TAKEOFF
2017 costa fLW serIes
chamPIonshIP breakdoWn
THE DEAL
b
y kentucky lake standards, fishing was a challenge when 192 pros and co-anglers squared
off in paris, tenn., last November at the Costa Flw series Championship. still, despite the
reduced catch, we saw some history, and 11 Forrest wood Cup berths were handed out.
here’s a breakdown of some of the more interesting stats from the championship.
consistency Pays
Champion bradford
beavers won by 8 pounds
but did so rather quietly.
he won the tournament
with impressive consisten-
cy, weighing in 15-13, 15-
00 and 14-15. beavers was
the only pro to catch a
limit all three days.
hicks Wins
co-angler title
In two days
Justin hicks of roanoke,
va., brought in just one
keeper on the final day of
competition, but he
could’ve blanked and still
won the co-angler division.
hicks had 27-13 after two
days, and second-place
finisher Gabriel scott
weighed in only 26-3 in
three days. the 2-14 keep-
er that hicks landed on
day three at least gave
him something to hold up
for cameras at the final
weigh-in – other than the
first-place trophy, of
course.
a star co-angler
Co-angler Gary
haraguchi finished ninth,
giving him five top-10 fin-
ishes with Flw in 2017.
Along the way he earned a
Costa Flw series win and
Flw tour Co-angler of the
year honors. haraguchi
also moved into a tie with
longtime co-angler todd
lee for sixth-most top 10s
by a co-angler in Flw his-
tory with 26. david
williams has the record
with 36.
by Curtis Niedermier
thrift could
earn third
Qualification
bryan thrift locked up
his 2018 Forrest wood
Cup berth by winning 2017
Flw tour Angler of the
year, and he double quali-
fied with his seventh-place
finish at the champi-
onship. Considering thrift
has never finished outside
Cup qualification range in
the Flw tour standings in
his career, the odds are
pretty high that he’ll actu-
ally triple-qualify for the
2018 Cup during the 2018
tour regular season.
’Guch, meet Grizzle
24
haraguchi’s five top-10 finishes in 2017 tie him with 46 other co-anglers for 19th most in a
single season. the record is eight.
interestingly, haraguchi’s total wasn’t even the most in 2017. that distinction goes to harold
Grizzle, who earned seven top-10 finishes while competing in the savannah River, Bama and
Bulldog divisions of the t-h Marine flW Bass fishing league. he finished in the top 10 in at least
one qualifier in each of the three divisions, won two regular-season events, and made the top 10
at the Bulldog super tournament on lake lanier, the Regional on Wheeler lake, and the
Regional on lake lanier, which he also won.
fLWfIshInG.com I january 2018