ROGERS, Ark. – Jim Tutt, 40, of Long View, Texas, jumped from sixth place to lead 30 of the nation’s top professional bass anglers into Friday’s second round of competition at the EverStart Batteries Series tournament on Beaver Lake with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 13 ounces.
Tutt, who has made four top-10 appearances in his EverStart career, caught most of his fish using a Wiggle Wart and a 4-inch finesse worm. His largest fish of the day, a 5-pound, 13-ounce lunker, earned him big bass honors in the Pro Division and $500.
“I would rather not be leading, but I think I can catch fish again tomorrow.” Tutts said after catching five bass weighing 15 pounds, 1 ounce Thursday to secure the lead over runner-up Jeff Stevens of Terre Haute, Ind., who caught 25 pounds, 11 ounces over two days. “Beaver Lake is producing some pretty good fish right now. Hopefully I’ll catch five more bass and make it another day.”
Rounding out the top five spots in the Pro Division were: Keith Brashers of Roger, Ark., with 25-8; Joe Gundel of Seligman, Mo., with 25-7; and Carl Svebek III of Sam Rayburn, Texas, with 24-2.
In the Co-Angler Division, rookie Jeff McCoy, 25, of Huntsville, Ark., leads the field with a two-day total of nine bass weighing 19-14.
“I fish a lot of local tournaments,” said McCoy. “I started fishing EverStart because I wanted to do something different and take my tournament fishing to another level.”
Finishing round one in second through fifth place in the Co-Angler Division were: Cary Lodl of Scribner, Neb., with 18-12; Hoot Gibson of Bryant, Ark., with 17-3; Ronnie Hopkins of Bixby, Okla., with 16-2; and Nathan Stratton of Little Rock, Ark., with 15-7.
Big bass honors in the Co-Angler Division and $300 went to Malcolm Hayes of Dallas, Ga., for a 4-pound, 9-ounce bass.
On Friday, anglers will start over and fish for one day to determine the top 10 pros and co-anglers who will compete in Saturday’s final round. The winning pro will receive $10,000 cash and an Evinrude- or Johnson-powered Ranger bass boat. The winning co-angler will collect $6,000.
Competition begins at 7 a.m. each day at Prairie Creek Marina on Prairie Creek Drive in Rogers, Ark. Friday’s weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. at the same location, and Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 2110 West Walnut in Rogers at 4 p.m.
The three-year-old EverStart Series is comprised of two divisions, Eastern and Central, with four multi-day events per division. The top 75 pros and co-anglers from each division will advance to the year-end EverStart Invitational Challenge at Cypress Gardens, Fla., which features a $360,000 purse.
Over the course of the season, the EverStart Series awards anglers up to $1.7 million in cash and prizes. It also provides a pathway to the prestigious Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the richest tournament series in history. Winning anglers in the Pro and Co-Angler Divisions of each EverStart tournament, as well as the overall top 10 anglers, based on a system of points and pounds, receive priority entry in the 2001 FLW Tour.
The series’ title sponsor, EverStart Batteries, is the No. 1 retail selling automotive and marine battery brand in the world.