Morgan Tallies A Victory In High Rock Lake Event
SALISBURY, N.C. – Brian Morgan won the Boater Division in the American Bass Anglers Open Series, Presented by Caymas Boats, North Carolina Division 5, held April 16, 2022, at High Rock Lake.
Launching at Tamarac Marina, located at 9120 Bringle Ferry Road in Salisbury, N.C., for the second division event of the season, the angler from Ford, N.C. brought in a 5-bass tournament limit for 18.77 pounds. That gave him a 3.75-pound average..
“I caught most of my fish on a jig, but I caught one of my biggest fish on a spinnerbait,” Morgan declared. “I was fishing right on the banks. I caught one sight fishing.”
In second among the boaters, Byron G. Brush of Rockwell also landed his 5-bass limit. He finished with 16.59 pounds.
“I caught most of my fish by sight fishing with a Senko,” Brush revealed. “They came off the beds. I culled up twice.”
Taking the third spot for the boaters, Brad E. Younts of Lexington, N.C. brought in five keepers. His limit weighed 16.49 pounds. He anchored the sack with a 3.74-pounder.
“All my weigh fish came from sight fishing,” Younts said. “I caught a couple on a Pop-R. I caught 22 fish total. I culled a bunch of times.”
Jason K. Barnes from Concord, N.C. finished fourth with five bass for 15.26 pounds. However, one of his bass weighed 5.66-pounds, the tournament lunker.
“I caught that big fish on a jig,” Barnes said. “We were fishing shallow.”
Rounding out the top five boaters, Ladd Whicker from Winston Salem also brought in a 5-bass limit. The sack weighed 14.56 pounds.
In the Co-Angler Division, Charles A. Wood of Thomasville landed a 3-bass division limit at 10.42 pounds for a 3.47-pound average. Upping his average, he anchored the bag with a 4.37-pound kicker.
“I caught my first fish at 7:12 a.m., another at 7:17 a.m., and my biggest at 7:22 a.m.,” Wood recalled. “I fished for 7 hours and three minutes before I caught another and it was only a 10-inch fish.”
Shane R. Maultsby of Barboursville, W. Va. came in second with three bass going 10.32 pounds, the only other co-angler to break into double digits.“I caught the big one on a firetiger 6th Sense 1.5 crankbait,” Maultsby commented. “I caught the others on a 7-inch Power Bait worm. I caught four fish and culled one.”
Landing in third among the co-anglers, Zahreed D. McClinton from Fort Bragg caught a limit for 8.72 pounds. He anchored the sack with a 3.39-pounder.
“I caught most of my fish on a 3/8-ounce spinnerbait fishing shallow,” McClinton advised. “I missed one that might have bumped me up higher.”
Christopher M. Hughes from Lexington occupied the fourth position with three bass at 7.94 pounds. In fifth for the co-anglers, Martin T. Rushing from Midland brought in two keepers going 6.75 pounds. He capped his catch with a 4.67-pound kicker.
LeMar Shore from Raleigh only caught one fish, but the 5.23-pounder landed him in seventh place. The big bass also took the division lunker honors.
“The fish hit a Baby Brush Hog,” Shore said. “I was fishing it on a Texas rig around docks.”
The division returns to High Rock Reservoir on June 11, 2022. To register for this event, Click Here.
American Bass Anglers is sponsored by Caymas Boats, Mercury Marine, T-H Marine, Garmin Electronics, Power Pole, Lucas Oil, RT Outdoors, Sportsman Card, Optima Batteries, Hotel Planner.com, and LurePartsOnline.com.
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low-cost, close-to-home tournaments for the weekend angler and, at the same time, offering each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression.
For more information about American Bass Anglers, the Open Series, the American Fishing Tour, the American Couples Series, the annual Military Team Bass Tournament, and the Top 150 Solo Tour, all presented by Caymas Boats, visit www.americanbassanglers.com or call (256) 232-0406
This story was written by ABA staff writer John N. Felsher. To submit articles of interest email info@americanbassanglers.com.
