Bradley Hallman wins FLW Tour on Lake Okeechobee

Hallman Wins FLW Tour Okeechobee

Photo via FLW Outdoors

Despite this tournament marking his first on the FLW Tour, Bradley Hallman of Norman, Oklahoma is a pretty familiar name withing bass fishing circles after he spent 6 seasons on the Bassmaster Elite Series from 2006 to 2011. After stepping away from the sport for a few years, Hallman returned to professional competition with a bang taking down the FLW Tour season opened on Lake Okeechobee. While the weights never did reach the typical early season Florida bass smackdown numbers we are used to seeing, Hallman started the event with back to back bags of 25lbs - he was the only pro to eclipse that mark during the entire event - which propelled him well in front of the field and allowed him to coast into the finish line with a total weight of 71lbs 2oz despite not catching a limit on either the 3rd or 4th tournament day. Strong north winds brought colder weather to the finicky Florida bass:

One thing is for sure, Hallman’s commitment was certainly tested by wicked high north winds on Lake Okeechobee and wicked extreme frontal conditions that pestered the lake’s Florida-strain bass. Day two dealt out high north winds of some 25 mph. On day three the wind subsided, but the post-frontal conditions shut the bite down considerably. Day four, however, ravaged the top 10 pros with a brutal triple whammy: high northwest winds to 30 mph, dropping water temps and complete post-frontal lockdown of Okeechobee bass.

To catch his weight during the tournament, Hallman pitched and flipped hard vegetation - reeds in the South Bay area of the lake. As he says, he knew this is how he needed to fish to give himself an opportunity for success:

“I was committed to that even before I got here,” Hallman says. “I knew one way or another I was going to be flipping, pitching and punching something.”

Hallman caught his fish this week using a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver rigged on a 4/0 Strike King Hack Attack Flipping Hook and a 1.5oz Tungsten Flipping Weight. While it didn't seem to make much difference, the final day of the event Hallman opted for the Florida cult favorite, the Gambler BB Cricket, a smaller soft plastic bait that is often the go-to in tough conditions for Florida bass fishermen.