Hayden and Dan Jeffries topped the rest of the Elite Series field with a come-from-behind victory to what could be the largest seven-fish stringer brought in on Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma.
Team Jeffries started Championship Saturday off sitting in third place but within striking distance of the leaders, Kayle Ward and Dillon Gossett, and only 0.01 lbs behind Oklahoma’s own Keaton and Les Standstipher.
Official practice began on Tuesday and lasted for three days, ending on Thursday, March 23rd, and much like the first Elite Series stop at the Red River, all of the teams were faced with very tough conditions, with winds never below 20 mph and multiple storms that hit throughout the week.
Day one started with heavy wind and rain but throughout the day the rain left and brought overcast conditions of around 55 degrees.
Kayle Ward and Dillon Gossett amazed the crowd on day one with a 7-fish limit weighing in at 16.35 lbs anchored by a 3.60 lb giant, which could be the biggest crappie ever to come from Lake Eufaula.
But hot on their heels was local team Keaton and Les Standstipher with a weight of 15.60 lbs. Then the hottest team in the country Hayden and Dan Jeffries rounded out the top three with a weight of 15.59 lbs.
Championship Saturday began with 46 teams leaving out of Eufaula Cove after a slight fog delay with absolutely beautiful weather, winds around five mph, and the temperature reaching nearly 70 degrees.
Once all the teams made it to their starting spot, they all quickly realized that the bite had only gotten better with the sun shining and a lot more fish were coming up off the bottom, but with many teams in striking distance of the leaders and in the hunt for a top ten paycheck, it was anybody’s game–they just needed to run across one or two of the monster three-plus pound fish they saw hit the scales on day one.
Once the scales locked in at South Point Boat Ramp on Saturday afternoon, Hayden and Dan Jeffries were able to bring in the biggest bag of the event: 18.08 lbs with a 3.42 lb big fish, bringing their two-day total to 33.67 lbs and taking home another check on the season worth $25,000.00.
Day one leaders, Kayle Ward and Dillon Gossett, finished in the second place spot, earning them a check worth $10,000.00 plus another check for holding on to the overall big fish with the 3.60 lb Lake Eufaula day one giant. That fish was worth an additional $1,000.
Rounding out the top three for this Elite Series event was Keaton and Les Standstipher, with their strong effort earning them a check worth $7,000.00
Joe Partenza and Brandon Threadgill held on to the fourth place position with a two-day total of 29.59 lbs and earned them a check worth $4,000.00.
And rounding out the top 5 was the team of Robert Carlile and Colby Barnett with a two-day total of 28.46 lbs, earning them a check for $2,500.00.
Your champions, Hayden and Dan Jeffries, along with your runner-up team, Kayle Ward and Dillon Gossett, were both single pole fishing in pockets in the mid-lake area of Lake Eufaula.
Lake Eufaula showed out with weights that many local anglers could not believe, and as many of you saw on Crappie Live, the number of fish that Lake Eufaula has is incredible!
Tournament Director Blake Jackson would like to thank everyone in the Eufaula, Oklahoma area for coming out to the weigh in both days to make for an incredible event, and he looks forward to being back on Lake Eufaula later this fall for the Crappie Masters National Qualifier Championship!
Take a look at the complete results below!
