Destination: Lake O’ the Pines
Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail Championship, Oct. 16-17
Russ Carter finished 14th overall in the 2004 Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail final points standings, but the Longview, Texas, bass pro would like nothing better than to come out on top when the popular tour hosts its year-end championship at nearby Lake O’ the Pines.
The top 50 pros and 50 co-anglers based on year-end points standings earned a ticket to the two-day, $195,000 TTT Championship. A win in the Pro Division will be worth $50,000, plus a potential $20,000 more in Ranger Boats contingency cash. The winning co-angler could earn as much as $40,000.
Carter will be among a handful of east Texans who will be competing for the biggest chunk of the tournament purse, but he does not expect his home-lake advantage to provide him much of an edge.
Lake O’ the Pines is one of those user-friendly impoundments where everybody will be prone to catch fish. According to Carter, the tournament could easily turn into a fall slugfest.
“Lake O’ the Pines is probably one of the best-kept secrets in the state, and I really kind of hate for it to get out,” Carter said. “It’s an old lake, but it has really come back into its own over the last five to six years since the grass (hydrilla) has come back.”
Carter said five-fish, 25-pound sacks turn up frequently at local jackpots; 30-pound bags are not uncommon. Most tournaments are won north of the state Highway 155 bridge.
“I really think the fishermen are going to be surprised at what they catch and what shows up at weigh-in,” he said. “This lake is full of 4- to 8-pound bass.”
Carter said there will be a number of productive patterns in the works.
Lightweight jigs (black/brown/amber and black/blue) and Texas-rigged worms (watermelon and red shad) cast to hydrilla beds and lily pads in 5 to 8 feet of water should produce plenty of strikes, but the better sacks are likely to come on top-waters.
“Top-waters, like Pop-Rs, Zara Spooks and buzzbaits, will be the main deals,” Carter said. “And the neat thing is, they will hit them all day long.”
Carter’s call: 36 to 40 pounds to win it.