Norman, OK - When the Mercury Redbone Series Redbone Celebrity Tournament kicks off November 7th in Islamorada, Florida, a pair of familiar faces will by vying for the title. Brothers Chris and Bobby Lane, both of whom fish on the Bassmaster Elite Series, will fish on the same team in the multi-species tournament. The brothers will be fishing for both redfish and bonefish in a points based scoring system. 

The Florida natives are no strangers to saltwater fishing, but this will be the Lane brothers’ first foray into tournament fishing for species other than bass outside of a few “trash fish” tournaments for mudfish and gar. “Both of us have grown up around saltwater our entire lives and we’ve caught a bunch of redfish but never a bonefish so we’re excited about catching bonefish and really testing our skills in saltwater,” Chris told The BZ. 

Bobby echoed his brother’s excitement, “It’s the chance of a lifetime to have a guide take you out and have a chance at catching a bonefish. I’ve caught a bunch of different saltwater fish in my life but never a bonefish and it’s something I’ve always dreamed about so I couldn’t be more excited about it,” said the reigning Elite Series Rookie of the Year. 

“Fishing with Bobby in a team event will definitely bring back old times,” said Chris. “We grew up fishing together and even up into our twenties fished together in team tournaments. We haven’t done that in such a long time that both of us are really excited about the opportunity.”

With the tournament scoring system taking into account live bait, artificial lures, and fly rod catches, the Lane brothers will be tested with a fly rod for the first time in a while. 
“Between the ages of 16 to 19, my brother and I both did a lot of fly fishing but it was for bass and bream, not anything major like this,” laughed Bobby. “I know what the rod and line looks like but I have no clue on how to catch these things.” 

The invitation to compete in the tournament was something that both Chris and Bobby greatly appreciated. “It’s a good opportunity to be in contact with some of the people who are the highest up in the sporting industry who will hopefully become more involved with bass fishing from Bobby and my experience of fishing in the tournament,” said Chris. 

“Everyone that I’ve talked to about this tournament said that it’s one of the most prestigious events like this that goes down all year, so for Chris and I to have the opportunity to fish it and be in the boat together exceeds more than I could have ever imagined,” said Bobby.