Hackney hauls in opening-round lead on Lake Ouachita

Greg Hackney of Oak Ridge, La., caught the day's only five-fish limit. Hackney, who recorded a total catch of 15 pounds, 8 ounces, was in first place in the Pro Division heading into tomorrow's round of competition. Photo by Gary Mortenson. Angler: Greg Hackney.

March 13, 2002 • Gary Mortenson • Archives

Delayed takeoff leads to record-low stringer weights, only one five-fish limit recorded

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Despite a four-hour fog delay that clearly hindered the majority of anglers in today’s competition, pro Greg Hackney of Oak Ridge, La., managed to buck the trend and turn in a stellar performance by any FLW standards. As the only angler in either division to turn in a five-fish limit, Hackney dwarfed the rest of the pro field after recording a 15-pound, 8-ounce sack – beating out his nearest rival by more than 2 pounds.

“It feels really good,” said Hackney, who, like the rest of the anglers, had less than four hours of actual fishing time after the delay. “I scrambled out there for the first 30 minutes, but then I started to settle down and get into a groove.”

Like any good pro, Hackney realized early on that he couldn’t start to panic over the lost time at takeoff.

“Once I calmed down, I told myself to just concentrate on catching three fish. I wasn’t even thinking about catching a limit,” he said. “When I finally got three fish in the boat, I felt relieved. Then, when I caught my fourth fish, I looked at my watch and realized that I still had a lot more time on the water. In a weird way, the day actually went pretty slowly for me.”

In the end, Hackney had enough time to catch two more valuable keepers.

“I’m happy that I’m in the lead right now,” said Hackney. “But I’m even more happy that I put myself in a really good position to make the top-20 cut. That’s the most important thing. Now I have a better than average chance of advancing.”

Hackney, who targeted “deep” water with a jig in the “middle” of the main lake, said his goal is to catch another 15 pounds tomorrow.

“I’m going to try and do the same thing on Thursday,” he said. “I’m really hoping for bluebird skies and no wind. I also wouldn’t mind if it stayed cool. But there’s a real chance things are going to heat up tomorrow. If the sun stays out, the fish could turn on at any time. I think you’re going to see some big stringers caught on Friday and Saturday.”

Power surge

Craig Powers of Rockwood, Tenn., grabbed hold of second place after recording a 13-pound, 6-ounce stringer – one of only four stringers to weigh-in over 10 pounds all day. However, despite the clutch performance, Powers said he is concerned he won’t be able to duplicate today’s effort during tomorrow’s competition.

“I put myself in good position after today, but I could easily go out there and not get a bite tomorrow,” said Powers, who won $100,000 last May at the FLW Tour event on the Red River. “I caught all four of my fish today in about an hour. And after that, I didn’t get another bite. I’m around fish, but you never know what’s going to happen.”

Powers, who flipped a jig and ran a shallow-running crankbait throughout today’s competition, said he is going to change tactics tomorrow.

“For the first half of the day I’m going to run up river and try to land some of the bigger bites,” he said. “Then, when the sun comes out and the water warms up, I’m going to come back down and start fishing the grass.”

Best of the rest

Rounding out the top five pros were Shad Schenck (third) of Waynetown, Ind., with a catch of 11 pounds, 7 ounces; Jim Nolan (fourth) of Bull Shoals, Ark., with a catch of 10 pounds, 13 ounces; and Takahiro Omori (fifth) of Emory, Texas, with a catch of 9 pounds, 5 ounces.

Nolan also won $750 and the day’s big bass award after landing a monster 8-pound, 9-ounce largemouth bass.

Fuller leads Co-angler Division

More than anything else, T.R. Fuller knew that a bad performance in today’s competition would greatly hinder his chances for qualifying for the 2002 FLW Co-angler Championship – not to mention any chance of grabbing hold of the top co-angler prize of $15,000 on Lake Ouachita. So, Fuller did what any good angler would do. He fished as hard as he could for as long as he could. And, as luck would have it, it paid off.

“I really felt discouraged coming into this tournament, so it really feels good to have a performance like I did today,” said Fuller, who recorded a total catch weighing 7 pounds, 13 ounces. “I really want to make the championship so I was kind of sweating it out there during the early part of the day. But my partner was on some fish early and I wound up catching three keepers. Today was a good day overall.”

With today’s catch, not only is Fuller in good shape to qualify for the championship, but he’s also perfectly positioned to advance to the finals of the Lake Ouachita event.

“I’m really excited about chances after seeing that Joel Richardson will be my partner tomorrow,” said Fuller, a resident of Auburn, Ala. “He’s a great fisherman, a really nice guy and I know he’s on fish. Overall, this could wind up being an excellent tournament for me.”

Best of the rest

Rounding out the top five co-anglers were Bobby Hendricks (second) of Bullard, Texas, with a catch of 7 pounds, 3 ounces; Don Carpenter (third) of Anniston, Ala., with a catch of 6 pounds, 1 ounce; Brantley Peoples (fourth) of Raleigh, N.C., with a catch of 5 pounds, 12 ounces; and Greg Lineberry (fifth) of Galax, Va., with a catch of 5 pounds, 10 ounces.

Todd Lee of Jasper, Ala., won $500 and the day’s big bass award in the Co-angler Division after landing a 4-pound, 7-ounce largemouth.

Tomorrow’s takeoff is scheduled to take place at 7 a.m. at Mountain Harbor Resort, located 2 miles off Highway 270 near Mt. Ida.