The first series of the ten-tournament Backcountry Fishing Association season kicked off on January 7 with 35 boats fishing under windy and cool conditions. The Treasure Coast artificial lure fishing tournament gives two-person teams and solo anglers the opportunity to win cash and gain points in the nine monthly tournaments with a classic finale in October. Redfish, trout and snook (seasonal) are the qualified species. Anglers attempt to bring one legal fish of each species to the scales for weigh in and a live release. Teams must fish a minimum of five tournaments and pay entry fees to at least eight tournaments to be eligible to fish the ending âClassicâ, which is a two-day event. The top five eligible teams with the highest accumulated points from the season will be given a bye from day one and automatically entered for day two. The remaining eligible teams will compete on an elimination basis the first day, with the top five teams from day one moving on to compete for the grand prize and cash for the top four teams.
Anglers were informed at the Captain’s meeting that this season would be like no other! A Billfish 14-foot boat, motor and trailer combo is the grand prize for the 2017 top team.
January 2017 Results
Lewis Arnold and Jason Bailey, both of Vero Beach, took the first-place prize of $630 with a 6.13-pound trout and 2.14-pound redfish.
Josh Partin and Donnie Gribble, both of Vero Beach, took the second-place prize of $378 with a 1.27-pound trout and a 5.2-pound redfish. They also took $130 for the biggest redfish Calcutta.
Darren Frost and Derek Engle, of Spring Hill, FL, took the third-place prize of $252 with a 1.62-pound trout and a 3.95-pound redfish.
Fourth-place went to Cross Fischer and Ryan Harris, both of Wellington, FL, with a 3.38-pound trout and 2.18-pound redfish.
Chris Damon and Kyle Schacht, both of Vero Beach, took fifth-place and the biggest trout Calcutta prize of $150 for their 2.37-pound trout and 3.18-pound redfish.
The second tournament of the Backcountry Fishing Association is slated for February 4th, with the Captainâs Meeting scheduled for Friday, February 3, 6 p.m. at Little Jim Bait and Tackle, 601 North Causeway, Fort Pierce, Florida.
For more information, visit Backcountry Fishing Association on Facebook.
