LE WINS EVERSTART SERIES EVENT ON LAKE MEAD

April 09, 2005 HENDERSON, Nev. – Pro Thanh Le of El Cajon, Calif., caught a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 19 pounds, 2 ounces to win the EverStart Series Western
Division event on Lake Mead near Henderson. Le won a Ranger 519 VX powered by a Yamaha or Evinrude outboard and outfitted with a Minn Kota trolling motor, Garmin electronics and EverStart batteries plus $8,400 cash.

“I fished a tube in grassy cuts all week,” said Le, a Lake Mead veteran who caught the majority of his bass in 5 to 10 feet of water. “It was real windy and cloudy today, and it rained a little. But I ended up catching around 20 fish.”

Rounding out the top-five pros are Tim Klinger of Boulder City (10 bass, 19 pounds, 1 ounce, $8,400); Dennis Kolender of Henderson (10 bass, 18 pounds, 11 ounces, $8,000); Gabe Bolivar of Ramona, Calif. (eight bass, 18 pounds, 11 ounces, $7,350); and Clayton Meyer of San Diego, Calif. (six bass, 13 pounds, 11 ounces, $6,850). Klinger won an additional $1,500 as the recipient of the Ranger Cup award. Lewis Milligan of Roseville, Calif., caught eight bass weighing 15 pounds, 7 ounces to win the Co-angler Division and earn $4,400.

“I fished a Yamamoto double-tailed grub for most of the tournament,” Milligan said. “Early in the week, I was using a brown and purple color, but the bass didn’t hit that this morning. My pro, Tim Klinger, gave me some brown and orange-colored grubs though, and the bass hit those. We were working them from shallow to deep water.” Milligan’s biggest bass, a 4-pounder, came in about 4 feet of water.

Rounding out the top-five co-anglers are Charlie Crawford of Peoria, Ariz. (nine bass, 14 pounds, 15 ounces, $3,400); John Bitting of Westminster, Calif. (seven bass, 13 pounds, 5 ounces, $3,125); Gary Key of Phoenix, Ariz. (eight bass, 12 pounds, 10 ounces, $2,240); and Gayle Janes of Bermuda Dunes, Calif. (five bass, 10 pounds, 5 ounces, $1,740).

EverStart Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of two rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday and Thursday, and the top 10 pros and co-anglers –based on two-day accumulated weights – advance to the final round. Anglers start at zero Friday, and pro and co-angler winners are determined Saturday based on two-day accumulated weights.

The next EverStart Series Western Division event will be held May 4-7 on the California Delta near Bethel Island, Calif. Boats will launch from Russo’s Marina located at 3995 Willow Rd. in Bethel Island. Russo’s Marina is also the local host of the event presented by Garmin.

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