Cox clinches FLW Series Eastern Division Angler of the Year
Top 10 FLW Series Eastern Division anglers set for 2011 Forrest Wood Cup
MINNEAPOLIS – The 2010 Angler of the Year title on the FLW Series Eastern Division came down to a three-man race at the fourth and final tournament of the season on Lake Chickamauga in Chattanooga, Tenn. In the end, FLW Series rookie John Cox edged out veteran pros JT Kenney and Bryan Thrift with 755 points out of a possible 800.
Those points qualified Cox for the no-entry-fee 2011 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Ark. Cox started the FLW Series season off with a second-place finish on Lake Okeechobee in January. He then took seventh at Lake Eufaula in March, 22nd at Lake Champlain in August and 18th at Chickamauga last week.
He dug himself a major hole on day one of the Chickamauga event – catching only one keeper that weighed 4 pounds, 1 ounce. Starting the second day in 83rd place, Cox rallied to 26th with a stout 16-pound, 5-ounce stringer – the heaviest of the day. He then caught a limit worth 12 pounds, 10 ounces to finish the tournament in 18th place.
“I was so disappointed after that first day,” said Cox, a Debary, Fla., native. “But I knew the fish were there. And when I saw the forecast for day two calling for clouds and rain, I knew a spinnerbait would work. I ran all the same stuff, and they just ate it up.
“On day three I had a small limit early. But time was running out, and I was starting to get worried because I knew the guys chasing me were going to catch them. With 10 minutes left in the day, I went back to the area I started on and caught two 3-pounders on back-to-back casts. When it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.”
Rounding out the top 10 anglers who qualified for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup via the FLW Series Eastern points race:
2nd: JT Kenney, Palm Bay, Fla., 752 points
3rd: Damiki pro Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 749 points
4th: Koby Kreiger, Okeechobee, Fla., 730 points
5th: Scott Canterbury, Springville, Ala., 730 points
6th: Andy Montgomery, Blacksburg, S.C., 721 points
7th: Randall Tharp, Gardendale, Ala., 696 points
8th: National Guard pro Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 693 points
9th: Mark Rose, Marion, Ark., 692 points
10th: Darrin Schwenkbeck, Varysburg, N.Y., 688 points
“At first, all I could think about was winning AOY; it’s the biggest accomplishment of my career,” Cox added. “But next August I’m going to be fishing for a half-million dollars against only 58 guys. I get chills just thinking about it.”
Coverage of Cox’s AOY win will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) Nov. 7 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. ET on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.
The Angler of the Year title in each FLW Series division is determined by the total accumulated points from four regular-season events. Two hundred points are awarded for a win, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on.
About FLW Outdoors
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports. FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.