ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. – Pro Ted Caldwell of Alexander City caught 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 14 ounces over two days to lead the four-day, $256,825 EverStart Series Eastern Division event on Alabama’s Lake Martin. Following Thursday’s competition, the original field of 200 pros and 200 co-anglers was narrowed to the top 20 pros and 20 co-anglers who advanced to Friday’s semifinal round based on their two-day accumulated catch weight.
The rain that pelted anglers Wednesday subsided Thursday but cool temperatures remained, as anglers departed from Wind Creek State Park in Alexander City Thursday morning in 40-degree weather and drizzle. Caldwell, undeterred by the difficult conditions, still managed to catch five bass Thursday that weighed 9 pounds, 8 ounces to lead for the second consecutive day.
“I am on cloud nine,” said Caldwell, who caught his bass using a Davis spinner bait and a Davis jig. “It’s been a rough, raw day. I wish we didn’t have to start over at zero.”
Caldwell said that Lake Martin bass are continuing to stage up despite the chilly weather. “They’ve come this far, and they’re not going to go back,” he said. “I had kind of made up my mind to fish two or three different areas, and that’s what I’m going to stick to. I’m just going to keep doing the same thing until it quits.”
Rounding out the top five pros were Tony Christian of Hull, Ga. (10 bass, 24 pounds, 13 ounces); William Davis of Centerstar (10 bass, 22 pounds, 10 ounces); Joe Nichols Sr. of Ahoskie, N.C. (10 bass, 22 pounds); and B.J. Barnett of Alexander City (10 bass, 19 pounds, 1 ounce).
Steve Kennedy of Auburn and Brian Moore of Knoxville, Tenn., earned $375 each Thursday as the Pro Division big-bass winners. Each caught a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass to claim the honor. Davis claimed $750 Wednesday as the big-bass winner with a 7-pound, 6-ounce bass.
Tommy Carpenter of Senoia, Ga., leads the Co-angler Division into Friday’s semifinal round thanks to his two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 13 pounds, 11 ounces. Carpenter hauled in five bass weighing 6 pounds, 4 ounces Thursday to take the lead.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers were Shane Patterson of Alexander City (five bass, 12 pounds, 9 ounces); Ken Crumpler of Marianna, Fla. (nine bass, 12 pounds, 7 ounces); George Fyksen of Sarasota, Fla. (seven bass, 12 pounds, 1 ounce); and Jonathan Collins of Vinemont (eight bass, 12 pounds).
Randy Webster of Brilliant, Ala., earned co-angler big-bass honors and $250 Thursday with a 5-pound, 14-ounce bass. Wednesday’s co-angler big-bass winner was Robert Mulleins of Cumberland, Va., who earned $250 for his 6-pound bass.
A total of 832 bass were caught Thursday, including 58 five-bass limits. One hundred percent were released alive.
Anglers will start from zero Friday and compete for one of 10 slots in Saturday’s final round. Wind Creek State Park will host Friday and Saturday’s takeoff, beginning at 7 a.m. each day. Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 2643 Highway 280 W. in Alexander City beginning at 3 p.m. each day. The community is encouraged to attend daily takeoffs and weigh-ins.
The winning pro will take home a guaranteed cash award of $10,000 plus a new Ranger 519VS Comanche equipped with Garmin electronics and powered by an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard. If the winner is the original owner of a Ranger boat, he will receive an additional $10,000 cash bonus from Ranger for a total of $61,900 in cash and prizes. Ranger will also award an additional $3,000 to the winner if he is a Ranger Cup participant, and Garmin will award $1,000 to the winner if his boat is equipped with a fixed-mount Garmin Fishfinder or combination GPS/Sounder.
The winning co-angler is guaranteed $5,000 cash. If the winning co-angler is a registered Ranger owner, he will also receive a new Ranger 519VS Comanche for a total of $27,800 in cash and prizes.
Four divisions – Eastern, Central, Northern and Western – comprise the 2003 EverStart Series. Each division stages four regular-season tournaments leading up to the no-entry-fee $335,975 EverStart Series Championship, which will be held on Old Hickory Lake near Gallatin, Tenn., Oct. 29-Nov. 1.
In EverStart Series competition, pros supply the boats, control boat movement and fish from the front of each boat against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back of each boat and compete against other co-anglers.
FLW Outdoors, the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing, administers the EverStart Series. Other FLW Outdoors-sanctioned tournament trails include the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, the Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour and the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League. FLW Outdoors will award as much as $20 million through 175 tournaments in 2003.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services they offer, please browse this Web site.