MINOR POUNDS THE DEPTHS FOR WIN AT HOBIE® B.O.S. SERIES ANCHORED BY POWER-POLE® BROKEN BOW EVENT
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Vue second, Brewer third as all three punch tickets to Hobie TOC.
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OCEANSIDE, Calif. (May 26, 2022) - In some of the stiffest competition of the 2022 season to date, Ewing Minor edged Tou Vue and Justin Brewer for the win at the Hobie® B.O.S. Series Anchored By Power-Pole® Broken Bow Lake event held May 14-15 in Southeastern Oklahoma.
“Broken Bow produced some of the best catches we’ve seen this year,” said tournament director, Cody Prather. “The fishing was on fire as nearly 2,000 fish were submitted, many competitors entered full limits, and a field of 173 elite kayak anglers traveled from all across the country to beautiful and welcoming McCurtain County to see who could come out on top. Each day witnessed angler limits measuring from the mid-70- to upper 80-inch range. The final day battle between Minor and Vue was epic, while third-place finisher Justin Brewer drilled his second top-three finish here in two years having placed second in 2021. He’s only fished the lake twice!”
For Ewing, of Charlottesville , Virginia, a steady pounding of the lake’s offshore waters proved the ticket to success. The 20-year-old, a member of Carson-Newman’s fully-funded college kayak fishing team along with Jaxton Orr, another standout on the Hobie BOS Anchored by Power-Pole® trail, put his Live Scope to work locating bass in 14- to 18-foot depths on long, flatter points and humps.
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“I caught some fish near the bottom and some suspending, too,” revealed Minor, who mostly used a drop-shot to tally 88.5 inches of bass on Day 1 and 86.5 inches on Day 2 for a 175-inch total. “I just kept moving around and cycling through water to stay on fresh fish all day long. It didn’t matter if I probed around rocks, grass or brush, there were good fish all over this lake. I had steady action on Day 1, but Day 2 was slower. Fortunately, I caught a good flurry toward the end that boosted me over the top.”
Ewing attributed at least part of his success to his PA12 360, noting that it can be especially helpful when fishing offshore. “That’s really hard to do in anything else,” stated Ewing. “With this platform, I can precisely target any fish I spot with my Live Scope. It holds position really well, even with the wind at your back, and it turns on a dime. If I spy fish behind me, I simply swing the boat around and I’m on them in a few seconds.”
Vue, 30, from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, had the lead at the end of Day 1 with an 88.5-inch tally. Running a few minutes late at the launch ramp, he hit a nearby point and found stellar topwater action tossing a 5-inch Evergreen SB125 topwater plug in chartreuse/white. “By 7:30, I already had a limit, so I left that spot and hit another not far away,” he revealed. “There I drilled a 19-inch bronzeback. I spent the rest of the day hitting my practice spots and catching fish but couldn’t find a solid cull. Still, I was very satisfied sitting in first at that point.”
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Day 2 also featured a furious start for Vue as he drilled an 18-inch largemouth and followed it up with a bunch of 14- to 15-inch fish for a quick limit. After that, his topwater bite died. “I headed to deeper water, but then my battery drained out,” explained Vue, “so I had to fish blind the rest of the way. I still caught plenty of fish, I just couldn’t find a cull to push me over the top.”
Given his late start and battery drain, Vue said he was happy with his second-place finish and 174.5-inch total. “I was fortunate to get such good results,” he admitted.
Brewer, meanwhile, said that he benefited from the water being high and off color. “I like fishing under those conditions,” he stated. The 26-year-old from Lincoln, Arkansas, used his Hobie PA14 180 to work a pair of creek arms with a Foxy Shad pattern Booyah XCS squarebill crankbait. After finishing 20th on Day 1 with 84.75 inches of bass, he rallied for a second-place finish on Day 2 with an 88.5-inch limit and 173.25 total inches for the two-day, catch, photograph and release (CPR) event. “I really benefited from a 19-incher on Day 2 that flashed at my squarebill right under the boat. I stopped that lure on the spot, waited a second, and she came back and smashed it,” noted Brewer.
For their efforts, Ewing came away with a first-place check for $10,500, Vue cashed out with $5,500, and Brewer pocketed $3,200 as payouts were awarded to the top 10-percent of the field. Caymen Rasmussen scooped up Bassin’ Big Bass honors and a $500 payout with a 21-inch brute that bested several fish topping the 20-inch mark. Additionally, AFTCO Angler of the Year (AOY) points were awarded to the top 100 finishers in the field.
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Minor, Vue and Brewer also punched their way to the 2022 Hobie Tournament of Champions (TOC) on Caddo Lake, November 11-13, in Shreveport- Bossier City, Louisiana. The TOC is a three-day 50-angler championship with a $100,000 payout guarantee.
“This was a terrific tournament,” stated Minor. “The competition was impressive, McCurtain County made us feel welcomed, and a lot of people caught really well. This is a beautiful, incredibly productive lake. The fishery showed out and the anglers did, too.”
Brewer agreed. “Hobie has the best series out there right now, and I’m thrilled to have already qualified for the TOC. It’s tough to break into the top-three spots on this trail because the competition is so fierce, but every one of these tourneys is run smoothly, features a great fishing destination, and draws kayak anglers from across the country so you can compete head-to-head with the best in the sport.”
That’s spot on, sums up Prather. “We love seeing everyone compete at the highest level, and this event really produced as there wasn’t much separation from spots 1 through 20 on the leader board. That’s the way we like to see it all play out.”
Next up on the Hobie® B.O.S. Series Anchored By Power-Pole® event list is Lake Chickamauga, June 4 – 5, which is already sold out. Registration is still open for the Lake Winnipesaukee event, June 25 – 26.
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