Bateman comes out on top at Monroe Lake

ATHENS, Ala. – Scott Bateman landed the only five-fish limit to win the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series, operated by American Bass Anglers, Indiana Division 7 tournament, held June 9, 2012, on Monroe Lake.

Running out of Cutright Ramp near Bloomington, the Washington angler caught his five-bass tournament limit to win with 17.45 pounds. Catching a total of nine keepers, he anchored his bag with a 4.51-pound kicker.

“I caught a couple on top early and then it slowed down a bit,” Bateman recalled. “I started catching some fish on crankbaits. Right at the end, they really started biting. I caught about six bass in 40 minutes and culled a couple times. I caught most of my fish in about four to five feet of water up in the creeks.”

In second for the boaters, William S. Egan of Bloomington brought in four keepers tallying 10.69 pounds. He capped his catch with a 4.56-pound kicker.

“I threw everything from topwaters to worms,” Egan admitted. “I had all four fish by 9 a.m. I caught three on plastics and one on topwater. I caught my fish around main lake woody cover.”

Jeff Hebert of Bloomington took third for the boaters with four keepers totaling 10.61 pounds. His biggest bass weighed 5.10 pounds, enough to take the tournament lunker title.

“I started on top, but that didn’t work,” Hebert said. “Then, I went to flipping black and red tubes on rocks and stumps in the creeks.”

Robert L. Gilliland of Bloomington placed fourth with four bass and 9.66 pounds. Leroy E. McGregor of Vincennes brought in three bass going 9.50 pounds with one 4.45-pound kicker to take fifth among the boaters.

In the Co-Angler Division, Justin D. Clift of Indianapolis landed one of only two three-bass division limits to win with 9.05 pounds. He anchored his bag with a 4.09-pounder to seal his first BWS victory.

“I had a limit by 9:30 a.m.,” Clift said. “I threw a shad-colored crankbait all day and just burned it. We were fishing breaks, shallow near deep water. We fished everywhere.”

Clayton A. Vanosdol of Butlerville finished in second place with two bass going 6.58 pounds. One weighed 4.77 pounds.

“I caught about six short fish, but only had two keeper bites,” Vanosdol said. “I caught my fish on a green crankbait. Both came off wood. I had the first one about 10 minutes into the tournament, but didn’t catch the other keeper until about 12:30 p.m.”

In third for the co-anglers, Rod Yoder of West Lafayette brought in the only other three-bass division limit.

“It was a long day,” Yoder lamented. “It took me a long time to catch a limit. I thought I was going to blank, but caught all my fish in 30 minutes late in the day. I used a Carolina rig off a point. I tipped it with a Yum Rib Fry in watermelon gold.”

Rod Keel of Bloomington only landed one bass, but his 5.81-pound lunker took the division big bass title and earned Keel fourth place. John “Frank” F. Woolard of Bicknell rounded out the top five co-anglers with two bass and 5.61 pounds including a 3.90-pound kicker.

For more information on this tournament, call Randy Sullivan at (256) 230-5633 or ABA at (888) 203-6222. On line, see www.americanbassanglers.com.

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