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National Crappie League
NCL Media Contact: Bobby Brown Bobby@nationalcrappieleague.com
Kentucky Lake-Adams Wins Open-Ray & Cochran Win Div I
Division I and Open Division anglers competed on Kentucky-Barkley Lake on May 10th and 11th. The competition was hosted by Kentucky Lake Tourism. Anglers faced tough conditions due to the changes in weather. The night before the competition, strong storms, tornado warnings, and heavy downpours occurred, making it challenging for the anglers. During the competition, the currents were strong, and anglers had to deal with high winds, extreme waves, wood debris, and muddy waters.
In the Open Division, Terry Adams won first place with a two-day total of 16.59 lbs. Adams was second place with 8.20 lbs after day one and secured his position with 8.39 lbs on the final day. He earned $2,000.00 for his efforts.
Adams tried Barkley on day one and wasn’t on fish, so he fished Kentucky on day two and found a pattern and stayed on it. He found a lot of shad and knew he was in a good area. The fish were both on timber and roaming. His best fish were roaming. Adams said he trailed his biggest fish for about 300 yards before he got a bait on him and caught him. Adams was fishing in 12-15 foot waters using hair jigs and some minnows on day two.
Frank Finley and Steve Furgason came in second place with a two-day total of 15.89 lbs. The two were in the first position after day one with 8.76 lbs. They fell short on day two, weighing 7.13 lbs. The team won big fish with a 1.81 lb. crappie, earning $1,350.00.
The second-place team fished the south end of Kentucky Lake where the water was clearer. They stated the bite was great on day one. On day two they seen enough fish to make you sick but the bite wasn’t there. The team went to crankbaits during the afternoon and caught a good fish but couldn’t put a bigger weight together.
John Eubanks and Brent Smith secured third place with 15.78 lb total. They weighed in 7.85 lbs on day one and followed up with 7.93 lb on day two earning them $500.00. Patrick Stone and Jim Allen won the second big fish with a 1.67 lbs crappie, earning $150.00.
In Division I, Alex Cochran and Kenny Ray were the only team to break the 9 lb. barrier over the weekend. The team weighed in 9.32 lbs and had big fish weighing 1.81 lbs. They earned $1,810.00.
Cochran and Ray said it was tough fishing, they covered a lot of water fishing 10 -25 foot waters along a 3-mile stretch on the south end of Kentucky. The morning bite was great, but the fish shut off about noon. They were using translucent chartreuse color jigs unitl the bite shut off and changed to solid white jigs and got back to catching fish. The team stated they caught most of their fish on wood.
Eric Miller and Mike Belcher secured the second position in the Division I event. Weighing in 8.07 lbs, they earned $850.00. The team started on Barkley Lake but only caught a couple of 1.50 lb. fish, after 4 hours they decided to move locations and started fishing 13-14 foot waters, where they had better luck. They were casting white monkey milk jigs.
Mark Strunk and April Hamilton took third place and were the top male/female team with 7.51 lbs. They won $650.00. Cody Williams had the second big fish, weighing 1.67 lbs, while Rick Baker and Phillip Kidwell secured the top senior team position and earned $200.00.
Special thanks to local sponsors including Moors Resort & Marina, Kentucky Lake Tourism, Lake House Inn, Bad Bob’s BBQ, Cedar Hill Market, Fast Bass Marine, Confield Fishing Gear, Quality Inn, Jo Jo’s Cafe, Parcell’s Deli, Ken’s Tackle & Live Bait, Donley’s Marine..
Thanks to our national sponsors including Carzone, Power-Pole, Rockport Rattler, O’Reilly Auto Parts, DMF Bait Co., Compass LIthium, Pro Control, Engel Coolers, Crappie Brakes, HiTec, The Live Scanner, Midsouth Tackle, Slider, Everharts Outdoors, Amped Outdoors Lithium, BnM Poles, Crappie Magnet, ATX Lures, K9 Fishing, Fish USA, Black Speck Fishing, Prodezigns, Crappie Now, Crappie.com, Nothead Tackle, Top Notch Interiors, Quality Plumbing Heating and Jenko.
Upcoming Division I Events for the 2024 tournament season.
May 18, 2024 • Division I • Lake Salamonie/Mississinewa, IN
Oct 12, 2024 • Division I • Lake of the Ozarks, MO
Upcoming Open Division Events for 2024.
June 7 & 8, 2024 • Open Division • Ross Barnett, MS
June 14 & 15, 2024 • Open Division • Truman Lake, MO
June 28 & 29, 2024 • Open Division • Sardis Lake, MS
Oct 18 & 19, 2024 • Open Division • Grenada Lake, MS
Upcoming Wild Card events. Wild Card events are guaranteed 100% payback. Both Division I and Open Division compete. Division I competes on Saturdays, and Open Division teams compete both Friday and Saturday.
Sept 13 & 14, 2024 • Wild Card • Clinton Lake, KS
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Rules and more information can be found at www.nationalcrappieleague.com
