Three of the 25 teams competing in the inaugural Bobby Garland / Crappie Pro Crappie Monster Fest broke the 20 pound mark for their two-day limits of 14 fish each.

Taking first place honors and the $2,500 top money was Mackey Whyte and George Nelon, who weighed in 10.46 pounds on day one and added 10.33 pounds the second day, for a total catch of 20.79 pounds. It was the first visit to Oklahoma’s Ft. Gibson Lake for the Texas team, and they used their limited practice time on Friday to locate structure along the main river channel ledges toward the upper end of the lake.

During competition, the two anglers used two rods each rigged with Bobby Garland Baby Shad and Slab Slay’Rs, in Licorice/Chartreuse Pepper and Gumdrop colors, to slow troll around the structure. Jig head sizes were 1/16 and 1/8 ounce, going up to 1/4 ounce when the wind got up. They reported catching around 50 legal-size fish (at least 10 inches in length) over the two tournament days. Read more ...