CELINA-After the final weigh-in at the First Annual DaleHollowFishing.com (DHF) Copeland Classic held here at Cedar Hill Resort two weekend’s ago there was no doubt who would be walking away with the championship purse.

Adam Wagner of Cookeville and Jamey Wade of Bloomington Springs brought their two-day total to a whopping 38.11 pounds with their Sunday catch to put them over five pounds ahead of the closest competitors.  Needless to say, they laid claim to the $1,500 first-place prize.

The duo dominated from the beginning bringing in back-to-back limits, which both included a largemouth weighing over five pounds.  Those fish, 5.23 pounds and 5.10 pounds respectively, handed them the Harris Oil big largemouth award for each day worth an additional $500 and pushed them over the top for the victory.

Their Saturday catch of 18.44 pounds combined with their final-day weight of 19.67 pounds put them in a class of their own amidst the field of nearly 70 competitors and sent them home with a total purse worth $2,000.

Three other teams hit the 30-pound mark for the event, including second-place finishers Michael Morrison of Prestonsburg, KY and T.J. McDonald of Lexington, KY who totaled 32.63 pounds to claim the $800 runner-up money.

Morrison and McDonald had 16.70 pounds the first day and finished up with 15.93 pounds on Sunday.  Their biggest fish of the event tipped the scales at 3.94 pounds.

Third place went to Marty Shelley and Robert Reagan of Byrdstown.  They finished with 30.70 pounds made up of 14.61 pounds Saturday and 16.09 pounds on the final day to take home $700.

Todd and David Beaty of Cookeville finished fourth after weighing in 15.40 pounds the first day and finishing with 14.83 pounds Sunday.  Their total of 30.23 pounds handed them $600 for the weekend.

Rounding out the top five was the team of Byrdstown natives Robbie and Billy Joe Johnson with a total of 29.13 pounds.  They won $500 with 13.12 pounds Saturday and 16.01 pounds Sunday.

The rest of the top ten finishers included:

• 6th Place:  Jeremy Flatt and Dusty Fleming – 10 fish, 27.68 lbs.

• 7th Place:  Jerry Reagan and J.B. King – 10 fish, 27.50 lbs.

• 8th Place:  J.R. Stalcup and Perry Neathery – 10 fish, 27.39 lbs.

• 9th Place:  Donnie Harris and Ricky Lynn – 10 fish, 25.74 lbs.

• 10th Place: Billy Tucker and Lance Holland – 9 fish, 25.45 lbs.

Other money was also handed out for the biggest smallmouth each day.  Matt Hobson and Tabitha Donaldson won $250 from Punisher Lures with their 2.06-pound smallmouth Saturday, and Michael and Jason Stockton took the other $250 donated by local author Darren Shell with a fish weighing 2.41 pounds.

Right at half of the field caught their two-day 10-fish limit over the weekend, making for good weigh-ins–which featured a total of over 475 pounds of fish made up of over 160 bass.

“We had a good first event that helped kick off something that will grow bigger for years to come,” DHF administrator and co-owner Preston Moore said.  “We want to thank all involved for their help, whether it was through sponsorships, donations, or volunteering time.”

Tournament director and DHF co-owner Steven Headrick also expressed his gratitude to those who made the event happen.

“I think this was a good first tournament,” he explained.  “They are only going to get better and we can’t wait until next spring.

“Thanks to all of the sponsors and people who helped make it happen.”

For more information about the tournament and fishing Dale Hollow Lake, visit www.dalehollowfishing.com.

Over-and-under limit wins Star Point season opener

BYRDSTOWN-One team of area anglers started the night fishing tournament season here at Star Point Resort out on a good note last Saturday by bringing in a smallmouth over 21 inches paired with another under 16 inches to win the first event of the series’ season here on Dale Hollow Lake.

The team of Anthony Jones and Derrick Ledbetter claimed the first-place prize of $256 with a total of 5.86 pounds.  The Jamestown natives’ big fish weighed in at 4.17 pounds and pushed their total up enough to outweigh the bags of 15 other boats.

Second place went to Ronnie Dowdy and David Beaty of Byrdstown, who had one big fish weighing 4.36 pounds to win $192.

Steve and Stacy Smith of Celina finished third with a pair of small fish weighing a total of 3.45 pounds, handing them $128.

Taking the final paid position with a two-fish total of 3.12 pounds was Ricky Roysden and Joey Turner of Jamestown.  They carried home $64.

Tournament director Randy Roysden said the events would continue throughout the month of May with a start time of 6 p.m. and a weigh-in time of 12 midnight.  The fishing hours will then change to 7 p.m.-1 a.m. with the first Saturday night in June.

The tournament series is one of the biggest smallmouth-only weekly competitions held on the lake and it features a $40 entry fee and 100% payback.

For more information, contact Roysden at 879-0555.

Thursday night events set to kick-off this week

CELINA-The first ‘smallmouth-only’ night tournament will be held here at Dale Hollow Marina this Thursday and tournament directors Jeff and Steve Smith are looking forward to another good year.

“We had an awesome year last year with the number of boats we had,” Steve said Monday.  “It was neat to look up and see all those faces before blast-off.”

Jeff said he “wanted to be sure everybody knew they were kicking off the season this week” and explained “anybody was welcome to come fish.”

The tournaments start at 7 p.m. and participants return to a 11 p.m. weigh-in.  The entry fee is $20 per boat.  For more information about the competitions, call Steve at 823-5746 or Jeff at 823-4233.

New 3-fish-limit tourneys to start this Saturday night

CELINA-A new Saturday night tournament series will kick off this weekend here at Dale Hollow Marina and it will feature a limit allowing two smallmouth and one largemouth or Kentucky spotted bass to be weighed in.

The three-fish-limit events will be initially held from 7 p.m. to 12 midnight, but the hours may be expanded to 1 a.m. at a later date.  The entry fee will be $30 per boat.

The series will also feature an optional “league” to start later in the year and run for eight consecutive Saturday nights.  The league entry fee will be $50 for the year and registration will be done as a team.  

Each team must fish at least four of the eight events together to be eligible to win, but one of the team’s members can fish with another non-league member if their partner cannot fish any particular night.

The total purse will go to the points-leading team at the end of the season, along with championship trophies and jackets.  Other prizes are currently being collected.

For more information about the new Saturday night tournaments or the upcoming league, contact Derrick Anderson at 267-3211 or 243-6161.

Big tourney to be held Saturday at Star Point

BYRDSTOWN-The 4th Annual Community Bank of the Cumberlands Bass Classic will be held here at Star Point Resort this Saturday from 6:30 a.m. through 2:30 p.m.

The ‘any-species’ event saw over 100 boats and over $13,000 given away last year and organizers of the event expect well over 100 boats to compete this year for the guaranteed first-place prize of $2500.

Awards in the amount of $300 will also go to the team with the biggest smallmouth, largemouth, and Kentucky spotted bass.

The event will feature a $100-per-boat entry fee and should produce a good number or fish at the weigh-in.

For more information, contact the bank at 879-7007 or Gary York at 879-2236.

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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.