GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. – Team Fujifilm pro Wesley Strader of Spring City, Tenn., caught five bass weighing 15 pounds, 14 ounces Friday to lead 10 Pro Division anglers who advanced to the final round of the $256,825 EverStart Series Central Division event on Kentucky Lake. Twenty pros started the day on a stormy morning in Gilbertsville, but only 10 remain to vie for a top pro award of $61,900 in cash and prizes.
Within minutes of takeoff from Moors Resort and Marina in Gilbertsville, a heavy but brief thunderstorm ensued, soaking anglers’ shirts but not their spirits. Impressive weights continued to cross the weigh-in stage, and Strader caught his tournament-leading bass on a Green Pumpkin mega jig fishing shallow along the banks.
“The fish were biting for me all day,” said Strader, a past Wal-Mart FLW Tour winner who will be back on Kentucky Lake May 14-17 to compete in the $500,000 FLW Tour stop on the sprawling reservoir. “I plan on fishing the same spot [Saturday] and hope for the best.”
Rounding out the top five pros are Randy Millender of Teague, Texas (five bass, 15 pounds, 5 ounces); Lendell Martin Jr. of Nacogdoches, Texas (five bass, 14 pounds, 2 ounces); Craig Powers of Rockwood, Tenn. (five bass, 13 pounds, 15 ounces); and Team Snickers pro John Sappington of Wyandotte, Okla.(five bass, 13 pounds, 9 ounces).
Like Strader, Powers and Sappington, the reigning FLW Tour champion, will be back on Kentucky Lake for the FLW Tour stop in less than two weeks.
Mitch Greenwood of Beechmont, Ky., leads the co-angler contingency heading into the final round thanks to his catch Friday of three bass weighing 9 pounds, 13 ounces. He caught his bass on a floating worm in shallow water.
“It feels different to be in the lead,” said Greenwood, who leads an EverStart Series event for the first time. “I hope to do this well [Saturday].”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Ken Keys of Evansville, Ind. (two bass, 8 pounds, 10 ounces); Mark King of Gurdon, Ark. (five bass, 8 pounds, 10 ounces); Larry Regina of South Bend, Ind. (three bass, 8 pounds, 8 ounces); and Ron Bricker of Indianapolis, Ind. (five bass, 6 pounds, 4 ounces).
A total of 122 bass were caught Friday, including 15 five-bass limits. More than 99 percent were released alive.
The final takeoff will commence from Moors Resort at 6 a.m. Saturday, with the final weigh-in beginning at 4 p.m. from the Wal-Mart store located at 310 W. Fifth St. in Benton. The community is encouraged to attend the final takeoff and weigh-in.
Two hundred and one pros and 201 co-anglers descended upon Kentucky Lake Wednesday and fished for two days for one of 20 spots in Friday’s semifinal round. Weights were cleared for Friday’s competition, and the field was cut again to the top 10 pros and 10 co-anglers based on Friday’s catch weight. Weights will be cleared again for Saturday’s competition, and anglers will compete for position and prize money.
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.
FLW Outdoors is named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood.