Ryan Watkins does it again, capturing a second consecutive Club Division AOY for the 2023 Texas Bass Nation South Region Individual Trail! Coming into the final doubleheader tournament Ryan was in second place for the AOY standings and ground out a second and eighth place finish to push him to the first place standing. Over the course of the six-event season Ryan made 3 podium finishes, and brought 28 fish to the scales for a better than 2.5lb average. Congratulations Ryan!
The final stop for the 2023 TBN South Region regular season was a doubleheader on Lake Amistad, 20 and 21 May. 16 anglers made the trip and found typical conditions for late spring with temperatures in the mid 80’s and light winds from the south. Overall fishing was tough not for numbers, but for keepers.
Cliff Martinez captured the top spot Saturday with a five fish limit of #12.41 including a #4.46 kicker that was good enough for big bass on the day. Ryan Watkins’ 5 fish bag of #9.66 was good for second place, and Trevor Rogge was close behind, rounding out the podium with 5 fish that weighed in for #8.94.
On Sunday Ricky Bishop showed out with a full creel for #11.90 to top the podium. Rick Shock was less than a pound back, his five fish weighing in at #10.99 earning second place. Third place was Ken Scarborough with a #9.55 limit anchored by the big bass of the day at #4.13.
Northwest Region Championship Results
The Northwest Region held their Region Championship June 10 & 11 on lake E.V. Spence. The weather was hot and so was the fishing for the top twenty anglers in points from our regional tournament trail. The top 10 boaters & top 10 non-boaters battled it out to see who would advance to the BASS Nation Super Regional next year.
Royce Scheetz from the Callahan County Bass Club took the top spot in the Boater Division. Royce brought in the heaviest 5-fish limit of the tournament on Day #1 weighing 22.65 lbs. He followed it up with another limit on Day #2 weighing 19.35 lbs for a two-day total of 42.00 lbs. Kevin Weekes made a strong run at the title bringing in a two-day total of 40.56 lbs to finish in second place. Jordan Baumann finished in third place with 37.14 lbs.
Shayne Dupree with the Angelo Federation Bass Club won the Non-boater Division. Shayne brought in back-to-back three-fish limits weighing 14.64 lbs & 14.10 lbs for a two-day total of 28.74 lbs for the win. RyShawn Davis also brought in three-fish limits each day for a total of 22.38 lbs to finish in second place. Charles Coger finished in third with 20.47 lbs.
Kelley Hudson had Big Bass of the tournament in the Boater Division with a nice 6.59 lb largemouth. Shayne Dupree had Big Bass in the Non-boater Division with a 6.06 lb bass.
Congratulations to Kelley Hudson, Royce Scheetz, Shayne Dupree, and RyShawn Davis on advancing to the BASS Nation Super Regionals next year. Kelley and Royce will be competing in the Boater Division and Shayne and RyShawn will compete in the Non-boater Division for a chance to advance to the BASS Nation National Championship. Good luck guys!