INCREDIBLE drama in the closing minutes of the 12-angler Parkdean Masters winner take all £25,000 Grand Final saw the lead change hands three times culminating in a remarkable 45-11-0 victory for Steve Ringer at the White Acres Country Park’s Jenny¹s Lake.
Steve, runner-up last year, and also a previous big money winner in the Fish O Mania final, emerged triumphant after this latest Cornish cliff hanger saw his early lead whittled away by former winner Harry Billing peg 5, and Des Shipp on unfancied 12.
Parkdean Masters Festival top three (l-r):
Ben Leach (2nd), Des Shipp (1st) and Pete Randle (3rd).
But it was Steve Ringer who took the Grand Final.
Steve (Shimano Van Den Eynde) had started on the feeder and after a slow start began to put together a decent run of carp to about 6 lb but as his swim tailed off and the match drew to a climax he came under increasing pressure from former winner Harry (Drennan NW) and festival winner Preston Innovations and Sensas backed Des.
Harry had been the first to change from feeder after just 15 minutes and started to build a small fish bag on the pole and chopped worm swinging roach, before getting among tench to 3 lb and carp to 4 lb.
Shipp’s fortunes increased considerably when a double figure ghost carp doubled his weight mid way through and signaled the start of a spell when he added three more decent carp in quick succession.
Steve Ringer had been forced to switch to the pole to keep his flagging swim alive and his first look failed to produce a bite. However a second try with 90 minutes remaining brought a 7lb carp plus a couple of small 1lb tench and carp.
With 15 minutes to go there was nothing to separate Shipp and Ringer when Harry Billing, hot on their tails, hooked an estimated 7lb ghost carp in the tail.
He played the fish for 15 minutes on white hydro elastic but unable to push the pole high enough due to tree cover, and with the soft elastic dragging across his body he dramatically lost the fish as he tried to net it at full stretch leaving him with 41-12-0 and his chances of the £25,000 just swam away.
That left Shipp just in front but the final twist came in the last minute when Ringer hooked his 4 lb 8 oz match winning carp that was also fouled but landed five minutes after time to take him 2 lb 9 oz clear of Des’ 43-2-0!
Left: 2003 Parkdean Masters Champion 2003 Steve Ringer with trophies and cheque for
£25,000. Right, festival winner Des Shipp in action in the Grand Final.
Stunned Steve has lined up for no less than seven big money winner-take-all style events but still couldn’t quite take in his latest achievement in writing his name in the record books as the only angler to win both the White Acres Parkdean and Fish O Mania £25,000 winner take all events.
“It just feels unbelievable, although I’d had a bit of feeling this was going to be my week after I had a bit of luck in the qualifying festival, but with an hour to go today I thought it was slipping away,” said the tackle consultant after taking a celebratory dip in the lake.
He admitted that despite his regular appearance in these events it doesn¹t get any easier: “I felt under tremendous pressure today as I drew a peg that I felt everyone wanted, then it just wasn’t happening quickly enough.
“However after a couple of hours I thought I’d win on the feeder because things were looking promising but it actually got harder. While I stuck at it for three hours I did have a few vital fish on the pole in the final 90 minutes,” he went on.
“The hardest part is getting to the final as everyone is trying to get there. Once you are there it’s a class field that anyone can win and so you need a bit of luck somewhere along the line,” he conceded.
“Last year Darren Cox had a big fish late that cost me, but this year I had that foul hooker and Harry¹s lost a big fish late that has cost him,” he went on.
The feeder line had produced about 25lb of fish while Steve’s pole additions were worth 20lb and Steve fed neat Ringers groundbait through the open end feeder and a presented a large cube of hair rigged meat, while his pole line received good helpings of cupped in meat and corn.
Steve now £25,000 better off intends to use the money to buy himself a new BMW motor car.
Three times finalist Des Shipp was surprised he came so close: “I am gutted. I thought I had about 35lb, and when I heard Harry had 41lb I thought that was the end of that, but then when I weighed in 43lb I thought here we go then. But I knew deep down that Steve had won… I could just tell.
What could have been. Harry Billing prepares to net a match winning carp that would have
won him £25,000, but just as he does, the fish gets away.
Reflecting on the luck that he had in the qualifying festival where he finished in seventh place with 33 points, Steve revealed he had a 10lb carp jump out of his keepnet on Pollawyn Pool but quick as a flash he managed to scoop it back up with his landing net and went on to win the section by 10lb 2oz!
He also acknowledged the luck when as he saw the official raise his arm to sound the final hooter at Bolingey – his tip flew round and a section winning 6 lb carp was the result.
“You have to have some luck to win,” said Steve who also admitted that he hasn’t yet got to grips with Gwinear where he had a nightmare.
At Porth he bagged
Geoff Ringer father of winner Steve said:
“I am immensely proud of Steve¹s achievement which I think is all the sweeter because of what happened last year when he was leading the final until the dying seconds when Darren had that monster fish landed after the whistle that beat him.
“I didn’t think Steve had enough today after Harry weighed 41lb then Des put 43lb on the scales and I thought he’d get third place. However when Steve pulled his net out I thought it would be close.
“What an achievement to win both the Fish O Mania and White Acres Parkdean Masters.”
All the finalists before the winners takes all Grand Final.
