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Georgia’s Pam Martin-Wells Claims Fourth Women’s Bassmaster Tour Win at Neely Henry Lake

Category: press release

 Mar 29th, 2009 by OutdoorsFIRST 

Modified Mar 29th, 2009 at 12:00 AM

GADSDEN, Ala. – Fighting a relentless current cast after cast, Pam Martin-Wells of Bainbridge, Ga., landed her fourth BASS win – her second on Neely Henry – Saturday by just 7 ounces in the Academy Sports + Outdoors Women’s Bassmaster Tour season opener on Neely Henry Lake.

	Pam Martin-Wells with her fourth BASS win  (Photo Courtesy of BASS)

“It was simple persistence,” Martin-Wells said.

Her 38-pound, 10-ounce total bested Tammy Richardson of Amity, Ark., who recovered after a slow first day to finish second with 38-3.

Martin-Wells won $1,000 and a Skeeter/Yamaha boat rig valued at $55,000.

The Coosa River impoundment’s current picked up speed this week as water was pulled through the Neely Henry dam to handle three days of heavy rain.

“Even though I have a very good and strong trolling motor, the current was stronger, so the whole time I had my foot on it, I was straining from daylight to takeout every day,” Martin-Wells said. “If I caught a fish, or broke off, or had to cull, by the time I got through, I was half a mile from where I had been fishing, so I had to crank up the big motor to get back to my fish.”

Martin-Wells won the WBT’s 2008 event on Neely Henry as well as the inaugural WBT Championship in 2007 on another Coosa impoundment, Lake Mitchell. Her vast experience on Coosa waters led her to try just about every lure in her tacklebox this week- tubes, worms, crankbaits, spinnerbaits and even a drop-shot rig, something she rarely turns to.

Martin-Wells went into Saturday’s final round with a 2-pound, 10-ounce advantage over Richardson. Richardson did her best to catch up, weighing Saturday’s biggest bag of 15-4, but was short of trumping the pro from Georgia.

	Tammy Richardson talks about her second place finish (Photo Courtesy of BASS)

“I keep thinking back to Day One and the mistakes I made,” Richardson said. “My biggest problem was making the right adjustments when my fish moved.”

“Yesterday I moved out deeper and put a deep-diving crankbait on, and I also Carolina-rigged,” she said. That tactic yielded 15-11, the biggest bag of Day Two. “Today, I started out doing the same thing and didn’t get anything. I ended up going back shallow and that’s how I got my fish today.”

“This river has been good to me, but it’s got me a time or two, too,” said Richardson, whose three WBT wins include one on Neely Henry, but also had a 61st place finish there. “It can be so good, and when you’re on them, you’re on them. Then it changes overnight, and the fish are just gone.”

The Gadsden area missed the severe weather that affected much of Alabama Saturday morning. By early afternoon, the sun began to wink through the clouds above Neely Henry, a welcome sight to Emily Shaffer of Mount Juliet, Tenn., the Day One leader finished third with 33-5.

“I needed the sun, and that’s when I got my best fish from what I call my sweet spot,” she said. “What worked for me was a Lucky Craft Pointer, Bomber Fat Free Shad and pearl Zoom Fluke, Carolina-rigged. I noticed the fish were eating shad, so I got out the fluke; and that’s what many of my fish came on yesterday and today.”

Martin-Wells’ win put her in front in the 2009 Toyota Tundra Women’s Bassmaster Tour Angler of the Year points race. The pros are racking up points to qualify for the Oct. 16-18 Academy Sports + Outdoors WBT Championship on the Red River out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La. One pro will emerge from the championship as the 2009 AOY and earn a berth in the 2010 Classic, set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala.

As the 2008 AOY, Kim Bain-Moore of Alabaster, Ala., qualified for the 2009 Classic last month. She was the first woman to compete in a Classic. She was at Neely Henry this week, finishing 13th with 25-9.

“I just had fun fishing today,” she said. “Certainly I’ll be trying to make the Classic again, but I’d be more than happy to be able to share that experience with another lady.”

