robert Keifer, Brandon, Miss., two bass, 3-11, $336
8th: Jesse Steadham, Byram, Miss., two bass, 3-10, $303
9th: Jimmy Tisdale, Ellisville, Miss., two bass, 3-9, $269
10th: Lance Jackson, Starkville, Miss., two bass, 3-6, $273
10th: Kenneth Amos, Greenville, Miss., one bass, 3-6, $223
Co-angler big bass
Daniel Sullivan’s bass was the largest caught in the Co-angler Division and earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $272.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 12-14 BFL Regional Championship on the Red River in Bossier City, Louisiana. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.