After three career FLW Tour Top-20 finishes, numerous wins at the triple-A level and two career championship appearances, James Watson of Nixa, Mo. earned the first tour-level victory of his career and $95,400 Saturday at the FLW Tour Invitational at Norris Lake in Andersonville, Tenn. He caught a 8=9-12 sack on the final day for a 3-day total of 36-10.
He prevailed by 3 ounces over runner-up Jason Lambert of Pickwick Dam, Tennessee (36-07). In addition, Watson became just the second angler to qualify for the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup.
“I thought I blew it today, so I am absolutely floored,” said Watson, who pushed his FLW career earnings to more than $276,000. “I’ve won a B.A.S.S. Open, I’ve won a PAA event, but I’ve never won an FLW Tour event. I’ve been fishing these things a long time and I bleed FLW.
"This is such a huge win for me – by far the biggest financial win of my career. And to punch my ticket to the Forrest Wood Cup before the season even starts, this is big time.”
Watson said he did most of his damage this week in the area known as the Loyston Sea. His key baits were a River2Sea Whopper Plopper, a River2Sea Bubble Walker, a War Eagle Buzz Toad rigged with a Luck-E-Strike Frantic Frog and a half-ounce brown finesse jig with a Luck-E-Strike Baby Guido Bug.
“Fall is just my time of the year,” Watson said. “I have more confidence from August to December than I do at any other time of the year. I really thought I was going to whack them today, but I got caught up and didn’t have any new water that I felt comfortable running.
“I caught two small ones in the last 15 minutes that gained me a couple of ounces and fortunately those fish were enough. I caught one smallmouth on a spinnerbait today as well – the only spinnerbait fish that I caught and the only smallmouth that I weighed in. In the weigh-in line I saw Lambert’s bag and I saw Adams’ bag and I didn’t think that I had enough to win. It’s hard to win any bass tournament, but it’s even harder when you’re fishing against the best guys in the world. Those guys are absolute hammers and to get the win today is just something else.”
Here are the totals for the final Top 10:
1. James Watson: 36-10
2. Jason Lambert: 36-07
3. Tracy Adams: 35-10
4. Derrick Blake: 33-14
5. Wesley Strader: 32-15
6. Michael Neal: 29-01
7. Matt Arey: 27-09
8. Ken Vicchio: 26-12
9. William Campbell: 24-02
10. Scott Canterbury: 24-00