Co-angler Stacy Zhelesnik of Hoboken, N.Y., logged her first WBT victory with a 27-pound, 14-ounce total, an extra sweet experience after finishing just 7 ounces out of first in the co-angler division on the same fishery last season. She said she will make good use of the $25,000 Triton/Mercury rig and $500 she won because she’s making plans to turn pro.

“My major challenges this week was to find a consistent pattern,” she said. “I mainly was junk fishing in practice. I knew I had to narrow it down to a pattern that wasn’t going to be affected by the changing water level. I finally got my swimbait bite to turn on, a 3.8-inch Keitech swimbait.”

Zhelesnik shot past Day One and Day Two co-angler leader Donna Newberry of Van Buren, Ark., who slipped to second place with a 26-8 total. Third was Terri Bittner of McKinleyville, Calif., with 25-5.

The next stop for the WBT will be West Monroe, La., for an April 23-25 competition on the Ouachita River.

The local sponsor of the March 26-28 event in Alabama is the City of Gadsden Parks & Recreation.

Sponsors of the Women’s Bassmaster Tour: Academy Sports + Outdoors, Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Mercury, OPTIMA Batteries, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Marine, Ramada, Triton Boats, Legend Boats and LaserLure.

For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit Bassmaster.com. Visit ESPNOutdoorsMedia.com for BASS and ESPN Outdoors latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video, audio clips and more.

About BASS
For more than 40 years, BASS has served as the authority on bass fishing. With its considerable multimedia platforms and expansive tournament trail, BASS is guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer and comprehensive Web properties in ESPN360.com, ESPN’s broadband sports network, Bassmaster.com, BASSInsider.com and ESPNOutdoors.com, the organization is committed to delivering content true to the lifestyle. Additionally, television programming on ESPN2 continues to provide relevant content – from tips and techniques to in-depth tournament coverage – to passionate audiences.

The organization oversees the prestigious Bassmaster tournament trail, which includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bassmaster Opens, Women’s Bassmaster Tour and the Bassmaster Classic, the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing. Through its grassroots network, the BASS Federation Nation, BASS sanctions more than 20,000 events annually.

BASS also offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members while spearheading progressive, positive change on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.

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Media Contact: Doug Grassian, (407) 566-2216 or [email protected]

2009 Womens Tour – WBT #1 – Gadsden AL BO 03/26-03/28 Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden Ala.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3

Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$

1. Pam Martin-Wells Bainbridge, Ga. 15 38-10 310 $55,820.00
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 13-05 Day 3: 5 13-01
2. Tammy Richardson Amity, Ark. 15 38-03 295 $4,510.00
Day 1: 5 7-04 Day 2: 5 15-11 Day 3: 5 15-04
3. Emily Shaffer Mount Juliet, Tenn. 15 33-05 295 $3,690.00
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 7-08 Day 3: 5 11-05
4. Rhonda Pope Waco, Ga. 14 30-09 285 $3,280.00
Day 1: 4 7-03 Day 2: 5 10-10 Day 3: 5 12-12
5. Robin Babb Livingston, Texas 14 30-04 280 $2,870.00
Day 1: 5 8-05 Day 2: 4 9-15 Day 3: 5 12-00
6. Juanita Robinson Highlands, Texas 15 30-00 276 $2,460.00
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 8-10 Day 3: 5 10-06
7. Lisa Johnson Centre, Ala. 15 29-12 272 $2,050.00
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 8-07 Day 3: 5 10-10
8. Laura Gober Pendergrass, Ga. 15 28-03 268 $1,640.00
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 7-15 Day 3: 5 8-01
9. Kim Stapp Ringgold, Ga. 13 28-02 264 $1,435.00
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 3 5-07 Day 3: 5 10-01
10. Melinda Mize Ben Lomond, Ark. 15 27-15 260 $1,230.00
Day 1: 5 9-10 Day 2: 5 11-07 Day 3: 5 6-14
11. Debra Petrowski Arlington, Texas 15 27-10 257 $1,107.00
Day 1: 5 6-02 Day 2: 5 11-13 Day 3: 5 9-11
12. Robinette Fox Hot Springs, Ark. 15 26-11 254 $902.00
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 6-03 Day 3: 5 10-06
13. Kim Bain-Moore Alabaster, Ala. 15 25-09 251 $820.00
Day 1: 5 9-11 Day 2: 5 7-06 Day 3: 5 8-08
14. Sheri Glasgow Muskogee, Okla. 15 24-12 248 $800.00
Day 1: 5 8-11 Day 2: 5 7-11 Day 3: 5 8-06
15. Pam Bolton Jonesboro, Ark. 15 24-01 245 $779.00
Day 1: 5 9-10 Day 2: 5 8-02 Day 3: 5 6-05
16. Mary Croft Bedford, Va. 15 23-08 243 $759.00
Day 1: 5 9-10 Day 2: 5 8-04 Day 3: 5 5-10
17. Kris McClendon Spicewood, Texas 14 23-05 241 $738.00
Day 1: 4 10-06 Day 2: 5 7-02 Day 3: 5 5-13
18. Sandi Karnes Livingston, Texas 15 23-04 239 $718.00
Day 1: 5 8-10 Day 2: 5 7-14 Day 3: 5 6-12
19. Judy Wong Many, La. 14 22-05 237 $697.00
Day 1: 5 8-06 Day 2: 5 9-12 Day 3: 4 4-03
20. Heather Broom Sylva, N.C. 13 21-06 235 $677.00
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 7-05 Day 3: 3 3-15
———————————————————————–

