Charley Almassey caught a 15-01 stringer on Saturday to win the Western FLW Series event a the California Delta with a 3-day total of 60-01. Almassey prevailed by a pound and a half over fello Oakley, Calif. resident Mike Birch.
“I was totally taken by surprise when I had enough to win today,” said Almassey, who earned $32,880 for the victory. “I consider the Delta my home waters and know what a great fishery it is. To come away with the win this week is really unbelievable.”
Almassey said he caught his fish throughout the week by targeting flats where bass and bluegill were spawning. Each day he would run the tide, following the low tide south to Discovery Bay, a run which he estimated between 20 to 25 miles. He targeted sparse patches of weeds with tules that had limited amounts of angel hair grass.
“I was throwing at patches that had the wind blowing into it,” Almassey said. “I’m a reaction-bait fisherman; the nastier conditions, the better.”
Almassey credited three baits for his success this week – a bluegill-colored Bobby D’s Custom Baits Grinder paired with a watermelon-candy-colored Assault Lures Ringer paddle-tail swimbait, an ABT Lures Glide Bait and a 3/8-ounce Blade-Runner Weedless Paddle Head Swim Jig with a 4.8-inch green-pumpkin Keitech Swing Impact FAT.
“I was only catching eight or nine keepers a day. I was not messing with little fish this week and was on a big-fish-only pattern. I think that was the key for me this week. My local knowledge definitely helped as well – I knew where the big fish were.”
Here are the final totals for the Top 10:
1. Charley Almassey: 60-01
2. Mike Birch: 58-08
3. Roy Hawk: 56-13
4. Robert Lee: 55-00
5. Michael Caruso: 53-05
6. Bobby Barrack: 52-08
7. Harvey Pulliam: 50-01
8. Bryant Smith: 49-01
9. Benjamin Byrd: 48-06
10. Dane Mitchell: 48-05
