EUFAULA, Ala. – Pro John Cox of Debary, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds, 11 ounces Wednesday to lead opening day of the $275,225 Stren Series Southeast Division tournament on Lake Eufaula.
“It was tough today,” said Cox, who is quickly making a name for himself in the Stren Series competition. “The weather made it a little harder on us today. They bit well first thing this morning. As it warmed up, they shut down. I’m around some good fish. I just need that one good kicker everyday to keep me in this.
“I was cranking grass mats upriver today. That worked well but I am going to have to change things up a little bit to stay competitive.”
Cox also earned $295 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 7-pound, 8-ounce bass.
Rounding out the top five pros are Shane Cole of Empire, Ala. (five bass, 17-14); Timothy Williams of Auburn, Ala. (five bass, 17-14); Derrick Millirons of Seale, Ala. (five bass, 16-15); and Ryan Worthington of Middleburg, Fla. (five bass, 16-15).
Overall there were 476 bass weighing 1,256 pounds, 1 ounce caught by 156 pros Wednesday. The catch included 48 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for as much as $65,000, including a 519VX Ranger powered by Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met, and valuable points toward qualifying for the $1 million Stren Series Championship in Mobile, Ala., Nov. 8-11 for a shot at $140,000. After four qualifying events are complete in each of the circuit’s five divisions, the top 40 pros from each division will advance to the championship. The highest-finishing pro from each division at the championship will also earn a spot in the $2 million 2008 Forrest Wood Cup, where they will compete against top pros from the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series and TBF (The Bass Federation) for bass fishing’s biggest prize – $1 million.
Rob Boyer of Lawrenceville, Ga., leads the Co-angler Division in the chase for a top award of $35,000, including a 519VX Ranger if contingency guidelines are met. He caught four bass weighing 14-3 while fishing with pro David Parsons of Dothan, Ala.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Alan Hults of Gautier, Miss. (five bass, 13-9); Aaron Fahnestock of Enterprise, Ala. (five bass, 13-3); Orville Cope of Treadway, Tenn. (five bass, 13-1); and Ben Broughton of Day, Fla. (four bass, 12-8).
David Dukes of Carrollton, Ga., earned $148 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 7-pound, 3-ounce bass.
Overall there were 206 bass weighing 525 pounds, 1 ounce caught by 109 co-anglers Wednesday. The catch included six five-bass limits.
The top 40 co-anglers from each Stren Series division will also advance to the championship, where they will fish for as much as $70,000. The highest-finishing co-angler from each division at the championship will then advance to the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off at 6:30 each morning from Lakepoint State Park located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula, Ala. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 1252 South Eufaula Avenue in Eufaula, Ala., beginning at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
Stren Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of two rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. At the conclusion of Friday’s weigh-in, the field is cut to the top 10 pros and co-anglers based on the heaviest three-day accumulated weights. These anglers continue competition Saturday, with the winners determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days.
FLW Outdoors historically maintains a 98 percent live release rate in all of its bass tournaments.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses of nearly $43 million through 238 events in 2007.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.