Joe Uribe Jr. caught 22-02 today to finish with a 3-day total of 66-10 and capture the win at the Clear Lake Western Rayovac Series. He also captured the Division Angler of the Year title with his second win of the season.
His total was 1 ounce better than Jody Jordan, who bagged 24-05 on the final day. For his victory, Uribe earned $28,851 and a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower outboard.
“I am on cloud nine right now,” Uribe said in an FLW release. “Jody (Jordan) had a huge day today and I truly thought that he was going to win. To get the win by just one ounce, wow. I am absolutely blessed – God is good.”
Uribe said that all of his fish throughout the week came shallow – from 2 to 6 feet of water – and that he ran new water each day. He found a productive bank on the first day that produced more than 20 pounds, but only managed to catch one bass off of that spot on day two. Forced to scramble, Uribe said that he fished slower and much more methodically than he normally does.
“I usually like to fish shallow, burning the bank and covering a lot of water,” Uribe said. “This tournament I had to fish much slower, often making the exact same cast multiple times, very precisely.”
Uribe said that his primary baits throughout the week were Lucky Craft RC 1.5 crankbait and a Lucky Craft LV 500 lipless crankbait, but that he was forced to slow down today with a Texas-rigged Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver to upgrade a small limit and catch enough weight to earn the win.
Here's how the Top 10 finished up:
1. Joe Uribe, Jr: 66-10
2. Jody Jordan: 66-09
3. Mark Crutcher: 62-09
4. Jim Hawkes: 59-15
5. Bryant Smith: 58-15
6. Jimmy Reese: 55-04
7. Kerry Harris: 55-03
8. Marco Valdez: 52-08
9. Chris Franks: 52-06
10. Carl Keller: 49-08
BassFan will report on Uribe's and other top finishers' pattern information in the near future.
