South Africa's Jeffrey Toplis (14 years old), and Kentucky's Kalem Tippett (17, pictured to right) persevered through Sunday's chilly temperatures and gusting winds at Alabama's Logan Martin to win their respective age divisions at the 4th annual Junior World Bassmaster Championship.
With the win, each angler took home a fully rigged bass boat and $5,000 in scholarship money. A Walt Disney World experience will also be provided to the champions.
Anglers competed in two age divisions: 11–14 and 15–18. Two anglers, one from each division, fished from the same boat in the company of a Bassmaster Classic competitor. All earned the right to compete in the championship by fishing events at the local and regional levels.
Toplis, who traveled to Alabama from Capetown, South Africa, boated two bass by working a green-pumpkin jig. It was his first time fishing with the lure. The near-freezing temperatures were a shock to his fishing style, but the 14-year-old managed to capitalize on two bites to weigh 7-04. "You have to fish a little slower in the States," he said. "And with the way the weather was today, I don't think we would've even gone fishing in South Africa. But I sure am glad we went out today."
Tippett, from Hanson, Ky., boxed three fish for 7-08. He caught two on a spoon and one on a jerkbait. "It's awesome to be here, much less to win it," he said. "I've been fishing since I learned to walk, and this is a huge accomplishment for me." He added that he hopes to one day be a pro angler.
