Pro Congratulations

Bass fishing legend Larry Nixon added to the story this weekend by topping the field in the FLW Tour Open on Lake St. Clair with a four-day catch of 84 pounds, 11 ounces. FLW Photo by Brett Carlson.

Wow. A lot happened in the pro angling world this weekend while I was stomping around in Smokies streams.

On the FLW side of things, Larry Nixon added yet another win to his storied career by topping the field in an FLW Tour Open at Lake St. Clair. Nixon, who had won once before on the same waters, took the title in convincing fashion, topping second place finisher Bill McDonald by more than 6 pounds.

On the B.A.S.S. side, Boyd Duckett took the trophy at Lake Oneida, edging out Randy Howell by only 6 ounces. Most importantly to Duckett, the win earned him qualification for the 2013 Bassmaster Classic.

Because Oneida was the final stop of the season for the Elites, it also settled the Angler of the Year and Rookie of the Year races and the post-season field and secured Classic spots for several pros. Congratulations to B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year Brent Chapman and Rookie of the year Brandon Card and to all the post-season and Classic qualifiers.

Elite Series Competition Turning North

Kansas pro Brent Chapman leads the B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year race after six events. B.A.S.S. photo by Gary Tramontina.

The Elite Series Mississippi River Rumble begins tomorrow morning out of La Crosse, Wisconsin. The four-day event is the first of three on northern waters that collectively will wrap up the 2012 season. Next week, the pros will fish out of Green Bay. Then, following nearly two months off, they will wrap up the regular season on New York's Lake Oneida.

The pros have 66 miles of the Mississippi in three pools to fish this week. This La Crosse section of the river has extensive backwaters, which are expected to be very important in the tournament. Water levels, which can change daily on the big river, will play a huge part in determining the patterns that prevail.

The three northern events represent 1/3 of the schedule, so it will be interesting to see how points races continue to take shape. Brent Chapman currently leads the Angler of the Year Race, while Brandon Card leads the Rookie of the Year.