Drop-Shot Carries Buck to Top

Dubernas claims co-angler title on Oneida

Grae Buck caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds even Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Northeast Division tournament on Oneida Lake. For his win, Buck pocketed $5,303.

“I fished in 9 to 12 feet of water around grass and rock that were mixed together,” says Buck, an FLW Tour rookie who logged his third career-victory in BFL competition. “I rotated through seven areas and hit each one twice, focusing on individual fish that were cruising by themselves. Other anglers were catching them from schools, but I couldn’t get them going.”

Buck says he utilized a Yamamoto Shad Shape Worm on a drop-shot as his key bait. He preferred 7.3-pound test Seaguar Finesse Fluorocarbon line because it eliminated some of the twisting that comes with fishing a drop-shot.

“I did my best to make contact with the rock between the grass patches,” says Buck. “I was dragging the rig more than anything. If you weren’t dragging it, you weren’t getting bit. I’m pretty sure they were feeding on perch down there.

“I caught my heaviest fish with 20 minutes left in the day,” Buck went on to say. “It culled out a 2½-pounder, so it basically won me the tournament.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:          Grae Buck, Harleysville, Pa., five bass, 18-0, $5,303

2^nd:         Kevin Park, Waymart, Pa., five bass, 17-9, $2,232

3^rd:          Ian Renfrew, Phoenix, N.Y., five bass, 17-6, $1,589

4^th:          Tyler Sheppard, Hermitage, Pa., five bass, 16-6, $1,041

5^th:          Tyler Morgan, Pine Grove, Pa., five bass, 16-3, $893

6^th:          Paul Kimball, Glastonbury, Conn., five bass, 16-1, $818

7^th:          Brandon Esterly, Forest, Va., five bass, 15-15, $744

8^th:          Jeremy Douglas, Rochester, N.Y., five bass, 15-10, $669

9^th:          Jason Shipton, Muncy, Pa., five bass, 15-8, $595

10^th:        Shaun Kucharski, Pittston, Pa., five bass, 15-5, $521

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.  

Buck’s 4-pound, 11-ounce fish was the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division, and also earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $640.

Dubernas wins co-angler title

Jason Dubernas of Old Forge, Pennsylvania, won the Co-angler Division and $2,232 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 18 pounds, 6 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers:

1^st:          Jason Dubernas, Old Forge, Pa., five bass, 18-6, $2,232

2^nd:         Henry McKee, Haddon Heights, N.J., five bass, 16-1, $1,116

3^rd:          Matt Maze, Johnsonburg, Pa., five bass, 14-5, $743

4^th:          Robby Zellers, Philadelphia, Pa., five bass, 13-11, $521

5^th:          William Allie, Wynantskill, N.Y., five bass, 13-10, $446

6^th:          Roy Bilby, Richmondville, N.Y., five bass, 13-8, $409

7^th:          Peter Longo, Neptune, N.J., five bass, 13-5, $372

8^th:          Thomas Dellinger, Myerstown, Pa., five bass, 13-2, $335

9^th:          Shawn Flynn, Dexter, N.Y., five bass, 12-15, $298

10^th:        Bryan Folino, Cheshire, Mass., four bass, 12-11, $460

Rick Hahn of Fulton, New York, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 4 pounds, 8 ounces – and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $320.

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 James River in Williamsburg, Virginia. 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.