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South Carolina’s Williamson Edges Crochet by 2 Ounces; Scores Second Elite Victory in Front of Hometown Crowd

 May 23, 2010 - EVANS, Ga. – The stars were perfectly aligned for Jason Williamson heading into the final day of the Pride of Georgia on Clarks Hill Lake .  His sisters performed the National Anthem prior to the weigh-in and the crowd was filled with family, friends and fishing buddies who he had smoked in years past at local tournaments.  But the Wagener, S.C., rising pro couldn’t get the fish to bite. 

Sunday, he made a long trek upriver to a spot that produced for him in the past both monetarily – he has won boats in numerous local tournaments relying on the area – and in piscatorial terms – he dredged up a 7-12 brute Saturday, the biggest bass of the tournament.

But the current wasn’t running on the sprawling reservoir and Williamson couldn’t buy a bite.  Showing a veteran’s poise, Williamson dug deep into his vast local knowledge bank and decided to downsize from the Buckeye mop jig he primarily worked the first three days of competition.  He tied on a shaky head worm and was able to scratch out a quick limit ultimately weighing 7 pounds, 10 ounces, upgrading his total to 53 pounds, 6 ounces. 

It was enough, albeit barely, to best Elite rookie Cliff Crochet of Pierre Part, La. , by 2 ounces and take home the $100,000 top prize

“Words can’t describe how it feels to win in front of these folks,” said Williamson.  “I won a lot of money from that spot but I just couldn’t get anything started today (Sunday).  I wish I hadn’t run up there but I just had to go.  I was regretting it all day.”

Although the shaky worm rig carried the day Sunday, the Buckeye mop jig was the key to the victory.  Saturday, Williamson built enough of a cushion – more than 4 pounds – that he was able to withstand a stumble.  His 19 pounds, 2 ounces, Saturday was the biggest limit of the tournament and the 7-12 brute was the biggest bass caught this week.

With skyrocketing temperatures, Williamson knew that the north end of the lake would hold the bigger fish.  He settled on his specific area because it was 5 degrees cooler than the rest of the reservoir.  He was working flat points filled with rock and crawdads.  The bass were still feeding on the tail end of the blueback herring spawn in those areas and were extremely active when current was being pulled. 

A relative unknown when he first qualified for the Elite Series, Williamson is proving he is a force to be reckoned with.  The victory is Williamson’s second in Elite competition and he also scored a second-place finish earlier this year on Smith Mountain Lake .  

“When I first qualified, things were really tough,” said Williamson.  “I just didn’t have the experience.  I definitely feel comfortable now.  Experience is the most important thing that you can have out here.  I feel like I can contend in every tournament now and that’s a good feeling.”

Still, it’s been a roller-coaster ride of a season for Williamson as he paired three missed cuts with his two stellar performances.  His lack of consistency hasn’t hampered him too much, however. After this week, he is 24th in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, and comfortably in position to qualify for the 2011 Bassmaster Classic. 

Crochet was absolutely floored.  The Elite rookie got his first taste of contention and he thought he had the victory.  The Assumption Parish ( La. ) sherrif’s deputy worked a Spro bronzeye poppin’ frog in the shallows and exhibited the most consistency in the field over the course of four days. 

He toted 11-11 to the scales Sunday and for a moment, it appeared all the hard work he had put in fishing tournaments at the Federation Nation and Bassmaster Open level had paid off.  But ultimately, it wasn’t enough.

“That’s the nature of the beast,” said Crochet, who was still shaking minutes after the result had been decided.  “I’m wrecked right now but if you look at the big picture, I’m fishing against the best in the world and I’m loving it.”

Crochet lost a fish that he estimated to be 2 to 3 pounds that would have put him over the top.  The silver lining for Crochet is that he moved up to 36th in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings.  That puts him on top of the Rookie of the Year standings and in the last qualifying position for the 2011 Classic with two regular-season tournaments remaining. 

As the Elite regular-season winds down, Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., still holds a comfortable lead in the AOY standings despite a 58th place stinker this week.  Edwin Evers of Talala , Okla., was able to close the gap on Reese a bit but still remains a distant second, more than 175 points off the pace.

Rounding out the top five this week was Terry Scroggins of Palatka , Fla. , in third with 48-9.  Matt Reed of Madisonville , Texas , made a big move Sunday, moving up 8 places from 12th to take fourth with 47-13.  Two-time Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Gary Klein of Weatherford , Texas , finished fifth with 43-11. 

Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C., the other local favorite, finished seventh.

Along with the top prize of $100,000, the Pride of Georgia awarded valuable points in the 2010 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race. The top 12 pros in the AOY standings at the end of the regular season will advance to the 2010 Bassmaster Elite Series postseason, in which the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year will be determined.  The top 36 will qualify for the 2011 Bassmaster Classic.

Up next for Elite pros is the June 9-12 Tennessee Triumph on Kentucky Lake out of Paris , Tenn.  

Clarks Hill is a 71,535-acre fishery, an impoundment 39 miles in length located 22 miles north of Augusta . It forms part of the border between Georgia and South Carolina and is renowned for its topwater fishing.                                                                                     

Local sponsor of the Pride of Georgia: Columbia County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

After the Pride of Georgia, the 2010 regular season will have just two events remaining. Up next is the June 9-12 Tennessee Triumph on Kentucky Lake out of Paris , Tenn.

Bassmaster Elite Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Berkley , Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota , Skeeter, Yamaha and Bass Pro Shops.

Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Lowrance, Triton Boats, Nitro Boats and Ramada.

 FINAL STANDINGS- PRIDE OF GEORGIA

2010 Evans , GA 5/20-5/23

Clarks Hill Lake , Evans   GA.

(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4

 

   Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

 

1.  Jason Williamson       Aiken , SC                20  53-06  310 $101,500.00

  Day 1: 5   12-03     Day 2: 5   14-07     Day 3: 5   19-02     Day 4: 5   07-10  

2.  Cliff Crochet          Pierre Part, LA         20  53-04  295  $25,000.00

  Day 1: 5   12-07     Day 2: 5   14-14     Day 3: 5   14-04     Day 4: 5   11-11  

3.  Terry Scroggins        San Mateo , FL           20  48-09  295  $20,000.00

  Day 1: 5   17-01     Day 2: 5   12-06     Day 3: 5   10-05     Day 4: 5   08-13  

4.  Matt Reed              Madisonville , TX        20  47-13  285  $15,000.00

  Day 1: 5   09-09     Day 2: 5   10-00     Day 3: 5   12-07     Day 4: 5   15-13  

5.  Gary Klein             Weatherford , TX          19  43-11  280  $14,000.00

  Day 1: 5   13-14     Day 2: 5   10-13     Day 3: 5   09-06     Day 4: 4   09-10  

6.  Derek Remitz           Grant , AL                20  43-08  276  $13,500.00

  Day 1: 5   14-04     Day 2: 5   11-04     Day 3: 5   10-07     Day 4: 5   07-09  

7.  Casey Ashley           Donalds, SC             20  43-02  272  $13,000.00

  Day 1: 5   08-03     Day 2: 5   15-05     Day 3: 5   13-03     Day 4: 5   06-07  

8.  Mark Davis             Mount Ida , AR           19  43-00  268  $12,500.00

  Day 1: 5   14-12     Day 2: 5   12-05     Day 3: 4   06-08     Day 4: 5   09-07  

9.  Tommy Biffle           Wagoner, OK             18  41-14  264  $12,000.00

  Day 1: 5   15-13     Day 2: 5   13-09     Day 3: 3   04-04     Day 4: 5   08-04  

10. Terry Butcher          Talala, OK              18  37-03  260  $11,500.00

  Day 1: 5   12-10     Day 2: 5   11-10     Day 3: 4   08-02     Day 4: 4   04-13  

11. Chris Lane             Guntersville , AL        18  36-10  257  $11,000.00

  Day 1: 5   13-11     Day 2: 5   10-00     Day 3: 5   10-05     Day 4: 3   02-10  

12. Bobby Lane             Lakeland , FL            15  32-08  254  $10,500.00

  Day 1: 5   13-09     Day 2: 5   10-13     Day 3: 5   08-02     Day 4: 0   00-00  

BIG BASS OF TOURNAMENT

     Jason Williamson         Aiken , SC            07-12      $1,000.00

BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT OF TOURN

     Jason Williamson         Aiken , SC            19-02        $500.00

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Totals

Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight

 1        75       430       865-09

 2        73       418       791-06

 3        32       207       370-08

 4         8        51        92-11

----------------------------------

         188      1106      2120-02

 

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

 