———————————————————————–
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 36 276 477-14
2 46 301 494-10
3 18 97 179-15
———————————-
100 674 1152-07

2009 WBT #1 – Gadsden AL – WBT #1 – Gadsden, AL Boater Points After Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden, Ala. Ending 03-28-2009, Day 3
——————————————-
Place Name St Pts
——————————————-
1 Pam Martin-Wells Ga. 310
2 Tammy Richardson Ark. 295
2 Emily Shaffer Tenn. 295
4 Rhonda Pope Ga. 285
5 Robin Babb Texas 280
6 Juanita Robinson Texas 276
7 Lisa Johnson Ala. 272
8 Laura Gober Ga. 268
9 Kim Stapp Ga. 264
10 Melinda Mize Ark. 260
11 Debra Petrowski Texas 257
12 Robinette Fox Ark. 254
13 Kim Bain-Moore Ala. 251
14 Sheri Glasgow Okla. 248
15 Pam Bolton Ark. 245
16 Mary Croft Va. 243
17 Kris McClendon Texas 241
18 Sandi Karnes Texas 239
19 Judy Wong La. 237
20 Heather Broom N.C. 235
21 Cheryl Bowden Texas 233
22 Cheryl LaLumandier Mo. 231
23 Cindy Hill Tenn. 229
24 Karen Elkins Ala. 227
25 Mary DiVincenti La. 225
26 Paula Alexander Ga. 223
27 Kat Ealey Ala. 221
28 Debbie Kemp Texas 219
29 Gina Jones Ala. 217
30 Lucy Mize Ark. 215
31 Penny Berryman Ark. 213
32 Jennifer Nevans Tenn. 211
33 Lynda Gessner Mo. 209
34 Teri Neal Ga. 207
35 Lori Masters Tenn. 205
36 Dianna Clark Tenn. 203
37 Karen Savik Minn. 201
38 Patti Campbell Texas 199
39 Janet Parker Texas 197
40 Linda Sands Ala. 195
41 Diane Phillips Texas 193
42 Kathy DiMartino Ala. 191
43 Kathi Hurst Miss. 189
44 Susan Gregory Miss. 187
45 Betty Stahl Ala. 185
46 Jan Heavener Ark. 183
47 Helen Gordon Texas 181
48 Kathy Womack Ala. 179
49 Tami Kashiwabara Ala. 177
50 Christena Baugh Ark. 175
51 Marsha Gipson Ark. 173
52 Christiana Bradley Va. 171
53 Barbara Wetzel Ala. 169
54 Bridget Allen Pa. 167
55 Lisa Sternard Tenn. 165
56 Kelley Shepherd Ariz. 163
57 Laura Heflin Kan. 161
58 Linda Redford Mo. 159
59 Lisa Craig Texas 157
60 Sherri Dodson Ala. 155
61 Keri Schieber Ga. 153
62 Kimberlee Striker Ala. 151
63 Pat White Texas 149
64 Debra Hengst Texas 147
65 Secret York Ky. 145
66 Mary Hencken N.C. 143
67 BJ Carson Okla. 141
68 Jo Dee Lake Ala. 139
69 Patsy McDaniel Ala. 137
70 Michelle Armstrong N.C. 135
71 Kali Weatherford Texas 133
72 Meta Burrell Texas 131
73 Robbie Hartline Mo. 129
74 Kim Hicks Ga. 127
75 Judy VanCanneyt Ala. 125
76 Cindy Van Horn Texas 123
77 Lila Bass Texas 121
78 Ann Swinks Ga. 119
79 Terri Elkins Texas 117
80 Kathy Freehling Fla. 115
81 Danalee Lofton Ark. 113
82 Sharon Teague S.C. 0

