Stevens and Schirling shut the door on qualifier #4
Posted by admin on October 2, 2016
October 1st Winners - Chris Schirling and Kail Stevens - photo Pro Sites Unlimited
CLEWISTON, FL - The final qualifier (#4) of the 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series is in the books and the story of the day is big bass and big checks. Yes, that’s starting to sound like a broken record with the highest paying team tournament trail in Florida, but with twenty-pound-plus limits filling out the top 10 and plenty of extra zeros on checks rather than in the livewells, you won’t find many complaints here. Play it again Big O!
With the rest of the country welcoming in Fall and saying goodbye to summer, anglers and big-bass fans in Clewiston were treated to mid 80 temperatures, little wind and lots of photo opportunities. And the biggest one came when Kail Stevens and Chis Schirling put over 30 pounds of Lake Okeechobee bass on the scales.
“The first place we pulled up on, both of us had 3 ½ pounders pretty quick,” Stevens said. “We thought it was going to start going off from there but it slowed down on us around 11 a.m. with about 24 pounds. We thought, this isn’t going to win. Everybody has been catching 30 pounds. This ain’t enough.”
“We were flipping reeds all day with a black and blue jig and beaver,” said Schirling. “Then we went back to our previous stretch the last hour and Kail put two good ones in the well to seal the deal.”
With a total weight of 30.91 lbs., Stevens and Schirling also found a $5,000 check with their names on it. To sweeten the pot, Bass Addiction threw in a $150 gift certificate.
In second place with 24.35 lbs. was the team of Donny Bass and Mike Meisenheimer. No stranger to the bountiful payouts of Lake Okeechobee and the RMMC Series, Bass is the reigning champion of the Series.
“We had a small limit early within the first hour,” Bass said. “We were punching mats all day long with 1 ½ to 2 oz. weights from Hawg Tech with dark plastics. We did have a chance at 30 lbs. with both of using losing a couple nice ones.”
“It was a grind,” said Meisenheimer. “I was a fill in since Donny’s partner couldn’t make it but it worked out in my favor.”
With a second place check for $2,000 and an additional $500 going to Bass for his 7.72 Big Bass of the day, Meisenheimer and Bass made the alternate connection pay off.
Rounding out the top three with a little over 23 pounds was the father and son team of Brian and Brice Powant.
“We caught most of our fish flipping,” said the 13-year old Powant. “But we picked one up casting as well.”
“We were throwing a Reaction Beaver and Gambler Ugly Otter in Black and Blue,” the elder Powant said. “I had a chance to practice yesterday but scrapped that early and we ended up catching them from the North end.”
Their total weight of 23.25 lbs. was good enough for $1,300. The Gambler 2nd big bass check for $100 went to the team of Steve Lake and Kevin Lake along with $100 Reel Deal Outdoors 15th place finish gift certificate.
With the top nine teams bringing in 20 pound plus limits, the fourth and final qualifier of the 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series continued to reward the anglers and big-bass fans gathered in Clewiston for the weigh-in.
photo - Pro Sites Unlimited
Next up: The Championship | October 10th & 11th
With a reported check of $15,000 anticipated for the winning team and a December 10th and 11th date, the stage is set for a big event. Then again, this is Lake Okeechobee and the Roland Martin Marine Center Series. Big is how we roll. See you in December.
Complete standings for October 1 – Qualifier #4
Be sure to register your team early for the Championship.
Locke and Brown find gold on Lake Okeechobee.
Posted by admin on August 14, 2016
CLEWISTON, FL - With the Summer heat bearing down in Clewiston, Lake Okeechobee still pays off. The August 13, 2016 Qualifier #3 of the Roland Martin Marine Center Series is a wrap and the highest paying bass fishing team tournament trail in Florida put up some big numbers on checks as well as the scales.
With the top 5 teams bringing in 20 pound plus limits, Lake Okeechobee stayed true to its legendary big-bass status. The winning team of Durand Locke and Don Brown took home top honors and a check for $5,000 with a winning total of 25.09.
“We had a chance to practice Thursday and Friday and locked into a pattern that paid off for us,” Locke said. “By 9:30 a.m., we had a limit and started culling. Our second place wasn’t as good as good as our first place, so we returned there for the rest of the day.”
Working outside grass lines, the team was casting swim jigs with Locke wasting no time grabbing the big bass of tournament.
“I caught the big one on our second cast on a Dirty Jigs swim jig,” Locke said about the $500 big-bass catch. “Not a bad way to start the day.”
The second place team of Steve Poland and Mike Krause Jr. found similar success casting over submerged grass and didn’t take long to start culling toward their 23.51 lb. limit.
“We were culling by about our seventh cast,” Krause said. “We found a spot late yesterday during our practice that had a wad of fish on it and we decided we would start there. We quickly rounded up a limit and decided to go look for a big one."
Their casting pattern allowed them to cover a lot of water with Poland finding the kicker they needed with a 7.09 large mouth hitting a Gambler Swim Jig.
With a little under 23 pounds, third place finishers Brandon Medlock and Chuck Metheney found success flipping jigs before switching to punching mats with Gambler Why Not baits.
