CELINA-Over 60 competitors have assembled here at Dale Hollow Marina on Thursday nights this past month to fish the ‘smallmouth-only’ events, with the last two featuring 34 teams of fishermen.

“We are tickled to death to see such great participation this year,” tournament co-director Jeff Smith told the HORIZON Monday.  “It’s a testament to the good bunch of people we have fishing with us.

“On top of the great field of seasoned anglers we have, we’ve got parent/child, husband/wife, and brother teams, and several include many of the younger generation, and that’s what we like to see.”

Two weeks ago (June 18), one of those father/son teams jumped into the top four after catching a fish over 21 inches long, but the big fish Andrew Campbell and Derrick Anderson came up with outweighed the rest of the competition.

They took home the $272 top prize after Campbell put them over the top by landing the  trophy fish weighing in at 4.35 pounds.

Second place and $204 went to Gayland Finch and Brian Dickerson.  They had a pair of smallmouth under 16 inches weighing 3.87 pounds.

Claiming the third spot was Jimmy McBride and his son Cage with a single big fish weighing 3.48 pounds.  The catch won them $136.

Rounding out the top four was Danny Stone and Jay Halfacre with a pair of small fish weighing 3.07 pounds, which handed them $68.

This past week word at the weigh-in was fishing was pretty tough for the majority of the field and no smallmouth over 21 inches long made it to the scales.

Tim Jolley and Curt Parsons took the top spot and $272 with a pair of ‘unders’ weighing 3.14 pounds.

Second place went to Terry Torbett and Thomas Weaver.  They pocketed $204 with a small pair weighing 2.45 pounds.

Joey Eads and Kelly Spivey finished third to win $136 with 2.19 pounds, and Danny Stone and Jay Halfacre took the final paid position worth $68 with a single fish weighing 1.96 pounds.

The series continues this week and the Smiths welcome anybody interested 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.

The series also features a ‘big fish of the year’ pot that has begun this year with a $10 one-time fee.  Currently there are 45 individuals participating and a 1.98-pound fish is in the lead.

For more information about the competitions, call Steve Smith at 823-5746 or Jeff at 823-4233.

6 big smallmouth show up Saturday night at Star Point

BYRDSTOWN-A good field and a half-dozen big fish made an appearance here last Saturday night at the ‘smallmouth only’ tournament at Star Point Resort.

Tournament director Randy Roysden said 21 boats blasted off, producing a good purse and six fish over 21 inches long.

Byrdstown natives Marty Shelley and Nathan (last name unknown) had the heaviest of the brutes and it pushed them over the top for the win.

Their 4.42-pound smallmouth, paired with a small kicker, gave them a total of 6.17 pounds–which handed them $336 and the victory.

Second place and $252 went to Robbie and Billy Joe Johnson.  They had a 4.03-pound big fish and finished with 6.11 total pounds.

Bradley Cook and Todd Stephens took the third spot with a total of 6.01 pounds.  They won $168, thanks in part to their smallmouth over 21 inches long weighing 4.09 pounds.

Taking the final paid position and $84 was Adam and Gary Militana.  They finished with 5.88 pounds, including a 3.88-pound big fish.

The final two ‘overs’ were brought in by Ronnie and Donnie King, 3.12 pounds; and Roysden and Mark Norman, 3.96 pounds.

Last Saturday event sees one big smallmouth

BYRDSTOWN-The night tournament held here two Saturday nights ago (June 20) at Star Point Resort was won by Scotty Stults and David Gunter with a big smallmouth weighing 3.90 pounds paired with a fish under 16 inches long.

Their total of 5.37 pounds was enough to outweigh the bags of 19 other teams and the total handed them the $320 first-place prize.

Second place went to Tim Jolley and Curt Parsons, who won $240 with two fish weighing a total of 3.50 pounds.

Justin Wright and Jason Gibson claimed the third spot and $160 with 3.48 pounds, and tournament director Randy Roysden and Mark Norman took the final paid position with 3.25 pounds to win $80.

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.

June 19 Friday night  tourney  sees over 7 lbs.

CELINA-The Friday night ‘any species’ tournament held here two weeks ago (June 19) at Dale Hollow Marina produced a nice two-fish limit of largemouth weighing over seven pounds.

Steven and Jerry Arms teamed up to win $220 with a pair of lunkers weighing a total of 7.46 pounds, including a 4.08-pound bass.

Second place and $70 went to Ernest Garrison and Jerry Scott for their sack weighing a total of 6.67 pounds.

The final paid position went to Willie Piercy, who was fishing solo.  He won his entry fee back with 4.96 pounds.

Jeff Neal and Donnie Harris took the big fish pot worth $110 with a 4.96-pound largemouth.

The events allow largemouth, KY spots, and smallmouth to be eligible for the weigh-ins and they run from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m., featuring a $40 entry fee with 100% payback.  They also have an optional $5 big-fish pot each night.

For more information about the Friday night tournaments, contact Sherrell after 6 p.m. at 258-3706.

This week’s Friday night results were not available at HORIZON press time.  They will be found in next week’s paper.

2nd monthly 5-fish event will be July 10

CELINA-Tournament director Luke Sherrell told the HORIZON Monday he planned to host the second $100 entry fee, five-fish limit monthly tournament here at Dale Hollow Marina on Friday night, July 10.

“We had a good turnout for the first one and we are looking for another good one this month,” Sherrell said Monday.

The fishing hours will be from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. and anyone is welcome to fish.

For more information about the monthly tournaments, contact Sherrell after 6 p.m. at 258-3706.

Last 2 Saturday night events see good weigh-ins

CELINA-The last two three-fish-limit Saturday night tournaments held here at Dale Hollow Marina have seen good sacks, including a limit weighing over nine pounds this past weekend.

Kenny Meadows and Powell Walden teamed up Saturday night to bring 9.16 pounds to the weigh-in to win $180.

They had a 3.73-pound largemouth, a 21-inch smallmouth weighing 4.33 pounds, and another under 16 inches long.

Second place went to Steven and Jerry Arms who weighed a 4.66-pound largemouth and two smallmouth under 16 inches long to total 7.33 pounds.  They won $90 and an additional $45 for the big fish award.

Two weeks ago (June 20), the Arms boys took the top spot with a three-fish limit weighing 5.35 pounds to win $160.

Taking the final paid position that night was Friday night tournament director Luke Sherrell and Jerry Anderson.  They won $80 with 5.25 pounds.

The events feature a limit allowing three bass, with only one of those fish being a largemouth or Kentucky spotted bass and they will continue this week from 7 p.m. to 12 midnight.  The entry fee is $30 per boat.

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

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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.