Bryan Thrift’s rookie season as a Wal-Mart FLW Tour pro has already turned a lot of heads, and clearly his fan bas continues to grow. On the tour alone in 2007, he’s notched two top-10 finishes, $83,500 in prize money and is threatening to corner the market on the Eagle Claw Hook Set Award.
The rookie powerhouse from Shelby, N.C., is currently ranked 16th among all FLW Tour pros in the points standings, practically making him a shoo-in for this year’s Forrest Wood Cup as well as the Rookie of the Year race. He grabbed an impressive 10th-place finish on his home waters of Lake Norman in late April and kicked off the season with an incredible runner-up finish at Texas’ Lake Travis in February. It was for his Lake Travis performance that FLWOutdoors.com visitors first appointed him winner of the Eagle Claw Hook Set Award, and now Thrift is a two-time Hook Set Award winner after he again received the most votes for his showing at Norman.
Thrift beat out veteran bass pro Larry Nixon, the winner, as well as pro Hank Cherry, the fourth-place finisher, for the Hook Set Award win from Lake Norman. Those casting online ballots in the contest handed the Hook Set Award to Thrift for a second time this season, based on fishing footage that appeared both on the “FLW Outdoors” TV show on FSN (Fox Sports Net) as well as at FLWOutdoors.com. For his impressive hook set, Thrift earned a $500 Wal-Mart shopping card.
Eagle Claw Hook Set Award voters were able to choose from video footage of three pro anglers’ hook sets as captured by camera crews during the April 26-29 FLW Tour event on Lake Norman near Charlotte, N.C. The contest and award are presented by Eagle Claw. Go to the Eagle Claw Hook Set Award now to vote for your favorite hook set from the tour event at Beaver Lake.
FSN provides FLWOutdoors.com with video footage of three of the best hook sets from each FLW Tour event throughout the season. The hook sets are seen on FSN’s “FLW Outdoors” program, which airs Sundays at 11 a.m. Eastern, and are then viewable at FLWOutdoors.com. After voting has closed for a given contest, the winner will be announced on television and through this Web site.
The Hook Set Award contest is free and open to anyone 21 years of age or older who wants to go online to vote for their favorite footage. Use this article to link to the contest or access it through the graphic link midway down FLWOutdoors.com’s home page.