KILCOY, Australia — The first-ever Atomic B.A.S.S. Australia Nation Youth event was held at Lake Somerset in October. Winners were determined in two age divisions.
Jayden Facer and Dane Radosevic won the 15- to 18-year-olds division with 3.05 kgs (6 pounds, 11 ounces), and Corey Schembri and Harrison Blinco won the 11- to 14-year-olds division with 1.31 kgs (2 pounds, 14 ounces).
More than $4,500 in prizes was handed out to the competitors, and every angler received an entry pack worth $110.
“The youth tournaments are set up so an adult boat driver runs the combustion engine and controls the boat while supervising the competitors as they make the decisions and fish throughout the day,” explained Drew McGrath, president of the Australia B.A.S.S. Nation.
Facer and Radosevic had two primary locations where they could get consistent bites throughout the day. They fished a 3-inch Slider grub in a bright John Deere color on a 1/2-ounc TT 3/0 jighead in 40 feet of water, where the bass were suspending at 20 feet. The anglers were using an XP902 Barrabass Rod, Daiwa Certate 2004 reel, and 10-pound-test Unitika Shore Game line with an 8-pound Aiger iii Unitika Flurocarbon leader.
Schembri and Blinco used a 701 Dobyns spinning rod with 6-pound Fireline and 8-pound Sunline Rock leader. They fished a 1/2-ounce Smack Jighead with a 3-inch Keitech EZ Shiner (ayu).
“They are a true representation of what the youth system is about as they haven’t had a great deal of experience fishing for bass with lures,” said McGrath. “With Australia B.A.S.S. Nation pro Barry Reynolds showing them the ropes, they had worked out some locations and patterns that got them the win.”
The Atomic Big Bass winners were Anthony Melchior and Simon Barkhuizen for their 1.18-kg bass (2 pounds, 10 ounces). They were fishing a 3-inch Atomic Plazos Bass Grub (brown crawdad).
“A special thanks needs to go out to the sponsors that help so much with these tournaments,” said McGrath. “We rang them up and they didn’t hesitate in supplying us gear to give to the juniors.
“We also need to thank the support of the pros who turned up and helped out with the event. Your knowledge and time is invaluable and realistically you possibly could have changed someone’s life for the better just by introducing them to the sport.”
Learn more about the Australia B.A.S.S. Nation on the chapter’s website or on its Facebook page.
