The North Central Region of the Texas BASS Federation held their 2005 Championship BASS Tournament on Lake Proctor October 14-16. 

Thirty-Nine anglers qualified for this event by participating in six qualifying events held earlier in the year at Lake Travis, Lake Stillhouse, Eagle Mountain Lake, Lake Granbury, Lake Waco, and Lake Limestone.  

Per tournament rules, the anglers could not get on the lake the week prior to the tournament until the official practice day, which was Friday October 14^th.  Friday evening at the Comanche Community Center, the forty anglers got together for a brief rules meeting and for the pairings.  The anglers were paired together two to a boat for the competition days. 

Saturday morning was perfect weather as the anglers launched from the day use area at Copperas Creek Park.  Tournament Director, Robert Brown, let the anglers leave the dock area in their boats one at a time, as predetermined at the pairings meeting the night before.  By 7:10 that morning, all anglers were on their way to their fishing holes.   

At 9:30 Saturday morning, Janet Thomas met eleven family members of the participating anglers at the Log Cabin (Old Cora) in the historic town square.  Janet provided a brief history lesson of Comanche, and then led the tour through the stores in the square. 

The anglers began returning to the dock by 3:00.  Each angler could bring five legal 16” black bass to the scales.  Jeremy West from Heart of Texas Bass Assassins was the first day leader with a 4 bass sack weighing 11.11 lbs.  David Mulcahy, of the Bass Club of Fort Worth, brought in the day’s largest bass of 5.36 lbs.  Members of the Proctor Bass Club out of the West Region of the Texas BASS Federation assisted with the weigh-in procedures. 

Saturday evening the Comanche Chamber of Commerce fed the anglers and their families at the First United Methodist Church with a wonderful brisket meal. 

Sunday morning launch proceeded as did Saturday’s, though the anglers were able to depart just a few minutes earlier because the lack of cloud cover provided an earlier “safe light” condition. 

At the conclusion of the day two weigh-in, Heart of Texas Bass Assassin angler Tony McBride took home top honors with a two day total weight of 17.97 lbs.  With this win, Tony becomes the regional representative to the Texas 12-man state team and receives an invitation to participated in the Central Divisional Tournament in 2006 – on the way to the BassMasters Classic! 

Overall, 73 bass were weighed in for a total weight of 207.30 lbs.  ALL fish were returned to the lake alive.  Anglers were challenged with the lake being approximately three foot low, but went out as competitors and competed as champions.   

The North Central Region tournament committee would like to thank the Comanche Chamber of Commerce, the Proctor Bass Club, the First United Methodist Church, the Corps of Engineers, and all of the individuals who worked behind the scenes to make this event a memorable one, including Darlene Causey, Ron Moe, and David Robinson.