Lasyone Scores Big Texas Win At Lake Palestine

FLINT, Texas – Kevin Lasyone made a big move on the last day to win the Boater Division in the American Bass Anglers Open Series, Presented by Caymas Boats, 2-Day Area 6 Championship tournament, held Sept. 17-18, 2022, at Lake Palestine in Flint, Texas.

The anglers fishing the Texas South 10 and Texas East 11 Divisions ran out of The Villages Marina in Flint, Texas, to fish the 25,560-acre impoundment on the Neches River. The angler from Dry Prong, La. jumped eight slots to tally a victory in the event with a perfect two consecutive 5-bass daily tournament limits totaling 28.30 pounds. 

Lasyone held ninth place on Day 1 with 12.30 pounds. On the final day, he caught the second largest single-day bag at 16 pounds to leap into the winner’s circle. For the win, he went home with $3,400.

“Most of my fish came off a Texas-rigged Texas smoke V&M J-Mag worm with a half-ounce weight and a 3/0 hook,” Lasyone explained. “I flipped docks on the first day and rocks the second day. I caught three or four fish on a jig. I caught eight on the first day and 12 keepers on the second day.”

Taking second place among the boaters, James M. Laramore from Vidor, Texas, finished with 10 bass weighing 28.23 pounds, less than a half-ounce out of first place. On the first day, Laramore held third with 14.59 pounds. He brought in 13.64 pounds on Day 2 to move up a slot and collect $1,500.

“It stings a little to be this close to winning, but that’s fishing,” Laramore admitted. “This was the first time I ever fished this lake. I caught my fish around rocks with a wacky worm. I ran all the way down to the spillway, but wound up catching my fish close to the ramp. I caught six keepers on Day 1 and seven on the second day. The average quality was down on the second day.”

Kenneth Moore of Red Oak, Texas, dropped one slot to finish third among the boaters with 10 bass going 26.07 pounds. After Day 1, Moore sat in second with 15.03 pounds, including 3.65-pound kicker. He added 11.04 pounds on the last day to collect $900.

“I threw a split-shot fluke around stumps in about two feet of water both days,” Moore advised. “I caught about 20 keepers the first day and 15 the second day. When the clouds came out, the fish stopped biting. They started again when the sun came back out.”

Opening day leader, Aaron E. Johnson from Shreveport, La. finished fourth with nine bass at 25.79 pounds. On the first day, he landed the biggest single-day bag of the tournament, five bass totaling 17.69 pounds. He topped it with a 9.24-pound Largemouth that won the Boater lunker title. On the second day, Johnson found four bass for 8.10 pounds. He earned $800 for fourth place and a $350 big bass bonus. 

Aaron D. Davis from Red Oak, Texas, moved up seven spots from 12th to fifth place with nine bass weighing 24.63 pounds. He caught 11.38 pounds on Day 1 and 13.25 the next day to take home $575.

In the Co-Angler Division, Zeak T. Dryden from Liberty, Texas, came close to winning and finished just out of the money in some events, but won this one. He found a perfect 2-day limit of six bass weighing 17.85 pounds to collect $1,700. 

“It was tough fishing,” Dryden said. “I caught limits both days, but just couldn’t cull up on the first day. On the second day, I didn’t have a limit until 2:45 p.m. I made one flip and a 3-pounder grabbed it. I brought it up to the weigh station.”

Dryden sat in eighth place on Day 1, a familiar spot for him this year. He caught a 3-bass daily division limit for 6.18 pounds. On the second day, he landed three bass going 11.67 pounds, the best single-day catch by a co-angler in the tournament, to make the jump up seven levels.

In second for the co-anglers, Dustin A. Morris from Dayton, Texas, also found six keepers. He finished with 17.79 pounds, less than a half-ounce off the winning pace. Morris held third on Day 1 with 8.72 pounds. He caught 9.07 pounds the second day to collect $750.

“I caught all my fish around docks with brush,” he said. “I was throwing a shaky head. I used about half a Senko with the jig. I fished a drop-shot rig a little and a Texas-rigged Zoom craw. I caught six keepers each day.”

Donny G. Davis of Livingston, La. finished third among the co-anglers with five bass going 16.32 pounds. He sat in fifth place on Day 1 with two bass for 8.33 pounds. One of them weighed 4.99 pounds. He caught a limit on the final day for 7.99 pounds to skip up two rungs and take home $450.

Garry L. Fisher of Wylie, Texas, finished fourth with four bass and 14.36 pounds. On the first day, he led with two bass for 11.56 pounds. One of them weighed 9.28 pounds, one of the largest bass landed by any co-angler this season. That bass took the tournament lunker title. Fisher added 2.80 pounds the last day. He collected $400 for fourth place a $175 for the Largemouth.

Brandon M. Clayton from Haslet, Texas, finished fifth for the co-anglers with six bass at 13.69 pounds. He held sixth place on the first day with 6.31 pounds. He caught 7.38 pounds on Day 1 with a 3.26-pound kicker to win $275.

Anglers may qualify for bonus money offered by such tournament sponsors as Caymas Boats, Mercury Marine, the T-H Marine Atlas Awards program, MotorGuide, and Power Pole. Anyone who qualifies for Caymas Cash rewards could receive up to $7,000 for winning any ABA Open Series event. If the winning boat carries a Mercury motor, the angler could receive an extra $1,000 in cash from Mercury Marine. If that boat comes with a MotorGuide Trolling Motor, the angler could win an additional $500.
See each manufacturer’s website for details, rules and qualifications for more information on their contingency programs.

For more information about this tournament, call Tournament Director Chris Wayand at (256) 230-5627.

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