4/9/16 – Dan Jensen and Taylor Smith win for the second year in a row at Banks Lake to kick off the Northwest Bass Season.

ELECTRIC CITY, WA – Northwest Bass saw a great turnout for their first event of the 2016 season held at Banks Lake. 76 teams enjoyed unusually high temperatures for April, which climbed into the 70’s, and calm water as they attempted to get off to a fast start in the 2016 Circuit.

Dan Jensen and Taylor Smith capitalized on the incredible conditions to capture the 1st place trophy at Banks Lake for the second year in a row. Weighing in at 20.2 pounds, their biggest bass was a largemouth that tipped the scales at 4.57 lbs, and their remaining four fish all weighed in around 4.0 lbs apiece. With the win, Jensen and Smith find themselves in the front of the pack in the Northwest Bass Angler of the Year standings, earning 100 points with the victory.

Veteran team, Don Hogue and Ryan Brown found their way onto the podium with 5 bass weighing in at 19.06 lbs. The 2nd place finish marked their 4th consecutive top-10 dating back to June 2015 at Columbia Point in the Tri-Cities. For their effort, Hogue and Brown were awarded 99 points toward the Angler of the Year standings, leaving them in an excellent position heading into the two day event at the Potholes Reservoir next month.

Big Fish at Banks Lake was brought to the scales by Mike Wolsky and Ronald Hobbs, Jr, a 5.13 lb largemouth, the only fish over 5 pounds caught on Saturday. Wolsky and Hobbs also rounded out the top-3, finishing the tournament with 19.02 lbs, just 4/100ths of a pound behind the runner up. The team is no stranger to success on the circuit and will look to continue a run that lead them to a win at the Northwest Bass Championship in 2015.

The large turnout meant great paydays for successful anglers, with over $20,000 in prize money paid out as well as several non-cash prizes including a Lowrance Structure Scan 3D transducer worth $1000. Ranger Cup paid out $2250 in contingency money and Triton Gold paid $500. Circuit sponsor, Crunchpak, contributed $50 in cash and some nice gifts for participants while Northwest Bass gave away a free tournament entry worth $250.

Next up on the slate is the Potholes Reservoir on May 21 and 22. The tournament will be based out of MarDon resort and is sure to produce some excitement with a two day format. It will also bring Anglers one step closer to the Northwest Bass Championship in the fall of 2016.

Northwest Bass is the premier tournament circuit in Washington and Oregon with four qualifying tournaments hosted on four different bodies of water and a championship event in 2016. We’d like to thank our many sponsors, anglers, and staff who make this Bass tournament circuit truly great!