The most closely contested Classic Bass Champions Tour concluded this afternoon on Gull Lake at Quarterdeck Resort. After a fairly slow morning for the majority of the field, the intensity skyrocketed in the 2nd half, resulting in a very tight leaderboard all afternoon.
At the start of the day, anglers were very optimistic that the cloudy, fairly calm conditions would result in a hot morning bite. But as often happens in fishing, most experienced the opposite. Fish appeared to be spread out and the “one here, one there” was a common situation for most of the guys. One of the highlights of the first half was Justin Rowe’s 4-pound 12 ounce largemouth which would prevail as the day’s YETI Coolers Big Bass.
Anglers enjoyed a halftime break and lunch at Quarterdeck Resort and while they recharged their batteries, the sun and heat really started to make an appearance. This weather change set the stage for an intense afternoon. Almost immediately, guys like Brad Leuthner, Shane Raveling, Austin Felix and Dean Capra began to climb the leaderboard. The dock bite carried many of the contenders throughout the afternoon, as fish finally positioned themselves in areas that anglers expected them to be. Shaded docks were key as the hot July sun pushed the fish to cover.
Capra led for much of the early afternoon but Shane Raveling slowly but surely passed by anglers and took over the top spot with a couple of hours left in the day. As we often see with Raveling, his average size bass was the largest of the 30-boat field. Only three anglers had averages of 2 pounds or more and Shane led the way with a 2-pound 5-ounce average.
Several others moved up and down the leaderboard trying to position themselves in the top six in hopes of punching their ticket to the Classic Bass Champions Tour Championship and an opportunity to fish for a brand-new Skeeter Bass Boat/Yamaha Outboard package. Jeff Bosshardt and Arnold Helgerson, who are known for their expertise around docks, made big moves. Both guys climbed from the lower half of the standings early on to the top 5 or 6 late in the day. Ounces separated the top end of the leaderboard but when the buzzer rang, Shane Raveling captured his first Classic Bass Champions Tour title. Shane has made the top six multiple times in past events but today he took home the trophy. Leifermann was strong all day and landed in 2nd, followed by Austin Felix, Brad Leuthner, Jeff Bosshardt and Dean Capra to round out the top six. Arnold Helgerson won the Wenzel’s Farm Major Mover Award for catching the largest weight increase between the 1st and 2nd half. A full list of the standings and their weights are below.
We want to thank the Quarterdeck Resort for hosting yet another excellent event. If you’re looking for one last Summer getaway, we highly recommended enjoying a stay and Quarterdeck on the shores of Gull Lake. We want to thank all other sponsors of the Classic Bass Champions Tour as well, without them these everts wouldn’t be possible!
Keep an eye on www.classicbass.com and our Social Media throughout the next few days as we will be posting the full photo gallery from the day and bonus video coverage as well.
STANDINGS
- Shane Raveling 62-4
- Brad Leifermann 60-1
- Austin Felix 59-15
- Brad Leuthner 53-9
- Jeff Bosshardt 53-1
- Dean Capra 53
- Will Pappa 52-3
- Arnold Helgerson 51-11
- Andy Walls 50-6
- John Figi 44-3
- Bob Perkins 43-15
- Connor Summers 43-1
- Andy Nitchals 41-2
- Tadd Johnson 40-6
- Justin Rowe 36-14
- Dave Larson 36-7
- Brian Bengston 36-4
- George Liddle 35-4
- Rich Lindgren 32-7
- Brian Wood 28-15
- Nathan Whiting 27-10
- Dustin Byfuglien 25-12
- Pat Martin 24-10
- Jim Moynagh 22-10
- Glenn Walker 21-11
- Michael Walters 21-6
- Dan Larson 17-6
- Michaela Anderson 16-11
- Steve Quinn 15-4
- Eric Kielb 8-1