PARKDEAN MASTERS GRAND FINAL 2003
Steve Ringer (Shimano VDE) 45-11-0, peg 18, £25,000
Des Shipp (Preston Innovations) 43-2-0, peg 12.
Harry Billing (Drennan NW) 41-12-0, peg 6.
Dave Jowatt (
Steve Cooke (Ringer Baits)
Kieron Rich (Tricast Mosella)
Ben Leach (
Steve Waters (Drennan Oxford)
Pete Randle (MAP Garbolino Starlets)
Simon Colclough (Browning Wickford Angling Centre)
Paul Filmore (Mosella Welsh Wizards) 8-0-0, peg 5.
Colin Mulholland (Tackle Factory)
PARKDEAN MASTERS FESTIVAL
CLASSY SHIPP CRUISES IN AGAIN
TO reach the 12-man Grand Final the 180-strong field had to battle it out over five days of intense festival match action and heading the pack was none other than Preston Innovations and Sensas backed England International Des Shipp with a maximum 36 points.
Des triumphed after tying with Dorking team mate
Yate based fork lift driver Des had a slow start to the week with 5 points after tying on
Peg 6 on Lamorna saw Des win the section with 62-7-0 of small carp on poled meat also good enough for a lake second.
Moving to Gwinear on the third day a switch to worm paid off for Des with a 39-12-0 carp and silvers return for a hard won section win.
Day four on Porth and Des relied on maggot for his pole based
The big feller reverted to poled worm at Bolingey 36 on the last day for a fine 13 m located 52-4-0 carp bag to make it four straight wins after that opening disappointment.
Ben Leach came so close with a fine last day section win from Pollawyn¹s peg 2 thanks mainly to a big single figure carp backed up with some bits, that earned a place in the Grand Final.
Ben, recently signed up by Milo as a sponsored angler, can look to a four point return at bolingey as the only dip in his otherwise scintillating form that included maximums from Porth (12-2-0) , Gwinear (118-4-0), and Trelawney (57-15-0) to add to his last day 10-13-0 all worth the runner-up cheque for £900.
Bricklayer Pete Randle (MAP Garbolino Starlets) made the top ten for the first time with 35 points after some consistent performances on Trelawney (section 2nd), Gwinear (section 3rd), Porth (section win), and Bolingey (section win) and Pollawyn (section win and lake third) to earn the third place cheque for £800.
The battle for the 12 final places was keen with 32 points needed to make it in and with five anglers accruing that return two, Gary Gibson and Alan Barker were disappointed missing out thanks to inferior dropped fifth results.
Biggest fish of the festival and a cheque for £50 went to Jim Smith with a 19 lb 14 oz Bolingey beast while a cheque for £100 was Tom Pickering’s reward fro his best festival match winning weight of 203-8-0 from Gwinear.
Bill Knott named Grand Finalist Colin Mulholland as his man of the match.
TOP TWELVE
Des Shipp (Preston Innovations Sensas) 36 (5) £2000
Ben Leach (Milo) 36 (4) £900
Pete Randle (MAP Garbolino Starlets) 35 (7) £800
Dave Jowatt (Fisherman¹s Way) 35 (5) £700
Kieron Rich (Tricast Mosella) 34 (5) £600
Simon Colclough (Browning Wickford) 33 (7) £500
Steve Ringer (Shimano VDE) 33 (6) £400
Steve Cooke (Ringer Baits) 33 (4) £300
Steve Waters (Drennan Oxford) 33 (3) £250
Harry Billing (Drennan NW) 32 (7) £200
Colin Mulholland (Tackle factory) 32 (6)
Paul Filmore (Mosella Welsh Wizards) 32 (4)
*5th results in brackets
LAKE WINNERS
Day 1: Pollawyn, Dean Cherrington (Sensas Midland Match) 78-12-0; Trelawney / Manaccan / Lamorna, Simon Gould (Simon¹s 2000) 60-4-0; Gwinear Derek Hammond (Drennan Oxford) 132-3-0; Porth, Steve Clarke (Daiwa Trentmen) 20-9-0; Bolingey, Martin Green (MAP Garbolino Starlets) 78-8-0.
Day 2: Pollawyn, Richard Lawson (Colmic) 130-6-0; Trelawney / Manaccan / Lamorna, Paul Hiller (Daiwa Dorking) 81-12-0; Gwinear, Adam Westmacott (Daiwa Dorking) 149-15-0; Porth Steve Clarke (
Day 3: Pollawyn, Kieron Rich (Tricast Mosella) 63-4-0; Trelawney / Manaccan / Lamorna, Simon Colclough (Browning Wickford) 49-6-0; Gwinear, Harry Billing (Drennan NW) 179-7-0; Porth, Alex Bones (Match Fishing Magazine)
Day 4: Pollawyn, Steve Ringer (Shimano Van Den Eynde) 113-2-0; Trelawney / Manaccan / Lamorna, Geoff Ringer (Ringer Baits) 49-0-0; Gwinear, Adam Wakelin (Dynamite Baits) 150-10-0; Porth, Des Shipp (
Day 5: Pollawyn, Paul Taylor (Stubpond) 74-11-0; Trelawney / Manaccan / Lamorna, Alan Barker (Ringer Baits) 52-7-0; Gwinear, Tom Pickering (
