05-31-2009, 11:11 AM
LIZELLA, GEORGIA - Scott Ritter of Mobile, Alabama, teamed with long-time partner Bobby Abruscato of Dauphin Island, Alabama, caught a two-redfish limit that weighed 16.31 pounds to win the 2009 IFA Redfish Tour event at Slidell, Louisiana, on Saturday. To win the one-day event, which operated out of Rigolet's Marina, Riter and Abruscato bested a field of other two-angler teams to win the highly competitive event by less than one-quarter of a pound, taking the early points lead in the IFA Redfish Tour's Gulf Coast Division.
Battling tough weather conditions and fishing Berkley PowerBait on spinner blades, Ritter and Abruscato targeted schools of redfish around grass clumps and points.
"The visibility in the water was so that we could have sight-fished for some, but there were enough fish that we really didn't have to do that," said Ritter, who credited his partner for putting the team on the winning fish. "Bobby really took care of us today and we had plenty of time to get back to the weigh in."
With the win the pair won a 2009 Ranger Banshee Extreme valued at more than $30,000. The boat is powered by a 60-horsepower, four-stroke Yamaha outboard and is equipped with a Bob's four-inch Ultra Light Jackplate, Power-Pole shallow water anchor, Minn Kota trolling motor, Humminbird electronics, Blue Point Fabrication metal work and Loadmaster trailer.
Fishing from their Ranger boat, the second-place father-and-son team of Patrick and Shane Pescay of Mandeville, La., weighed in two fish that totaled 16.14 pounds, buoyed by a 8.25-pound kicker fish - the third-largest fish of the tournament. The third-place team of Jason McCrossen and Kirk Davis, both of Gretna, La., weighed in a two-fish limit of 15.86 pounds, competing for the first time in a new Ranger 2210 Bay Boat.
The Top-3 teams each reported good fishing conditions, with each team catching 15 to 25 redfish throughout the course of the competition.
"All the fresh water in the area has pushed minnows and bait out to where the fish are, so they're fat and happy right now," McCrossen said.
As the high-finishing Ranger Cup team competing in the tournament, the pair also took home the $2,000 Ranger Cup money. In addition, the team took home the $100 Solar Bat prize. Fourth-place finishers Joey Lott and Ryan Pruett won the Rapala Big-Fish Award, a $1,500 prize package that includes cash and a Rapala VIP gift card, with an 8.43-pound redfish.
The IFA Redfish Tour continues to draw redfish anglers from Texas to the Carolinas and beyond, offering two-angler teams the opportunity to compete in six different divisions, each offering a three-event regular season. With low entry fees for the one-day, regular-season tournaments allow anglers to fish close to home and minimize expenses, while still being a part of a premier inshore, catch-and-release redfish tournament organization. Teams fishing any three of the IFA's 18 regular-season events are automatically qualified for a no-entry-fee championship event, pitting qualifiers from each of the six divisions for a combined $77,000 in payouts and prize packages, as well as a shot at the coveted Cabela's Overall Divisional Team of the Year Award for the six regular-season division winners. Teams fishing at least six tournaments in any combination of divisions are also automatically eligible to compete for the IFA Redfish Tour "Ultra 6" award, a $5,000 cash prize, presented to the highest-finishing eligible team at the IFA Redfish Tour championship tournament.
This year, in addition to $47,000 in payouts per event (based on a 100-boat field), the first-place prize package for all 18 IFA Redfish Tour regular-season events has been increased. In 2009, every regular-season tournament winner is guaranteed - regardless of field size - a fully loaded 2009 Ranger Banshee Extreme. The boat is powered by a 60-horsepower, four-stroke Yamaha outboard and is equipped with a Bob's four-inch Ultra Light Jackplate, Power-Pole shallow water anchor, Minn Kota trolling motor, Humminbird electronics, Blue Point Fabrication metal work and Loadmaster trailer. The entire first-place prize package is valued at $30,000.
For more information on the IFA Redfish Tour, to become a member of the IFA or to become a part of the fastest-growing inshore fishing tournament series in the United States, go online to redfishtour.com.
IFA Redfish Tour events are made possible through the sponsorship and continued support of the fishing industry's most respected brands: Ranger Boats, Cabela's, Yamaha Outboards, Rapala, Trigger X, Sufix, Minn Kota, Humminbird, Power-Pole, Wrap This, CW Crab, Charter Lakes Marine Insurance, Solar Bat, Gemini Custom Apparel, Navionics, Bob's Machine Shop, Blue Point Fabrication, Terminator, VMC Hooks, Loadmaster Trailers, Powertex Group, Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, and Rigolet's Marina.
IFA Gulf Coast Division
Slidell Results (Top 10)<br />
1. Ritter/Abruscato - 16.31 lbs.<br />
2. Pescay/Pescay - 16.14 lbs.<br />
3. McCrossen/Davis - 15.86 lbs.<br />
4. Lott/Pruett - 15.73 lbs.<br />
5. Finnan/Wilkinson - 15.45 lbs.<br />
6. Jackson/Causey - 14.98 lbs.<br />
7. Oliver/Champagne - 14.90 lbs.<br />
8. Melvin/Landingham - 14.75 lbs.<br />
9. Indovina/Juneau - 14.64 lbs.<br />
10. White/White - 14.51 lbs.
Ranger Cup Award ($2,000): Ritter/Abruscato<br />
Solar Bat ($100): Ritter/Abruscato<br />
Rapala Big Fish ($1,500): Lott/Pruett - 8.43 lbs.
