PAYSON, Ariz. – The EverStart Series is headed to Lake Roosevelt Feb. 17-19 for the second of four stops in the Western Division. As many as 300 pro and co-anglers will be competing for top awards up to $35,000 plus a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard for the pro and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard plus $5,000 for the co-angler.
“It turned real cold last week which pushed the fish back into their winter time patterns,” said pro Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., who has two FLW Outdoors top-10 finishes in the past two years on Lake Roosevelt. “The fishing is not bad, there will be a lot of fish caught. The key is going to be consistently catching that kicker fish each day. Follow the shad and crawdads and you’ll find the fish. There are going to be a lot of checks won with the Roboworm at this tournament.”
Anglers will take off from Cholla Recreation Site located five miles northwest of Roosevelt Dam on Highway 188 in Roosevelt, Ariz., at 7 each morning. Weigh-ins on Thursday and Friday will be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Walmart located at 300 North Beeline Highway in Payson beginning at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
Pros will fish for a top award of $35,000 plus a 198VX Ranger boat with 200-horsepower outboard if Ranger Cup guidelines are met. Co-anglers will cast for a top award consisting of a Ranger 177TR with 90-horsepower outboard and $5,000 if Ranger Cup guidelines are met.
The EverStart Series consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western. Each division consists of four tournaments and competitors will be vying for valuable points in each division that could earn them the Strike King Angler of the Year title along with $5,000 for the pro and $2,000 for the co-angler. The top 40 pros and co-anglers from each respective division will qualify for the EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30.
The EverStart Series tournament on Lake Roosevelt is being hosted by the Town of Payson.
About FLW Outdoors
FLW Outdoors is the largest tournament-fishing organization in the world, offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 191 tournaments in 2011. FLW Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing at FantasyFishing.com, where competitors can play for free as well as sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge.