Justice Banks 5K For The Win on Guntersville

Guntersville, Alabama / Feb 27, 2010 – While the winter lingers on, the colder than normal water still had some hot action for the anglers in the East Tennessee division of the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series held on Guntersville Lake.

“I came down yesterday, (the day before the tournament) I had about 5 hours to practice. I put my boat in the water three different times”, said John Justice, who won the Bass Weekend Series event on Guntersville lake and took home $5.000.00 for his effort. Justice tried areas up the river, in the mid river and on the lower end to locate a few key areas that helped him secure his victory in the Toyota Tundra BWS on Guntersville Lake.

Justice caught some fish on the upper end and on the lower end during practice, and based his winning pattern on a the few fish he caught. Justice explained, “I had to find a place where if the sky got real blue and the sun got up high I could catch a few fish deep”. Justice had between 18 and 20 pounds early in the day and left those fish biting in his hope to cull up in another area.

Justice said after he made his move down the river from his first areas, his non-boater “put on a clinic” and had a quick limit of fish. Justice was able to cull up to near 27 pounds, and then went back to his first area to cull up one more time in the last 15 minutes of the game to give him the 27.30 pounds he needed to take the 1st place check during the event.

The most critical part of his day was when Justice made the decision to leave biting fish and make a long run to try to cull up. The decision paid off well for Justice as he was able to put a massive weight of bass on the scales.

BWS angler Matt McLaughlin took second place in the event. “I only practiced one day about a week ago and I caught a bunch of small fish in one area and found some grass. That’s about all I had to go on. Today I just covered a lot of water in that same area and found two or three key spots”. McLaughlin said the weather was not a major factor in his bite during this event. He caught most of his fish on a rattle-bait but explained that adjusting to a jig put two of his bigger fish in the boat. Having confidence in his area and the two key sweet spots he found was the most critical aspect of catching the fish that awarded him the second place finish. McLaughlin had 23.59 pounds and took home $2,136.00. \

Third place went to James Cross. James located his fish on the Wednesday prior to the tournament and fished during the cold weather. James also used rattle-baits for his 3rd place finish.

BWS angler, Richard Holland took the big fish prize on the boater side. Holland fished with a rattle-bait and a jerk-bait. Holland had only 5 bites but said that they were all good fish.
Chris Weeks landed the the big fish prize on the co-angler side.

Chris Abbot took the 1st place check on the co-angler side. Abbot was fishing a rattle-bait and boated the only 5 bites he had during the day. Larry Ward took second place on the co-angler side and he was followed by Brandon Taylor in third. “Today is my birthday, and it’s a happy birthday for me”, said Taylor.

These anglers are acquiring critical points to ensure their berth in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series Championship which will be worth more than $680,000 in cash and prizes and will include a slot in the Bassmaster Classic.  The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series operated by American Bass Anglers is not only the stepping stone to the Bassmaster Classic , but it is the only bass tournament trail that guarantees $5,000 first place to the winner of each divisional event, plus contingencies from Triton Boats and Mercury Marine of up to $7,000 per event.  

About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers offers over 1,100 tournaments per year in 40 states that are designed for the weekend angler.  American Bass Anglers commitment is to provide low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression.  For more information about  American Bass Anglers and the American Fishing Tour, The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series, The American 150 Series or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.

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