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Catfish anglers from two states traveled to Truman Lake for a King Kat Tournament Trail event presented by Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s. Twelve boats gathered at Clinton, MO to test their catfishing skills against other anglers and Mother Nature. It was the first tournament in a couple of months since the coronavirus shut things down.
Anglers fishing the May 16, 2020 event were vying for $ 3,145 in cash and prizes, and an opportunity to qualify for the $120,000 King Kat Classic Championship to be held October 30 – 31, 2020 on Milford Lake in Milford, KS.
The tournament had a cloudy beginning during the morning hours. The sun came out in the afternoon and temperatures rose to a pleasant 70 degrees with a light breeze. Anglers and staff were fortunate as the rains held back through the weigh-in but came in hard later. Truman Lake demonstrated what a good fishery it is with lots of catfish being caught during the tournament.
Results for the Top Teams
The win at Truman went to Lance Nolan, Chase Nolan, and Logan Lindsey. The threesome won overall weight and big fish to get tournament fishing going again on the King Kat Trail. They weighed a total of 75.60 pounds to take the top spot. Their bag included the Big Kat of the tournament at 34.08 pounds. It turned out to be a nice birthday present for 21-year-old Chase! The team earned the first-place check of $1,800.
“We had an awesome day on the water,” reported Chase. “We started the day fishing a flat in about 3 to 5 foot of water. The fish were stacked up!
The team from Eldorado, KS was targeting a shallow flat with a nice current running over it. They set up their Big Cat Fever rods with Demon Dragons and baited with gizzard shad.
“The weather all week was kinda’ rough,” noted Chase. “There were lot of storms and the fishing was hot and heavy. On tourney day it turned out to be a beautiful day and we ended up catching around 50 or more fish!”
They fished in waters less than 20-foot-deep all day. The bite was so good that they were culling by 8:00 am.
“I also want to give a big shout out to my guide service, 2 Nolan’s Outfitting,” concluded Chase. “Without all my wonderful clients we wouldn’t be able to fish all the tournaments that we do!”
Jeff and Natashia Faulkenberry claimed the runner-up spot. The Clinton, MO locals weighed in a total of 72.2 pounds to earn the second-place check of $700.
Jeff and Natashia fished on the Grand River, only about 4 miles from the weigh-in site at Bucksaw Marina. They used fresh shad in shallow water ranging from 1.4 to 2 feet deep.
The husband/wife team reported catching 40 to 50 fish on tournament day, all from very shallow water. They did report losing one big fish that was larger than any they weighed in.
Third place went to Kevin Parks (Parks Planer Boards) from Leroy, KS and Terry Fisher from Waverly, KS. They teamed up to bring 57.66 pounds to the scales and earn a check for $ 425.
Kevin and Terry fished the west arm of Truman lake with cut shad. They also followed the shallow water pattern to earn the third spot. With 30 to 35 fish on the day they reported a lot of nice fish that were in the 1 5- to 26-inch slot range.
Epilogue
Tournament director, Bobby Brown thanked the Clinton Tourism Association for making the event possible and the staff at Bucksaw Resort and Marina for welcoming the anglers and having the weigh-in.
The 2020 Championship
This year’s Cabela’s King Kat Classic Championship will be held October 30 – 31, 2020 on Milford Lake in Milford, KS. The Classic features a guaranteed payout of $120,000 in cash and prizes. The points race is set to pay $30,000 to the top 20 places based on the competitor’s top-five finishes.
National Sponsors
Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s King Kat Tournament Trail sponsors include: Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s, Excel Boats, Mercury Marine, Mustad Hooks, Humminbird, Minn Kota, B’n’M Poles, Gamma Line, Driftmaster Rod Holders, Ego Nets, Xtreme Bait Systems, EFX Graphics, Catfish Now, Fin n’ Frames, WavePro, Kiobassa Sausage, and Crown Trophy Wave Pro.
For more information on the championship and other King Kat activities visit their website at www.kingkatusa.com. Anglers can also follow the trail on the King Kat Facebook Page.
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