Not only did Ed Loughran have a 17th place finish at the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Chickamauga Lake, he will also take home an additional $1,000 for winning the BassTrakk Contingency Prize.
The BassTrakk prize is rewarded to the angler whose BassTrakk estimates are closest to his official weight after two days of competition. To be eligiable to win, the angler has to catch a limit on both days of competition.
At this point, it’s not surprising to see Loughran win the prize, as he’s won it on five different occasions in the last two seasons. What’s more surprising this time around is that his estimates were not spot on.
With a 15-inch size minimum at Chickamauga, catching a limit for two days proved to be difficult, so some of the anglers who are typically up near the top of the list for the BassTrakk prize were not eligible to win.
“The reason it was so unusual this time was because a lot of guys didn’t catch limits, which takes you out of it,” said Loughran. “The guys that do try to be accurate on their BassTrakk didn’t catch limits.”
After a few tough events to start the season, Loughran was pleased to get back on track with a solid finish. Loughran relied on a Spro Little John crankbait and a soon to be released worm from Missile Baits on a drop shot to secure his Top 20 finish.
Here’s the BassTrakk Contingency Top 10, and how far off each was from his official weight.
• Ed Loughran: 0-1
• Clifford Pirch: 0-14
• Jay Yelas: 1-0
• Jamie Hartman: 1-3
• Daisuke Aoki: 1-10
• Bob Downey: 1-11
• Michael Iaconelli: 1-15
• Brandon Cobb: 2-3
• Justin Hamner: 2-5
• Bill Lowen: 2-6