Woods, McIntosh make history at Columbus Classic
By John N. Felsher

Tracy McIntosh and John Woods show off some of the fish they caught to repeat as champions in the Semi-Pro Division of the 2009 Cabela’s Crappie USA Classic, held on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway near Columbus, Miss.

 
For the first time in history of the Cabela’s Crappie USA Classic, an angling team successfully defended its champion title.

John Woods and Tracy McIntosh, both of Dyersburg, Tenn., won the 14th annual Classic held on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway near Columbus, Miss, with a two-day total weighing 21.22 pounds. Holding second-place in the 48-boat Semi-Pro Division with seven fish weighing 8.91 pounds after Day One, the team brought in the biggest sack of the event, 12.31 pounds, on the final day.

 SEMI-PRO DIVISION

“Both days, we were spider rigging double-minnow rigs with Southern Pro jigs in Aberdeen Lake,” Woods explained. “Our hot colors were black and chartreuse, red and chartreuse and yellow with chartreuse, but color didn’t really seem to matter that much. If we put the minnow in front of a crappie, it hit. We pulled the Southern Pro skirt over No. 1 Eagle Claw hooks for a little color and attached minnows to them.”

For the effort, the champs won a new 188 VX Ranger boat rigged with a Minn Kota trolling motor and Humminbird electrics and powered by an Evinrude 150-horsepower outboard. The total package costs about $38,000. The team also won $250 in cash through the Eagle Claw Bonus Award program.

AMATEUR DIVISION

Duffy and Brian Cleland of Decatur, Ill., show off some of the fish they caught to win the Amateur Division of the 2009 Cabela’s Crappie USA Classic, held on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway near Columbus, Miss.

In the Amateur Division, the father-son team of Duffy and Brian Cleland of Decatur, Ill., jumped from 14th place to first with a two-day total of 14 crappie weighing 17.23 pounds. The top anglers in the 58-team division won a new Ranger TR177 boat powered by an Evinrude engine and equipped with a Minn Kota trolling motor and Humminbird electronics. They added a 2.38-pounder to their Day 2 catch, earning $1,000 bonus for catching the largest fish of the tournament and a $250 Cabela’s gift certificate for catching the largest fish on the second day.

“When we caught the big fish, we were spider-rigging in five to 10 feet of water in Columbus Lake,” Brian explained. “The fish hit a glow Southern Pro jig tipped with a minnow. We had to hunt for them and ran all over the place. We’d catch one or two from each spot and then had to go somewhere else. We probably caught 12 to 15 keepers, but a lot of small fish.”

“Congratulations to all the teams fishing this event,” said Darrell Van Vactor, president of Crappie USA. “A special thanks goes out to the Columbus Conventions and Visitors Bureau and our many national sponsors for helping make this year’s classic such a huge success. We love the Columbus area, not just for the fishing, but the amenities are fantastic. We got excellent support from the town. Also a special thanks to Lara Herboldsheimer from Cabela’s and Vee Ferguson from Ranger Boats for being on hand to present awards to these fine anglers from across the country.”

For a complete list of tournament standings and event photos, visit www.crappieusa.com. For more area information, call 800-327-2686 or visit the website at www.columbus-ms.info.

Endnote:

John N. Felsher is a professional freelance writer and photographer with more than 1,300 articles in more than 100 magazines to his credit. He’s also the National Fishing Writer for Examiner.com (www.examiner.com/x-16491-Fishing-Examiner) and public relations director for Anglers Inn International (www.anglersinn.com). Contact him through his website at www.JohnNFelsher.com.