BYRDSTOWN-Hilham natives Jeff and Tim Emerton took the top spot in the most recent Netminders fishing tournament held here at Sunset Resort on Dale Hollow Lake Saturday, March 21.

They took home the victory from the 25-boat field with a sack weighing a total of 11.02  pounds, which included a 3.46-pound kicker largemouth.

The Emerton brothers barely edged out second-place finishers Bill Holtsman and Robert Young, who had 10.92 pounds.  Third place went to Josh Ferris and Jason Dunn with 10.5 pounds.

The first event of the Netminders series was held earlier in the month on March 7 and another pair of area anglers took the top spot with a total of 16.2 pounds.

Robby and Billy Joe Johnson used a nice sack of largemouth, including a big fish weighing 4.04 pounds to come out on top of the 19-boat field.

Second-place finishers Larry Potts and Sonny Moores were well behind the winners with just over seven pounds.

Netminders will continue their series this Saturday at Granville Marina on Cordell Hull Lake.  For more information about the tournaments, visit trinitynetminders.com.

Fishing tourney set to benefit Watson family

CELINA-The Kevin Watson Memorial Fishing Tournament will be held here at Dale Hollow Marina Saturday, April 11 to benefit the late honoree’s family.

The 41-year-old Watson recently lost a long battle with cancer, leaving behind his wife and three young daughters.

“A few of Kevin’s close friends have asked us to help organize a tournament in his honor to help ease some of the financial burden put on the family through this tough time,” Preston Moore of dalehollowfishing.com said on the website.  “We hope all local anglers will answer the call to help out and come fish this benefit tourney.”

Moore explained the entry fee will consist of $50 per boat, all of which will be donated to the Watson family.

“The top three finishing teams will get a plaque and a waterproof GPS map of Dale Hollow,” he said, “and all who participate will receive a big thank you.”

The event will blast off at approximately 7 a.m. and the weigh-in will be held at 3 p.m.  For more information about this event, visit www.dalehollowfishing.com or call Dale Hollow 1-Stop at 243-2636.

Get your chance to be a part of Tennessee’s first-ever elk hunt

NASHVILLE-The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is accepting applications here as of today, April 1, for hunter’s to take part in Tennessee’s first-ever managed elk hunt.

 The hunt will be held October 19-23 at the North Cumberland Wildlife Management Area, located off I-75, north of Knoxville, where there will be five elk hunting zones designated at the wildlife management area (WMA).

 Only five individuals will be selected to participate in the hunt, four of which will be selected through a computer drawing conducted by the TWRA, and the fifth participant will be the recipient of a permit that is donated to a NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) with the fund-raising proceeds designated to the TWRA elk program.

 There is no application fee for current Tennessee annual sportsman license holders, lifetime sportsman license holders, or senior citizen hunters (Type 166) with an annual senior citizen permit (Type 167). 

All other applicants will be charged a $10 non-refundable permit fee, a $2 internet usage fee (if applying online) and $0.50 drawing fee (the internet and drawing fees are charged by the internet provider). For those applying at a license agent, there is a $1 agent fee in addition to the $10 non-refundable permit fee.

 Persons may apply at any TWRA license agent, TWRA regional office or online at www.tnelkhunt.org. Mailed applications will not be accepted.

 The successful applicants will be announced at the June 18 meeting of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission. Successful applicants will not be allowed to reapply for an elk quota permit for 10 years following a successful draw.

East Clay Fire Department to host benfit tournament

WILLOW GROVE-A five-fish limit tournament will be hosted here at Willow Grove Resort Saturday, April 18 by the East Clay Voluteer Fire Department.

The entry fee will be $50 per boat and the payback will consist of $300 for first place, $200 for second place, and $100 for third place.  All other proceeds will go to the department.

Registration for the event will begin at 6 a.m., blast-off will follow at 7 a.m., and participants will return to a 3 p.m. weigh-in.  For more information about this tournament, call 823-0102 or 397-1827.

Dale Hollow BFL and Center Hill tourney set for Saturday

UPPER CUMBERLAND-Both the Walmart Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Dale Hollow and the State Bass Championship on Center Hill are expected to draw large fields as they blast-off here at each respective lake this Saturday morning.

The BFL event is set to feature up to 200 boats at Star Point Resort on the upper end of Dale Hollow and as many anglers could be seen at Ragland Bottom on Center Hill for the Fourth Annual Bank of Putnam County Tennessee State Bass Championship.

Both events will follow the ‘any species’ format and will pay out big sums of money to the top finishers.

The BFL tournament will feature over $40,000 in prizes and the Center Hill event will guarantee a $4,000 first place purse.

Area anglers will take to the water early that morning and will return to late afternoon weigh-ins in hopes of taking home their portion of the significant purses.

For more information about the BFL tourney visit www.flwoutdoors.com and for details about the Center Hill competition go to www.tnbasschampionship.com.

TWRA shows fishing to be fair on the lake

DALE HOLLOW-The Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency’s (TWRA) fishing report of March 25 showed fishing to be fair here.

The agency said the lake level was fairly stable, but it has risen some with recent rains, and reported the water temperature to be in the lower 50’s.

It showed a few good smallmouth were being caught on jigs and crankbaits in five to 15 feet of water on points.

It said a few crappie were being taken in the rivers on minnows and jigs around brush and willow bushes in two to 10 feet of water.

The information explained walleye fishing was fair around East Port using jigs in the channel at night.

•

If you have something you would like to see discussed in the Outdoor Notebook or have a picture of your trophy for publication, please contact Thomas Weaver at 243-4710 or email:  [email protected], or drop them by the HORIZON office on the square.  Pictures will be returned.

Robby and Billy Joe Johnson used 16.2 pounds to win the Netminders event held on March 7. (Photos courtesy Trinitynetminders.com)