Media Contact<br />
Josh Ward Heron Communications (800) 654-3766 Josh@blueheroncomm.com
Battling tough weather conditions and fishing Berkley PowerBait on spinner blades, Ritter and Abruscato targeted schools of redfish around grass clumps and points.
"The visibility in the water was so that we could have sight-fished for some, but there were enough fish that we really didn't have to do that," said Ritter, who credited his partner for putting the team on the winning fish. "Bobby really took care of us today and we had plenty of time to get back to the weigh in."
With the win the pair won a 2009 Ranger Banshee Extreme valued at more than $30,000. The boat is powered by a 60-horsepower, four-stroke Yamaha outboard and is equipped with a Bob's four-inch Ultra Light Jackplate, Power-Pole shallow water anchor, Minn Kota trolling motor, Humminbird electronics, Blue Point Fabrication metal work and Loadmaster trailer.
Fishing from their Ranger boat, the second-place father-and-son team of Patrick and Shane Pescay of Mandeville, La., weighed in two fish that totaled 16.14 pounds, buoyed by a 8.25-pound kicker fish - the third-largest fish of the tournament. The third-place team of Jason McCrossen and Kirk Davis, both of Gretna, La., weighed in a two-fish limit of 15.86 pounds, competing for the first time in a new Ranger 2210 Bay Boat.
The Top-3 teams each reported good fishing conditions, with each team catching 15 to 25 redfish throughout the course of the competition.
"All the fresh water in the area has pushed minnows and bait out to where the fish are, so they're fat and happy right now," McCrossen said.
As the high-finishing Ranger Cup team competing in the tournament, the pair also took home the $2,000 Ranger Cup money. In addition, the team took home the $100 Solar Bat prize. Fourth-place finishers Joey Lott and Ryan Pruett won the Rapala Big-Fish Award, a $1,500 prize package that includes cash and a Rapala VIP gift card, with an 8.43-pound redfish.
The IFA Redfish Tour continues to draw redfish anglers from Texas to the Carolinas and beyond, offering two-angler teams the opportunity to compete in six different divisions, each offering a three-event regular season. With low entry fees for the one-day, regular-season tournaments allow anglers to fish close to home and minimize expenses, while still being a part of a premier inshore, catch-and-release redfish tournament organization. Teams fishing any three of the IFA's 18 regular-season events are automatically qualified for a no-entry-fee championship event, pitting qualifiers from each of the six divisions for a combined $77,000 in payouts and prize packages, as well as a shot at the coveted Cabela's Overall Divisional Team of the Year Award for the six regular-season division winners. Teams fishing at least six tournaments in any combination of divisions are also automatically eligible to compete for the IFA Redfish Tour "Ultra 6" award, a $5,000 cash prize, presented to the highest-finishing eligible team at the IFA Redfish Tour championship tournament.
This year, in addition to $47,000 in payouts per event (based on a 100-boat field), the first-place prize package for all 18 IFA Redfish Tour regular-season events has been increased. In 2009, every regular-season tournament winner is guaranteed - regardless of field size - a fully loaded 2009 Ranger Banshee Extreme. The boat is powered by a 60-horsepower, four-stroke Yamaha outboard and is equipped with a Bob's four-inch Ultra Light Jackplate, Power-Pole shallow water anchor, Minn Kota trolling motor, Humminbird electronics, Blue Point Fabrication metal work and Loadmaster trailer. The entire first-place prize package is valued at $30,000.
For more information on the IFA Redfish Tour, to become a member of the IFA or to become a part of the fastest-growing inshore fishing tournament series in the United States, go online to redfishtour.com.
IFA Redfish Tour events are made possible through the sponsorship and continued support of the fishing industry's most respected brands: Ranger Boats, Cabela's, Yamaha Outboards, Rapala, Trigger X, Sufix, Minn Kota, Humminbird, Power-Pole, Wrap This, CW Crab, Charter Lakes Marine Insurance, Solar Bat, Gemini Custom Apparel, Navionics, Bob's Machine Shop, Blue Point Fabrication, Terminator, VMC Hooks, Loadmaster Trailers, Powertex Group, Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, and Rigolet's Marina.
IFA Gulf Coast Division
Slidell Results (Top 10)<br />
1. Ritter/Abruscato - 16.31 lbs.<br />
2. Pescay/Pescay - 16.14 lbs.<br />
3. McCrossen/Davis - 15.86 lbs.<br />
4. Lott/Pruett - 15.73 lbs.<br />
5. Finnan/Wilkinson - 15.45 lbs.<br />
6. Jackson/Causey - 14.98 lbs.<br />
7. Oliver/Champagne - 14.90 lbs.<br />
8. Melvin/Landingham - 14.75 lbs.<br />
9. Indovina/Juneau - 14.64 lbs.<br />
10. White/White - 14.51 lbs.
Ranger Cup Award ($2,000): Ritter/Abruscato<br />
Solar Bat ($100): Ritter/Abruscato<br />
Rapala Big Fish ($1,500): Lott/Pruett - 8.43 lbs.
Media Contact<br />
Josh Ward Heron Communications (800) 654-3766 Josh@blueheroncomm.com