California's Gary Dobyns captured his long-sought initial WON Bass U.S. Open win Wednesday with an 8.13-pound bag that gave him a 3-day total of 32.91. He beat out the runner-up, Arizona FLW Tour pro Cliff Pirch, by nearly 3 1/2 pounds.
"It wasn't easy," said the 50-year-old Dobyns, who claimed the victory on his 31st wedding anniversary. "The fish changed every day and I had to do something different in a different place to catch them. They just don't do the same thing here for 2 days in a row.
"I wanted this sucker so bad. I've had so much success in fishing and this is the most prestigious tournament in the West, and I'd never gotten it done. Well, I finally got it done."
The 1st-place prize package included $50,000 in cash, and he won another $11,000 in big fish/big stringer money. He also claimed a fully rigged Nitro Z9 with a Mercury Pro XS 225 – the 40th boat he's won in competition during his long career.
His primary baits were a Yamamoto Hula Grub (green-pumpkin), a Lucky Craft BDS 4 crankbait and a Lucky Craft Gunfish 95 topwater bait. Full details of his winning pattern will be posted soon.
Here's a look at the final Top 10:
1. Gary Dobyns: 32.91
2. Clifford Pirch: 29.56
3. Aaron Martens: 25.73
4. Randy Estrada: 25.40
5. John Kerr: 24.50
6. Shad Berweger: 24.49
7. Richard Dutzi: 24.19
8. John Murray: 23.77
9. Art Berry: 23.24
10. Fred Roumbanis: 23.01
| Event Details | Results |
|---|---|
| Circuit | Won Bass |
| Location | Lake Mead |
| Event Date | 2009-08-31 |
| Entries: | 112 |
| Total Paid Out: | $208,900.00 |
| Place | Pro Angler | Fish | Weight | Winnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gary Dobyns | 15 | 32.91 | $105,000.00 |
| 2 | Clifford Pirch | 14 | 29.56 | $19,000.00 |
| 3 | Aaron Martens | 15 | 25.73 | $10,000.00 |
| 4 | Randy Estrada | 14 | 25.40 | $7,500.00 |
| 5 | John Kerr | 14 | 24.50 | $6,500.00 |
| 6 | Shad Berweger | 15 | 24.49 | $6,000.00 |
| 7 | Richard Dutzi | 15 | 24.19 | $6,000.00 |
| 8 | John Murray | 15 | 23.77 | $5,000.00 |
| 9 | Art Berry | 14 | 23.24 | $4,500.00 |
| 10 | Fred Roumbanis | 15 | 23.01 | $4,200.00 |
| 11 | Justin Kerr | 14 | 22.80 | $3,600.00 |
| 12 | Dennis Kolender | 15 | 22.72 | $3,300.00 |
| 13 | Dean Rojas | 13 | 22.39 | $3,000.00 |
| 14 | Forest Webb | 15 | 22.35 | $2,750.00 |
| 15 | Dick Watson | 14 | 21.69 | $2,250.00 |
| 16 | John Perkins | 13 | 21.55 | $2,250.00 |
| 17 | Chris Zaldain | 13 | 21.43 | $3,750.00 |
| 18 | Joe Uribe, Jr. | 15 | 21.40 | $1,750.00 |
| 19 | Marcus Clouse | 15 | 21.34 | $1,750.00 |
| 20 | Rich Tauber | 14 | 21.18 | $1,600.00 |
| 21 | Don Iglinski | 13 | 21.16 | $1,600.00 |
| 22 | Bradley Yang | 15 | 20.57 | $1,600.00 |
| 23 | Mike Rennie | 14 | 20.42 | $0.00 |
| 24 | Dennis Saiki | 14 | 20.35 | $0.00 |
| 25 | Bryan Grier | 12 | 19.81 | $0.00 |
| 26 | Gary Boyd | 14 | 19.66 | $0.00 |
| 27 | Jamie Cyphers | 13 | 19.62 | $0.00 |
| 28 | Wade Strelic | 15 | 19.57 | $0.00 |
| 29 | Kevin Caruso | 13 | 19.56 | $0.00 |
| 30 | Rick Grover | 12 | 19.53 | $2,000.00 |
| 31 | Tom Pryor | 11 | 19.52 | $2,000.00 |
| 32 | Moses Mokuahi | 12 | 19.15 | $0.00 |
| 33 | Clayton Meyer | 12 | 19.02 | $0.00 |
| 34 | Wayne Carey | 13 | 18.84 | $0.00 |
| 35 | Clay Lippincott | 12 | 18.82 | $0.00 |
| 36 | Josh Bertrand | 14 | 18.73 | $0.00 |