2009 Womens Tour – WBT #1 – Gadsden AL NB 03/26-03/28 Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden Ala.
(NON-BOATER) Standings Day 3

Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$

1. Stacy Zhelesnik Hoboken, N.J. 14 27-14 305 $25,410.00
Day 1: 5 8-01 Day 2: 4 6-15 Day 3: 5 12-14
2. Donna Newberry Van Buren, Ark. 15 26-08 305 $2,460.00
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 7-15 Day 3: 5 6-07
3. Terri Bittner Mckinleyville, Calif. 15 25-05 290 $2,050.00
Day 1: 5 6-01 Day 2: 5 11-11 Day 3: 5 7-09
4. Martha Goodfellow Simpsonville, S.C. 13 24-14 285 $1,640.00
Day 1: 5 7-05 Day 2: 3 5-01 Day 3: 5 12-08
5. Trish Levitt Albuquerque, N.M. 12 23-08 280 $1,435.00
Day 1: 5 8-05 Day 2: 2 5-08 Day 3: 5 9-11
6. Nancy Stumpe Palatka, Fla. 11 20-09 276 $1,230.00
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 3 4-15 Day 3: 3 4-12
7. Linda Higginbotham Palm Coast, Fla. 14 19-13 272 $1,025.00
Day 1: 5 6-12 Day 2: 4 5-07 Day 3: 5 7-10
8. Vicki Henderson Ashdown, Ark. 11 19-12 268 $820.00
Day 1: 3 5-09 Day 2: 3 6-08 Day 3: 5 7-11
9. Teri Cindric Hermitage, Tenn. 10 18-14 264 $738.00
Day 1: 2 5-06 Day 2: 4 8-15 Day 3: 4 4-09
10. Colleen McKay Worcester, Mass. 11 18-06 260 $677.00
Day 1: 5 8-05 Day 2: 5 8-05 Day 3: 1 1-12
11. Sherry Melton Monterey, Tenn. 13 17-06 257 $615.00
Day 1: 4 4-09 Day 2: 4 6-03 Day 3: 5 6-10
12. Cheryl Buelow Pollock, La. 13 17-03 254 $574.00
Day 1: 5 9-00 Day 2: 4 3-14 Day 3: 4 4-05
13. Vicki Hester Rainbow City, Ala. 12 17-03 251 $533.00
Day 1: 5 7-10 Day 2: 2 4-09 Day 3: 5 5-00
14. Lori Steele Tulsa, Okla. 9 16-07 248 $492.00
Day 1: 3 6-12 Day 2: 5 8-15 Day 3: 1 0-12
15. Lesli Lively Grapeland, Texas 12 15-07 245 $472.00
Day 1: 5 9-09 Day 2: 5 4-09 Day 3: 2 1-05
16. Michele Gunderman Gastonia, N.C. 10 14-09 243 $451.00
Day 1: 1 1-02 Day 2: 5 9-05 Day 3: 4 4-02
17. Debbie Pegoli Loveland, Ohio 10 14-01 241 $431.00
Day 1: 5 7-03 Day 2: 2 3-03 Day 3: 3 3-11
18. Linda Berry Madison, N.C. 7 13-13 239 $410.00
Day 1: 3 8-04 Day 2: 2 2-08 Day 3: 2 3-01
19. Kelly Wells Grovetown, Ga. 8 12-10 237 $390.00
Day 1: 5 9-04 Day 2: 1 1-04 Day 3: 2 2-02
20. Charlotte Frazier Dallas, Texas 6 12-06 235 $369.00
Day 1: 2 3-02 Day 2: 3 7-06 Day 3: 1 1-14
———————————————————————–

