SARASOTA, Fla. – What a difference a day makes. Twenty four hours removed from a day of high seas and even higher frustration levels, FLW Kingfish Tour anglers finally found their bearings in Saturday’s competition.
While only one team managed to produce a weight in excess of 29 pounds on Thursday, 12 teams pulled off the feat in today’s competition. But in the end, it was Team Hard Way, captained by Todd Korker of Jupiter, Fla., that emerged in first place – using a catch of 40 pounds, 15 ounces to grab the top qualifying spot heading into Sunday’s all-important FLW Kingfish Tour finals at Sarasota.
However, the day’s effort was far from easy – or routine. In fact, Team Hard Way, well, did it the hard way.
“We ran about 3 1/2 hours south, about 120 miles one way, and as soon as we put our bait in the water we had three fish on the lines,” said Team Hard Way member Josh Denton. “Basically, we had three people on rods and one driver and nobody to gaff the fish. So the captain (Korker) had to throw the boat in neutral, jump down and gaff the fish himself.”
Teammate Marty Koehler agreed that it wasn’t the most typical or calm scenario.
“We had three fish hit all at the same time,” said Koehler. “At first, we didn’t know which fish was the largest one. It was pandemonium there for awhile. But it was definitely exciting. Overall, it was a fantastic day.”
“When the fish finally came up we knew we had a decent-size fish in the boat,” Koehler continued.
Capt. Korker said the first-place fish came in about 60 feet of water at approximately 9:30 a.m. The team landed the fish using a combination of blue runners and a “secret” rig known only as the “Korker rig.”
“A couple people know what the rig is, but we try to leave the rest of the guys guessing,” said Denton with a grin. “We hope it gives us a psychological advantage.”
After the chaos quieted down in the early morning hours, the team decided they had had enough good fortune for the day. So they turned the boat around and headed straight back to the marina – pre-fishing the entire way home.
“We basically had seven hours of driving time and about 15 minutes of fishing,” said teammate Jaison Fisher. “But the best part is that I missed the last two times this team was in first place because I was having a baby. So it’s nice to finally be a part of the action.”
Logan’s Run nets second
Bolstered by a strong catch of 40 pounds, 14 ounces, Logan’s Run managed to stay right on the heels of Team Hard Way – finishing the day only one ounce behind the leaders.
“We’re happy. We’re happy,” said Capt. David Logan of Belville, N.C. “I don’t know what to say right now. We had a great day. In a lot of ways, we caught too many fish today. But we came here to win.”
Logan’s Run ultimately landed their catch after making a 100-mile one-way run to the south. The targeted kingfish came in 70 feet of water and bit on a goggle-eye rig.
“The ride to our spot is a little rough,” said Logan. “But those spots are producing some good fish right now. We’re really going to try to get back there tomorrow. It would take a lot for us not to go back.”
My Three Sons qualifies in third
Grantham, Kelly Sisk and Chris Blanton.” border=”1″ align=”left” />One of the few teams to make it look easy in today’s competition was My Three Sons – the team that captured the Kingfish Tour tournament title at Sarasota in 2006.
“We caught our fish early in the morning, about 7:45 a.m., and that really took the pressure off us,” said My Three Sons Capt. Terry Grantham. “I have to tell you I was just glad to see a kingfish. We didn’t see one at all yesterday. Catching a fish like that is good for morale. You really beat yourself up pretty good when you don’t catch them. But you always have to remember, all it takes is one catch and then everything gets better really quickly.”
Grantham said the team landed their third-place catch of 39 pounds, 9 ounces, fishing in 55 feet of water with a goggle-eye line.
“We’re happy with our catch,” said Grantham. “But the key is making sure you catch a good fish on the last day as well.”
As far as tomorrow is concerned, Grantham said the team said it’s going to take a wait-and-see approach.
“Tomorrow we’ll make that call first thing in the morning,” said Grantham. “We’ll check the weather and our bait situation and take it from there. But to make the top five, that’s what we came here for. We just hope we can catch another good one tomorrow.”
Best of the rest
Fish Fever 2/Strike Zone landed the tourney’s fourth-best catch at 38 pounds, 7 ounces. The team boated the fish at approximately 10 a.m. today after making a 180-mile run toward Key West.
“It was definitely worth the run,” said Capt. Ed Mecchella of St. Simons Island, Ga. “We couldn’t make it to our spot yesterday but today we’re finally able to get there today. And it paid off.”
In fact, the fishing was so good today that the team actually ran out of bait.
“We couldn’t keep the lines in the water,” said Mecchella. “We actually ran out of bait today. We went through about 50 baitfish.”
Rounding out the top-five FLW Kingfish Tour finalists was day-one leader East Coast Sports – who qualified for the finals by recording a 35-pound, 1-ounce catch on Friday.
Sunday’s final FLW Kingfish Tour takeoff begins 6:45 a.m. Eastern Time at the Hyatt Regency on Sarasota Bay located at 1000 Boulevard of the Arts in Sarasota, Fla.