A look ahead at the 2013 FLW tournament season
FLW Director of Tournament Operations Bill Taylor takes part in a Q&A
Though the holidays are front and center now, it won’t be long before the Walmart FLW Tour, the EverStart Series and the Walmart Bass Fishing League (BFL) begin their 2013 campaigns. So we asked Bill Taylor, FLW Director of Tournament Operations, to provide some insights about the upcoming tournament season in the Walmart FLW Tour, the Walmart Bass Fishing League and the EverStart Series. Here’s what he had to say:
Q: First of all, what’s noteworthy in the Walmart BFL or EverStart Series trails?
Bill Taylor: The numbers were up over the previous two years in the Bass Fishing League and the EverStarts, so bigger and better things are on the way there. We’ve got a great location for the BFL All-American (June 26-29) on Lake Nickajack out of Chattanooga and a great field of contenders who have advanced from the regionals. As for the EverStart Series, we feel like we’ve got the best events schedule that we’ve ever had – good locations at the right times. The big news in the EverStart Series is that the Strike King Angler of the Year and Co-Angler of the Year from each of the five divisions will get an automatic invite to the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup. Before, it was only the EverStart Series champion angler and the co-angler champion who qualified for the Cup. So, essentially, an angler can fish close to home in one of the five geographical divisions and qualify for the Forrest Wood Cup.
Q: Okeechobee is the first tournament stop (Feb. 7-10) in the Walmart FLW Tour. How’s the `Big O’ been fishing lately?
Bill Taylor: The water was up in late fall at about 15 feet and all locks are open. The fishing has been phenomenal and we expect more of the same in February, with some real eye-popping catches of big bass coming in. When we were there for the Tour event last time, the water level was around 13 to 131/2 feet, which is ideal. We could see last year’s records fall this February.
Q: What about the “new stops” on the Tour next year?
Bill Taylor: We’re going back to Smith Lake, which is steeped in tournament history and in the heartland of bass fishing. One thing we’re excited about there is that, for research purposes, the Alabama fisheries people will allow our anglers to fish around the slot limit. In other words, in this event we can weigh in bass of at least 12 inches in length without being subject to the normal 13- to 15-inch slot limit. As many fishermen know, Smith Lake held the world record for spotted bass for a number of years and there are still a lot of big spots to be caught there.
Also, we’re excited about going to Lake Chickamauga in the June time frame because the offshore fishing and the grass fishing will be prime then and accommodate different styles of fishing.
The same goes for Lake Eufaula in May – it’s shaping up to be an offshore tournament, but there’s still enough variety of cover and structure there to cater to different fishing approaches.
Grand Lake in June is a post-spawn deal, but here again some good stringers are going to come off the ledges, and others from shallow water. There’s a lot of good dock-fishing here and I expect it will take more than 70 pounds over four days to win it.
Q: Any notable newcomers to watch for on the Walmart FLW Tour in 2013?
Bill Taylor: Some newcomers, yes, but also some old-timers we haven’t seen in a while. Hall-of-famers Tommy Martin and Roland Martin will join us, plus some new blood like Brandon McMillan of Clewiston, Fla., and Clent Davis of Alabama – the 2012 Rookie of the Year. A few guys who have had really stellar careers in the back of the boat are moving to the front, so 2013 is going to be a breakout year for some of those. Casey Martin, the 2011 Co-Angler of the Year, is among them.
Q: Who do you expect to have a good tournament season in 2013?
Bill Taylor: One of the exciting things about the sport is that we have so much young talent making their mark every year. Jacob Wheeler, the 2011 All-American champion and 2012 Forrest Wood Cup winner, comes to mind. But there are others who I think we’re going to see big things from. Clent Davis, no doubt; and Todd Hollowell is one of the most talented young anglers we have. Keep your eye on him too.
Q: All roads lead to Shreveport and the Forrest Wood Cup on the Red River. Any predictions?
Bill Taylor: Jacob Wheeler, who won the All-American at Cross Lake in 2011, is likely to be a favorite among prognosticators. Any time there’s a flipping bite, which there should be on the Red River, people like Randall Tharp, JT Kenney and Brandon McMillan are going to be in contention. Dion Hibdon, Larry Nixon, Darrel Robertson also have proved themselves there. As Jacob Wheeler showed last summer, there’s always room for surprises. It will be an exciting season.
Related links:
To register for any event during the upcoming 2013 tournament fishing season, click here.
Walmart FLW Tour info:
Priority entry now open for 2013 Walmart FLW Tour
2013 FLW Tour rules
Complete 2013 FLW Tour schedule
EverStart Series info:
Priority entry now open for 2013 EverStart Series
2013 EverStart Series rules
Complete 2013 EverStart Series schedule
Walmart Bass Fishing League info:
FLW announces entry dates for 2013 Walmart BFL season
2013 BFL rules
Complete 2013 BFL schedule