"We had our limit by 8:30am,” Metheney said. “But our kicker, that was just under 7 pounds, came in the last 30 minutes.”
Check out the final standings of the August 13, 2016 event here.
With checks going out to the top 14 teams, it’s clear to see why this tournament series is quickly becoming a favorite as the highest paying team tournament trail in Florida. There’s one more qualifier October 1, 2016, before the Championship in December that is gearing up for a record payout of $15,000 for the winning team. Big bass and big checks is what this tournament series is all about. Make sure you register early for the next event so you don’t miss out.
McMillan and Locke go big to win big on Lake Okeechobee.
Posted by admin on June 5, 2016
The June 4, 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series Qualifier #2 is in the books and a familiar name to the Lake Okeechobee bass fishing faithful shared the spotlight. Jared McMillan and Durand Locke brought just under 32 pounds to the stage to take home the winning check of $5,000 in the highest paying team trail in Florida.
In 95 degree June heat and barely a hint of wind on Lake Okeechobee, McMillan and Locke found success early with a good limit less than a half hour after launch. With a full livewell early, they spent the rest of the day culling up to the winning weight of 31 pounds and 14 ounces.
“We both practiced on Friday in separate areas of the lake,” McMillan said. “Then we compared notes and put together our plan. It didn’t take long for us to know we were on to something good.”
The winning bag anchored by a 8.4 kicker, winner of the Gambler 2nd Big Bass, were found flipping weeds with big 4x4 Bass Jigs tipped with a black and blue chunk. “Big baits, big fish,” said McMillan.
Second place went to the team of Ron Yentz and Steve Forcell with 27 pounds even. They started culling by 10 a.m. finding success with a bladed swim jig and a black and blue Gambler Fat Ace. After finishing fourth in the first qualifier, they have their eyes set on the next qualifier in August and the Championship in December.
Rounding out the top three was the team of Jeff Zablo and Joe LaManna with 24.5. The U.S. Sugar Big Bass check for $500 went to Josh Smith with a 9.21 Lake Okeechobee largemouth. Jarred McMillan collected the Gambler $100 2nd Big Bass with 8.6 and cashed another $1,000 in Ranger Cup bucks as the highest finishing Ranger Qualified angler. Click here for the complete leaderboard for the June 4, 2016 event.
The Roland Martin Marine Center Series continues August 13, 2016 with Qualifier #3 followed by Qualifier #4 October 1, 2016 culminating with the 2-day Championship December 10th and 11th. Be sure to register today to be a part of the highest paying team trail in Florida
Win BIGGER with The Ranger Cup Program
Posted by admin on April 4, 2016
Ranger Boats renews for the 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series with it's Ranger Cup program. As part of the agreement, 1st place winners in an RMMC SERIES Qualifier that are Ranger Cup qualified will win an additional $1,000. That's a $750.00 increase from last year and with no age limitation on model year it's another great reason to fish the highest paying team trail in Florida. Contact us for more
The 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series kicks off with a bang
Posted by admin on March 30, 2016
2nd place went to Trevor Hamlin/James Littich winning $2,000 with 25.04 lb's
March 26th kicked of the 1st of 4 qualifiers for the 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series. It's the highest paying team trail in Florida. Finally a 100% payback tournament with the anglers in mind. In only it's 2nd season it quickly reached a milestone at 100 teams and with the HUGE payouts and an unconventional Emcee Chris "Peanut" Brill bringing humor to the the stage it has been quoted as the "Best trail in Florida" by many.
With over 11 teams weighing in 20+ lb's it shows that Lake Okeechobee is on fire!
The 1st Place team of Jesse Mizell/Jett Dexter won $5,000 with 25.40 lb's, 2nd went to Trevor Hamlin/James Littich winning $2,000 with 25.04 lb's and 3rd Justin Morgan/Randy Fulford winning $1,500 with a weight of 24.97 lb's. It was a competition of ounces leaving the teams wanting revenge at the next event to be held on June 4th out of Roland & Mary Ann Martin Marina & resort in Clewiston.
Mizell and Dexter's winning pattern was casting a 7 inch Yamamoto senko in hydrilla pockets while the team of Hamlin/Littich were targeting fish that were moving back to spawn using a reaction innovation skinny dipper in a houdini color on a swim jig. Big Bass of the day went to Dave Lauer with a 8.71 lb bass. The next event is June 4th. Register now to secure your spot.
1st Place team of Jesse Mizell/Jett Dexter won $5,000 with 25.40 lb's
Big Bass of the day went to Dave Lauer with a 8.71 lb bass
New Season. New Website.
Posted by admin on February 27, 2016
We’re geared up for the 2016 Roland Martin Marine Center Series with a new website powered by Pro Sites Unlimited. The schedule is set for the highest paying tournament trail in Florida, with a true 100% pay out on the legendary Lake Okeechobee. Visit the schedule and register for the first event of the season on March 26th out of the Roland Martin Marina in Clewiston Florida. You can also secure your team entry and pay online at our secure payment gateway. Then stay tuned for tournament results and videos and pictures of all the action in our gallery. And don’t forget to visit and support our sponsors that make our tournament trail possible. If you have any questions, contact us and we’ll see you at first light.
.
why not 5 goes on
