By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

Winning his first tour-level event to begin his 13th professional campaign isn't the biggest thing that's happened to Bradley Roy over the past half-year or so, but it's still a pretty cool thing.

Last August, he became a father for the first time as he and wife Danielle welcomed baby son Lucas. More recently, he topped the MLF Bass Pro Tour field to win the season-opening tournament on three venues in Louisiana where the quantity of bites wasn't overwhelming, but the quality of many was special.

It might seem like Roy's been around forever, as he became a tour pro way back in 2010. However, he's still just 32 years old. His victory in the state known as the Sportsman's Paradise was his third finish of 11th or better in four outings dating back to last June.

"It's taken a little while to sink in, to be honest," he said. "I'm just super-thankful; it's really a great way to start the new year."

Big Bites Abounded

Roy outdueled the nine other anglers who advanced to the Championship Round on a body of water called Bussey Brake. The 2,200-acre reservoir formerly served as the emergency water supply for a paper mill that closed a dozen years ago. Even when the mill was in operation, it was open to public fishing and it's now the newest Wildlife Management Area under the auspices of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

The Qualifying Round (two days each for two groups of 40 anglers) was held on Lake D'Arbonne and the Knockout Round played out on Caney Lake. All venues are in the vicinity of Monroe, which is home to the Robertson family of Duck Dynasty fame.

Roy boated five scorable bass that combined to weigh 26-02 in the finals, including an 8-14 that was the biggest fish he's ever registered in a tournament. He beat out runner-up Alton Jones by 1-03.

He did all of his work during the first two of the three daily 2 1/2-hour periods to take a commanding lead, then endured a stressful final stanza as proven winners Jones, Jordan Lee and Bryan Thrift closed in on him.

"I was getting bit enough that I never felt like I wasn't going to catch one, so I was confident about that," he said. "But as time went on I hadn't had a bite and those guys were coming. Those fish in there were so big that with one swing of the rod, there were multiple guys who could catch me.

"It was a big relief to win and then it was just a whirlwind of emotions. At first I was just glad it was over and then it just goes to excitement because you know it's yours and there's no more fishing to be done."

The 8-14 came about midway through the second period.

"There were a lot of guys catching big fish and I knew at that point that I needed to boat one of those giant ones," he said. "I was really pumped when I got it in."

He doesn't expect the triumph to change the way he goes about his business.

"I've made a living fish the way I do for a long time," said Roy, who finished 42nd on last year's final points list. "More than anything, it just gives me confidence, which is a big deal to a bass angler.

"I didn't really ever thing that (the first win) would never come and I surely thought it would happen faster than it did. I'd come close a few times, but winning one of these things ... it all has to go your way and it's just not easy."

Pattern and Gear Notes

Roy flipped a beaver-style bait to bushes and isolated pieces of cover in the Championship Round. His equipment consisted of a 7 1/2-foot Ark Essence Series flipping stick, an unnamed casting reel (7:1 ratio), 22-pound Seaguar Tatsu fluorocarbon line and a 3/8-ounce Ark tungsten weight.

He also primarily flipped during the Qualifying Round. A lipless crankbait produced the bulk of his fish in the Knockout Round.