Sayler, Forssell win Crowder’s tourney
Based on their pre-fishing trips, Rodd Sayler and Steve Forssell set modest goals for Saturday’s third annual Channing Crowder’s Bass Fishing Tournament out of Everglades Holiday Park.
“I just wanted to catch five fish,” Sayler said. “That was our plan. Just get five keepers. The way the fishing’s been out here, it’s terrible.”
Sayler and Forssell not only got their five keepers, they won the benefit tournament with a limit weighing 20 pounds, 14 ounces. That included the two biggest fish of the tournament, a 6-14 and a6-11.
After the weigh-in at Ron Bergeron’s Green Glades Ranch in Weston, where an auction raised additional funds for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County, Sayler and Forssell received $5,800 for the victory plus another $320 for the big bass.
Dave Anderson and Donny Bass were second with a limit weighing 20-5. Mark Sommer and Jonathan Farmer were third with four fish weighing14-2.
Bill Davis and Alex Tallman had three fish weighing 13-4 to finish fourth. Hank Krieg, who won Crowder’s first tournament fishing with Forssell, and Skip Reed were fifth with a 13-pound limit.
Sayler and Forssell fished the flats off the L-67A Canal. After Forssell caught a couple of small bass on a plastic lizard, Sayler caught the big bass at 7:30 a.m. swimming a Gambler Big EZ across the surface and over a hole in the vegetation.
“We were going crazy,” Sayler said. “You get a fish like that, holy cow! Wewere happywith that.”
Sayler and Forssell remained in the area after that fish. Sayler said they focused on fishing the same type of vegetation over the same type of bottom.
One of the other keys was fishing the Big EZ and a Gambler Cane Toad fast.
“They wanted it moving,” Sayler said. “They wanted it noisy.”
A little over five hours later, after they’d caught several fish 2-3 pounds, Forssell caught the 6-11 on a Big EZ. That’s when Sayler said he went into “baby-sitting mode.”
“When you put two fish that size in the livewell, somebody’s got to watch those fish,” said Sayler, who repeatedly put water and an additive into the livewell to keep the big bass happy until the weigh-in.
Fish of theweek
Seraphim caught and released a total of 11 sailfish Friday and Saturday to win the Sailfish 400 out of Miami and take home $246,850. Contender One was second with 10 releases to win $78,410. Priceless was third, also with 10 sailfish, to win $55,540. Liquid was fourth with nine releases to win $55,360. Qualifier, Sailsmen and Jagger also had nine fish. The 47-boat fleet released a total of 212 sailfish.
In the fun fish division, which paid $2,500 for the heaviest of each species, Doing It All/Hard Way had the biggest dolphin at 20 pounds, Fishless had a 48-pound kingfish, Reel Rodeo had a 35.3 cobia and Jagger had the top tuna at 13.
Bruce and Ryan Langford caught a two-day total of 31.03 pounds, including the big bass of9.59, towin the Bass-N-Fools 2015 Classic at Lake Walk-in-Water in Lake Wales. Terry Evans and Zack Hagan were second at 24.15, followed by Mark Escobar and Greg Moule at 14.45, Paul D’arcy and George Williams at 12.13 and Bill White and Dan Stubbs at 11.1. Prospective members can call 954-475-0248.
Capt. Alan Zaremba of Hollywood reported that last week’s cool temperatures and lots of moving water fromthe rain made for tough fishing for peacock and largemouth bass, but snook were biting Storm Twitch Sticks and Bagley Minnows trolled along bridge pilings and fished around downed trees in urban canals.
Ron Dierkes of Bloomington, Ill., caught four peacocks up to 3 pounds, four snook up to 5 pounds and two largemouths in the C-9 Canal in Miami Gardens.
Michael Troner of Palmetto Bay and Fink Finklestein of Toronto caught six peacocks, four snook, a largemouth and a 4-pound clown knifefish in the C-8 in Miami Lakes.
Ty Mitchell of Seattle, Julio Costa of West Palm Beach and Fred Penta of Sarasota caught four snook up to 10 pounds, five peacocks up to 3 pounds and three largemouths on a morning trip in the C-8.