2010 Pride of Georgia - Evans, GA Pro Points After Clarks Hill Lake, Evans, Ga.  Ending 05-23-2010, Day 4

-------------------------------------------

Place  Name               St             Pts

-------------------------------------------

  1 Skeet Reese            Calif.        1642

  2 Edwin Evers           Okla.         1464

  3 Derek Remitz          Ala.          1393

  4 Gary Klein            Texas         1382

  5 Cliff Pace            Miss.        1381

  6 Dave Wolak             N.C.          1361

  7 Brian Snowden         Mo.           1353

  8 Mark Davis            Ark.          1338

  9 Jeff Kriet            Okla.         1336

 10 Dean Rojas            Ariz.         1334

 11 John Crews            Va.           1333

  12 Greg Hackney          La.           1327

 13 Michael Iaconelli      N.J.          1322

 14 Terry Butcher         Okla.         1316

 15 Aaron Martens         Ala.          1308

 16 Tommy Biffle          Okla.         1296

 17 Bill Lowen            Ohio          1289

 18 Steve Kennedy         Ala.          1265

 19 Bobby Lane            Fla.          1264

 20 Morizo Shimizu        Japan        1262

 21 Stephen Browning      Ark.          1259

 22 Mike McClelland       Ark.          1256

 23 Russ Lane             Ala.          1253

 24 Jason Williamson       S.C.          1241

 25 Todd Faircloth        Texas         1230

 26 Kevin VanDam          Mich.         1229

 27 Kevin Wirth           Ky.           1212

 28 Shaw Grigsby          Fla.          1210

 29 Jared Lintner         Calif.        1209

 30 Scott Rook            Ark.          1200

 31 Greg Vinson           Ala.          1198

 32 Gerald Swindle        Ala.          1191

 33 Clark Reehm           Ark.          1188

 34 Terry Scroggins        Fla.          1182

 35 Denny Brauer          Mo.           1169

  36 Cliff Crochet         La.           1158

 37 Brent Chapman         Kan.          1139

 38 Matt Herren           Ala.          1133

 39 James Niggemeyer      Texas         1131

 40 Boyd Duckett          Ala.          1127

 41 Billy McCaghren       Ark.          1120

 42 Paul Elias            Miss.        1113

 43 Mark Tucker           Mo.           1112

 43 Ish Monroe            Calif.        1112

 45 Guy Eaker              N.C.          1103

 45 Alton Jones           Texas         1103

 47 Casey Ashley          S.C.         1099

 48 Davy Hite              S.C.          1095

 49 Bradley Roy           Ky.           1085

 50 Kelly Jordon          Texas         1082

 51 Matt Reed             Texas         1079

 52 Zell Rowland          Texas         1073

 53 Dustin Wilks            N.C.          1067

 54 Pat Golden            N.C.         1060

 55 Marty Robinson        S.C.         1049

 56 Takahiro Omori        Texas         1048

 57 Randy Howell          Ala.          1042

 58 Kotaro Kiriyama       Ala.          1036

 59 Mark Menendez         Ky.           1032

 60 Jason Quinn            S.C.          1010

 61 Timmy Horton          Ala.          1008

 62 Charlie Hartley       Ohio          1004

 63 Kevin Short           Ark.          1000

 64 J Todd Tucker         Ga.            998

 65 Kenyon Hill           Okla.          996

 66 Fred Roumbanis         Okla.          991

 67 Rick Clunn            Mo.            981

 68 Bernie Schultz        Fla.           980

 69 Byron Velvick         Texas          973

 70 Peter Thliveros        Fla.           960

 70 Pete Ponds            Miss.         960

 72 Bradley Hallman       Okla.          958

 72 Marty Stone           N.C.          958

 74 Rick Morris           Va.            956

  75 Jeff Connella         La.            954

 76 Grant Goldbeck        Md.           952

 77 Mark Tyler            Okla.          950

 77 Chris Lane            Ala.           950

 79 John Murray           Ariz.          916

  80 Dennis Tietje         La.            910

 81 Wade Grooms           S.C.          902

 82 Matt Greenblatt        Fla.           872

 83 Chad Griffin           Texas          854

 84 Vince Fulks            Okla.          846

 85 Jami Fralick           S.D.           842

 86 Britt Myers            S.C.           822

 87 Yusuke Miyazaki       Texas          814

 88 Keith Poche           Ala.           781

 89 Mark Burgess          Mass.          746

 90 Byron Haseotes         Mass.          736

 91 David Smith           Okla.          722

 92 Jeremy Starks         W.Va.          660

 93 Scott Ashmore         Okla.          636

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