| 37 | Jay Wright | 13 | 18.44 | $0.00 |
| 38 | Ted Roper | 13 | 18.39 | $0.00 |
| 39 | Tony Capparelli | 14 | 18.37 | $0.00 |
| 40 | Dale Devlin | 13 | 18.34 | $0.00 |
| 41 | Sean Hinton | 13 | 18.14 | $0.00 |
| 42 | Michael Mclernon | 11 | 17.79 | $0.00 |
| 43 | Matt Shura | 12 | 17.67 | $0.00 |
| 44 | Jim Davis, Jr | 11 | 17.66 | $0.00 |
| 45 | Roy White | 13 | 17.51 | $0.00 |
| 46 | Vern Ridgway | 12 | 17.31 | $0.00 |
| 47 | Aaron Leon | 12 | 17.21 | $0.00 |
| 48 | John Galbraith | 13 | 17.13 | $0.00 |
| 49 | Byron Velvick | 10 | 17.10 | $0.00 |
| 50 | Kevin Johnson | 13 | 16.62 | $0.00 |
| 51 | Gary Moore | 11 | 16.52 | $0.00 |
| 52 | Chris Bozarth | 11 | 16.44 | $0.00 |
| 53 | Sean Stafford | 9 | 16.42 | $0.00 |
| 54 | William Ruehle | 13 | 16.40 | $0.00 |
| 55 | Steve Czerniski | 10 | 16.37 | $2,000.00 |
| 56 | Rick Clunn | 10 | 16.36 | $0.00 |
| 57 | Don Gauge | 13 | 16.32 | $0.00 |
| 58 | Boris Antolos | 11 | 16.27 | $0.00 |
| 59 | Gabe Bolivar | 11 | 15.91 | $0.00 |
| 60 | Morizo Shimizu | 9 | 15.84 | $0.00 |
| 61 | Mike Folkestad | 12 | 15.77 | $0.00 |
| 62 | Keith Ferlanie | 12 | 15.70 | $0.00 |
| 63 | Randy Roundtree | 12 | 15.53 | $0.00 |
| 63 | Don Smith | 10 | 15.53 | $0.00 |
| 65 | Stephan Camden | 10 | 15.40 | $0.00 |
| 66 | Rick Willoughby | 9 | 15.14 | $0.00 |
| 67 | Kurt Walters | 12 | 15.13 | $0.00 |
| 68 | John Morrow | 10 | 15.08 | $0.00 |
| 69 | Robert Faaborg | 10 | 15.06 | $0.00 |
| 70 | Thomas Wennerlund | 10 | 14.79 | $0.00 |
| 71 | William Skinner | 10 | 14.71 | $0.00 |
| 72 | Jeffrey Klicka | 11 | 14.69 | $0.00 |
| 73 | Michael Phua | 12 | 14.62 | $0.00 |
| 74 | Mike Brillhart | 11 | 14.48 | $0.00 |
| 74 | Norman Santos | 10 | 14.48 | $0.00 |
| 76 | Neil Campbell | 9 | 14.32 | $0.00 |
| 77 | Tom Matsunaga | 10 | 14.27 | $0.00 |
| 78 | Johnny Johnson | 11 | 13.92 | $0.00 |
| 78 | Eric Brewer | 9 | 13.92 | $0.00 |
| 80 | Tom Phillips | 9 | 13.69 | $0.00 |
| 81 | Fred Krumsiek | 10 | 13.57 | $0.00 |
| 82 | Mike Bird | 8 | 13.40 | $0.00 |
| 83 | Ron Hammett | 9 | 13.32 | $0.00 |
| 84 | David Peltier | 9 | 13.19 | $0.00 |
| 85 | Chris Bond | 9 | 13.10 | $0.00 |
| 86 | Murphy Mcbride | 10 | 13.03 | $0.00 |
| 87 | Paul Gonzales | 9 | 12.81 | $0.00 |
| 88 | Laron Porter | 9 | 12.61 | $0.00 |
| 89 | Dwight Shephard | 10 | 12.57 | $0.00 |
| 90 | Derek Yamamoto | 8 | 12.36 | $0.00 |
| 91 | Michael D Sisco | 8 | 12.15 | $0.00 |
| 92 | Rodney Mcnabb | 7 | 12.10 | $0.00 |
| 93 | Michael Rooke | 9 | 11.89 | $0.00 |
| 94 | Kurt Palmer | 9 | 11.43 | $0.00 |
| 95 | Todd Harris | 8 | 11.22 | $0.00 |
| 96 | Paul Leader | 8 | 10.88 | $0.00 |
| 97 | Roy Hawk | 7 | 10.70 | $0.00 |
| 98 | Vince Gennaro | 6 | 10.48 | $0.00 |
| 99 | Dean Yamagata | 7 | 10.27 | $0.00 |
| 100 | Don Hilton | 8 | 10.22 | $0.00 |
| 101 | Denny Burrow | 7 | 9.88 | $0.00 |
| 102 | David Kemper | 6 | 9.33 | $0.00 |
| 103 | Ricky Shabazz | 7 | 9.27 | $0.00 |
| 104 | Brent Oldham | 6 | 8.63 | $0.00 |
| 105 | Klayton Belden | 6 | 8.30 | $0.00 |
| 106 | Rusty Brown | 6 | 7.85 | $0.00 |
| 107 | Tony Lain | 6 | 7.79 | $0.00 |
| 108 | Shawn Lee | 5 | 6.41 | $0.00 |
| 109 | Duane Dunstone | 5 | 5.88 | $0.00 |
| 110 | Clyde Evans | 3 | 5.38 | $0.00 |
| 111 | Richard Drake | 4 | 4.72 | $0.00 |
| 112 | Shaun Bailey | 2 | 3.20 | $0.00 |
