CREEDMOOR — It took nine years of competing in the Bass and Buck Bass Masters Club for Chuck Simpkins to win his first Angler of the Year award after catching two crucial fish at Falls Lake on Saturday.

Simpkins was behind former leader Jason Everwine in total points for the year. Simpkins had 224 points and Everwine had 228.

The 56-year-old from Willow Spring caught two fish totaling 3 pounds 10 ounces, while Everwine caught no fish the whole day.

Simpkins placed fifth in the tournament with 35 points to put him at 259 for the season.

Danny Lyons won the tournament with three fish totaling 8 pounds 9 ounces.

Despite Lyons winning first place, Simpkins held on with a narrow lead of nine points to finish ahead of Lyons, who placed second this year with 250 points.

Winning Angler of the Year awarded Simpkins $400.

“I feel blessed,” Simpkins said. “All Jason had to do was catch one fish today and none of us would have been in contention. I got scared when Danny won, because that almost put him up ahead of me in points.”

Lyons won his third overall tournament this season to win a $240 prize. The 61-year-old from Clayton has been fishing since he was 6 and has competed in tournaments for the past 35 years.

This year, his biggest fish of the season was 6 pounds 8 ounces. His best performance of the year was catching 10 pounds in one tournament.

Simpkins won his first tournament of the year Nov. 7. He placed in the top five in every tournament this season.

Lyons won three tournaments this year.

“It’s bad when you have to finish second, but it’s always good to finish first,” Lyons said. “It was a tough day on the lake. I’m lucky to get what I caught.”

In the BNB Bass Masters Club, the fishermen compete in 10 tournaments for the year. They drop their worst three performances to count toward their total points and add the final tournament of the year at Falls Lake to their overall total to determine the winner.

Simpkins finished second last year to Everwine, who won twice in a row before Simpkins ended his streak this season.

Everwine’s father, Daniel, finished second in the final tournament of the season with three fish totaling 7 pounds 16 ounces to win $180 in prize money. He also caught the big fish of the day weighing 6 pounds 1 once.

The Siler City native has been competing in tournaments for 20 years and has been fishing a total of 50 years. He finished seventh overall in the league standings with 211 points.

“It feels good to catch the big one today,” Everwine said. “I’ve been in a slump lately, so it’s nice to be the one to catch the biggest fish.”

Kevin Klingel won the big fish of the year award. He caught a bass weighing 7 pounds 15 ounces. He won $250 for his reward.

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Editor’s note: Chuck Simpkins is father of Wake Weekly Sports Editor Marty Simpkins.