Chris Parks Claims Wire-To-Wire Win at Columbia River in BAM Tournament Trail Pro/Am

By Jody Only

BOARDMAN, Ore. – Chris Parks of Eugene, Ore. put a final limit on the scales during Championship Sunday with his third consecutive bag to break the 20-pound mark for a three-day tournament-total of 67.12, locking up a wire-to-wire win at the Columbia River, the 4th stop of the BAM Tournament Trail Pro / Am presented by the Boardman Chamber of Commerce. For the victory, Parks pocketed $8,172, including a $250 contingency from Bass Boat Technologies, and a $400 Big Fish payout.

“I fish the Columbia quite a bit; but only the lower pools; so, this is actually the first event that I have weighed a fish in from Boardman and done an event out here,” Parks said. “To be able to put it all together is awesome!”

After a good practice credited to reaction baits in the wind, Parks launched on Day One to find it flat calm.

“There wasn’t even a ripple,” he said. “And so, I had to think about it. How do I read the water? What do I do? Where is my adjustment?”

Through some trial and error, Parks ended up with a Ned rig.

“My buddy Joe makes a Bass Union weedless shakey head in a 3/16 ounce, so I tied it on a spinning rod,” he shared. “I probably caught 15 keepers that first day and that was my Day One.”

The full setup that Parks used to throw the shakey head that put him in the lead was a St.Croix 7’ medium-heavy rod with a 2500 Shimano Stradic spooled with10-pound braid tied to a 10-pound fluoro leader. His plastic was a Z-Man TRD in the color The Deal.

Over the course of the three days of competition, the majority of all of Parks’ weigh fish fell to that TRD rig, with one notable exception.

“Today, I pulled into a shallow pocket late and threw a frog on a mat – it looked like a good place for a largemouth,” he said. “I got a really good bite, set the hook and it was a 4.1-pound smallmouth in two-feet of water. That was just icing on the cake. It was 2:15 p.m. and I culled out a 3.1 for that four – pulled out a full pound.”

The triumph will push Parks up the leaderboard in the BAM Tournament Trail Angler of the Year (AOY) points standings.

Of the three events that he has fished, with a possible 250 points in each, Parks will add this 250 to the 248 he logged at Shasta and the 246 from the Delta.

“It is my 3rd top-10 in a row,” he said. “I’m excited to see what happens at Clear Lake, which is next. It is going to be a big deal for me, and it can’t come soon enough.”

The BAM Tournament Trail will continue with its next stop at Clear Lake in California. Registration is underway. More insight on the Columbia River event can be found at the BAM TT site.

Harris Hangs on For Co Win at Columbia

Will Harris from Columbia City, Ore. also went wire-to-wire for the co-angler win, putting together a final weight of 50.01, earning the top co-angler prize of $2,478.

“I’ve always been told you can never lead it for three days, but I was really hoping that wasn’t true,” Harris said.

Paired with his Day One pro, Ron Wiseman from Pendelton, Ore., Harris sacked up 17.42, taking the co lead.

“I started with a Hula Grub,” he said. “They were in 8- to 10-feet of water, not super-deep. Later in the day, when there was a little bit of chop on the water,I caught a few on topwater.”

Harris added 15.91 and 16.68 while he was paired with Parks on Days Two and Three.  

“It was an incredible place with Chris,” he said. “The water was clear, and they were shallow. We locked up through the dam. The bite was slow, but when you did get one, it was a good one.

“Today, itwas tougher than yesterday. It took me a little time to catch my five; but Iwas lucky enough to get the bites and they didn’t come unpegged.”

Over thethree days of fishing, Harris’ most productive presentation was the 4-inchYamamoto Hula Grub in cinnamon purple / black flake. He fished it on a 7’3medium-heavy Alpha Angler rod with 17-pound Seaguar AbrazX.

“I also threw a 3.3” Keitech swimbait on 8-pound line and a light head,” he added.

“I’ve fished eight or nine tournaments already; but this is my first top-10, and my first win” he said. “I’m just appreciative of all the people that support me and all the people that run this event. I’m just lucky to be here.”

Championship Sunday’s Top-10 Field

Pro Angler

PLACE PRO BIG FISH DAY 1 BIG FISH DAY 2 DAY 1 WEIGHT DAY 2 WEIGHT DAY 3 WEIGHT TOTAL WEIGHT PLACE WINNINGS BIG FISH $ TACKLE WAREHOUSE TOTAL PAYOUT

1 Chris Parks 5.42 22.04 23.73 21.35 67.12 $7,522.00 $400.00 $250.00 $8,172.002 Jacob Anderson 19.84 21.73 20.59 62.16 $2,364.00 $2,364.003 Ben Hanes 6.7 20.80 18.00 18.29 57.09 $2,149.00 $400.00 $2,549.004 Dave Kromm 18.22 19.99 18.24 56.45 $1,934.00 $1,934.005 Jake Boomer 18.95 16.96 20.49 56.40 $1,719.00 $1,719.006 Gary Posten 17.15 21.92 17.14 56.21 $1,504.00 $1,504.007 Donny Biagi 17.04 18.40 17.84 53.28 $1,289.00 $1,289.008 Sean Minderman 17.74 18.27 16.64 52.65 $1,075.00 $1,075.009 Ron Wiseman 16.43 18.62 15.22 50.27 $1,075.00 $1,075.0010 Darryl Burkhardt 18.07 16.72 13.20 47.99 $860.00 $860.00

CoAnglerPLACE CO BIG FISH DAY 1 BIG FISH DAY 2 DAY 1 WEIGHT DAY 2 WEIGHT DAY 3 WEIGHT TOTAL WEIGHT PLACE WINNINGS BIG FISH $ TACKLE WAREHOUSE TOTAL PAYOUT1 Will Harris 17.42 15.91 16.68 50.01 $2,478.00 $2,478.002 Joe Cote 14.88 15.24 17.30 47.42 $779.00 $779.003 Rodney Brown 13.24 13.76 16.02 43.02 $708.00 $708.004 Ugene Downing 13.45 13.41 16.08 42.94 $637.00 $637.005 Tommy Rice 16.24 13.13 13.27 42.64 $566.00 $566.006 Sean Omalley 08.42 18.74 14.45 41.61 $496.00 $496.007 Mike Swearngin 12.12 16.16 11.00 39.28 $425.00 $425.008 Will Wyman 15.44 11.30 10.27 37.01 $354.00 $354.009 Scott Wightman 16.04 10.93 09.65 36.62 $354.00 $354.0010 Troy Mays 11.75 15.59 00.00 27.34 $283.00 $283.00

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