———————————————————————–
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 21 219 347-00
2 14 187 271-04
3 9 72 108-05
———————————-
44 478 726-09

2009 WBT #1 – Gadsden AL – WBT #1 – Gadsden, AL Non-Boater Points After Neely Henry Lake, Gadsden, Ala. Ending 03-28-2009, Day 3
——————————————-
Place Name St Pts
——————————————-
1 Donna Newberry Ark. 305
1 Stacy Zhelesnik N.J. 305
3 Terri Bittner Calif. 290
4 Martha Goodfellow S.C. 285
5 Trish Levitt N.M. 280
6 Nancy Stumpe Fla. 276
7 Linda Higginbotham Fla. 272
8 Vicki Henderson Ark. 268
9 Teri Cindric Tenn. 264
10 Colleen McKay Mass. 260
11 Sherry Melton Tenn. 257
12 Cheryl Buelow La. 254
13 Vicki Hester Ala. 251
14 Lori Steele Okla. 248
15 Lesli Lively Texas 245
16 Michele Gunderman N.C. 243
17 Debbie Pegoli Ohio 241
18 Linda Berry N.C. 239
19 Kelly Wells Ga. 237
20 Charlotte Frazier Texas 235
21 Kim Martin Ind. 233
22 Cynthia Tayloe Texas 231
23 Kim Mendoza Texas 229
24 Bunny Hicks Ga. 227
25 Donna Rutledge Ill. 225
26 Kala Wright Okla. 223
27 Gail Wood Ark. 221
28 Kim Petrowski Texas 219
29 Torrye Vineyard Texas 217
30 Bertha Cavakis Ark. 215
31 Renee Gumbrecht N.J. 213
32 Brandi Frasier Ky. 211
33 Miriam Donohoo Fla. 209
34 Monica Altman N.C. 207
35 Susan Dameron Tenn. 205
36 Sabrina Thompson Texas 203
37 Laura Bean Ala. 201
38 Jada Tidmore Ala. 199
39 Sarah Davis La. 197
40 Linda Walker Ark. 195
41 Bonnie Ward Wash. 193
42 Kat Arnold La. 191
43 Barbara Gaskins Va. 189
44 Susan Wild Fla. 187
45 Katie Hogan Tenn. 185
46 Lesley Childers S.C. 183
47 Jennifer Blackwood Ga. 181
48 Juanita Blasingame Tenn. 179
49 Denese Freeman Okla. 177
50 LaShea Raynor S.C. 175
51 Elizabeth Sanders Miss. 173
52 Neva Brown Texas 171
53 Leslie Anderson Mo. 169
54 Linda Rinker Fla. 167
55 Jane Brunner Miss. 165
56 Lisa Diehl Pa. 163
57 Patti James Texas 161
58 Linda Owens Miss. 159
59 Melissa Bond N.M. 157
60 Nancy Oliver La. 155
61 Lisa Skelley Tenn. 153
62 Barbara Ferge Tenn. 151
63 Pam Chism Ark. 149
64 Karol Whitehurst Texas 147
65 Debra Cook Ala. 145
66 Nancy Dugas Ala. 143
67 Petra Ramsey Texas 141
68 Diane Smith Ga. 139
69 Christine Martin Colo. 137
70 Jennifer Rice Ala. 135
71 Virginia Buckner Ala. 133
72 Marilyn Biszmaier Ky. 131
73 Cassie Hall Ala. 129
74 Jill Matheis Ind. 127
75 Sugar Walker Ala. 125
76 Mona Crawford Fla. 123
76 Katie Ellis Miss. 123
78 Dawn Dudek Ill. 119
79 Kimberly White Ill. 117
80 Patty Houston Ala. 115
81 Sharon Lawson Tenn. 113
82 Leanne Snowden Mich. 0