Anglers battle it out at the Toyota Tundra Bassmasters Series Regional on Rayburn
By PATTY LENDERMAN Lakecaster Managing Editor

Outdoors photo/Patty Lenderman BRANDON BAKER led the pack both days, then won the Championship in the Boater division by nearly 10 pounds.

The Bassmaster Weekend Series wrapped up it's Regional Championship in District 11 on Sam Rayburn with a two day showdown Sept. 22-23. The qualified anglers in each division, boater and non-boater were fishing not only for this championship, but also to place well enough to qualify for the National Championship. Only eight from each division plus a wildcard would advance.

The format for this trail allows the boater to have a five fish limit and the nonboater to have a three fish limit each day. The regional finale was staged at the Umphrey Family Pavilion with Porter Trimble officiating as tournament director. With summer winding down, temperatures were fairly mild with moderate winds.

Day 1 recap:

Low weights and very few limits were brought in. There was an umbrella of high pressure that may have affected the bite, but anglers could only speculate. Many had experienced a high catch ratio during practice and were scratching their heads wondering why they just wouldn't bite now.

Brandon Baker took the lead position on the Boater side with 16.44 lbs. That put him in a comfortable spot going into day two with nearly a three pound lead over the rest of the pack. Brad Williams secured the second place spot on the leader board with 13.73, followed by Bill Penick with 13.02. Penick also tentatively held the Big Bass in the boater division in his creel with a 5.79 pounder.

Leon Thompson brought in a three fish limit weighing 9.95 pounds, including a 5.53 kicker that held the top Big Bass spot on the non-boater side. Kelly Hutchinson was hot on his trail with 9.38 lbs, followed by John Littleton with 7.86.

Day 2:

The field of anglers were watching for storms, as the weather service had predicted rain coming from both the North and the South. The weights were even enough to where everyone was still in the hunt to take over top spots for day two.

The weigh in officially began at 3 p.m., and with more anglers coming to the tanks with strained arms carrying their catch, we could see it was a better day to catch fish.

The leader in the Boater division, Brandon Baker was among the first to weigh. He added a 22.61 lb sack to his day 1 weight seemingly challenging the rest of the field to catch him.

Brad Williams, who had held the second place position on day 1 held onto it bringing in another 15.44 lbs on day 2. His 6.61 lb kicker seized Big Bass honors. Aaron Johnson came up from fourth to win third place.

"I only went to one spot both days" Brandon stated. "I caught my fish in shallow water, on frogs and Texas rigs. I've fished that spot before, but discovered Friday that it was really holding good fish now. The bite was really aggressive, and I should have had over 20 pounds on the first day too, but missed some good four and five pounders. There were lots of shad, but they were scattered. The whole weekend, if it was sunny, I'd catch fish. When it clouded up, they'd stop. When the wind was blowing, they'd bite, and when it stopped, they stopped. Very few small fish bit, it was mostly good quality bass. I really appreciate my co-angler, Howard Wilson. He didn't get on my fish until after I got a limit in the boat. That helped me out a lot. I'd also like to thank my wife, son, mom and dad for their support. Their encouragement really means a lot."

Top 5 boaters:

1st - 39.05 lbs. Brandon Baker Beaumont

2nd - 29.17 lbs. Brad Williams Copperas Cove

3rd - 26.62 lbs. Aaron Johnson Bossier City, LA.

4th - 21.82 lbs. Bill Penick Deer Park

5th - 21.46 lbs. Phil Addison Baytown

The Non-boaters also had a better day, and the leader board shuffled. Kelly Hutchinson nudged ahead of day 1 leader Leon Thompson by 1/4 pound. John Littleton held onto his 3rd place position, and the 5.53 lb. big bass brought in by Leon Thompson on day 1 held to win Big Bass honors in the Non-boater division.

"I had a great time this weekend" Hutchinson said. "I really like the Nonboater format in this series. I've learned a lot from my boaters this year, and have caught lots of fish. The first day, we caught some good ones on topwater lures. The second day it happened more on Texas rigs in grassy ditches. Each day the morning bite was the best, but caught fish all day. I think the cloud cover helped the topwater bite, making it last longer. I also caught some on spinnerbaits. I'd like to say thank you to American Bass Anglers and the Bassmaster Weekend Series. I really enjoy fishing this circuit."

Top 5 Non-boaters:

1st - 15.32 lbs. Kelly Hutchinson Buffalo

2nd - 15.07 lbs. Leon Thompson Beaumont

3rd - 14.10 lbs. John Littleton Humble

4th - 12.73 lbs. Kenneth Cook DeQuincy, LA.

5th - 12.18 lbs. Howard Wilson Nacogdoches

Once the overall points were tallied for the year, the winners of Angler of the Year in each division were announced. Congratulations to Mike Michalec in the Boater division and Bryan Smith in the Non-boater division.

They are the 2007 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Series District 11 Anglers of the Year.

The top eight anglers plus a wildcard angler in each division will now advance to the National Championship.

The winner in the Boater division can win $100,000 in this event, happening mid November on Lake Strom Thurmond/Clarks Hill in Georgia. For more information click to www.abaproam.com.