Bean Takes Victory On Texoma
POTTSBORO, Texas – After a 24-hour weather delay that shortened the planned two-day event to just one day of competition for safety reasons, Bill T. Bean took it all during the American Bass Anglers Top 150 Solo Series, Presented by Caymas Boats, Southwest Division season opener, held March 19, 2022, on Lake Texoma.
Launching at Highport Marina in Pottsboro, Texas, the Eufaula, Okla. angler landed a 5-bass tournament limit going 18.70 pounds for a 3.74-pound average. A late cull put him in the victory circle. Bean anchored his sack with 7.29-pounder that took the tournament lunker honors. For the victory, Bean collected $11,000 including a $1,000 bonus for the big bass.
“One day in practice I caught three nice smallmouth including a 4-pounder,” Bean recalled. “I caught a few other keepers in practice. On tournament day, I went straight to where I caught that 4-pound smallmouth. I caught every fish in that hole. On my fifth cast, I stuck a big smallmouth on a jerkbait. He came up twice and threw the bait. I started throwing an umbrella rig. My fifth fish in the boat was the 7.29-pounder to finish my limit. I culled a couple times. I was done by 9 a.m. At about 1:30 p.m., I caught another good fish and culled again.”
In second among the competitors, Mark A. Johnson from Weleetka, Okla. brought in five keepers for 18.01 pounds, just six ounces out of first place. Johnson collected $4,800 for the effort.
“I had a really good practice week,” Johnson said. “The fish had been about a foot or two below the surface. When the sun came out on tournament day, they went to the bottom and in the shade. I caught 10 keepers. I caught my biggest fish right off the bat in the morning. I was throwing a jerkbait and an umbrella rig around docks and sand.”
Taking the third spot, Ryan Keele of Center, Texas, put five bass on the scales for 17.48 pounds. He walked away with $3,300 in his pocket.
“I had never been here before and had a terrible practice,” Keele revealed. “I just picked up an umbrella rig and threw it all day. I found two ledges with brush piles on them. In 90 minutes, I caught everything I weighed in. It was fast and furious. By 11 a.m. the bite shut off and I only caught one fish after that. The water temperature came up a little bit and I think that helped the fishing.”
Harmon G. Davis of Marlow, Okla. placed fourth. He caught five good keepers going 16.98 pounds to pocket $1,800. Rounding out the top five, Chris B. McCall from Kirbyville, Texas, also landed a limit. His five weighed 16.88 pounds, good enough to collect $1,125.
The ABA Top 150 Solo Series, Presented by Caymas Boats, features two regional divisions – Southeast and Southwest. Each division will hold three tournaments. Both divisions offer big cash payouts and chances for anglers to advance to higher levels of competition.
The Southwest Division next heads to Lake Eufaula near Eufaula, Okla. on April 22-23. The division wraps up its season on June 17-18 at Lake Sam Rayburn near Zavalla, Texas.
For information on this tournament, call Chris Wayand, Southwest Division Tournament Manager at (256) 230-5627. For more information or to register for any ABA Solo 150 event, see www.americanbassanglers.com/Top150 or call (256) 232-0406.
American Bass Anglers is sponsored by Caymas Boats, Mercury Marine, T-H Marine, Garmin Electronics, Power Pole, Lucas Oil, Optima Batteries, Hotel Planner.com, and LurePartsOnline.com.
This story was written by ABA staff writer John N. Felsher. To submit articles of interest email info@americanbassanglers.com.
