Forrest Wood Cup Day 3 Coverage
Here comes a storm. There's less than an hour left to make the top-10 cut.
Quick Links
Live On The Water Feed – click here and scroll to the bottom of the page
Day 3 Takeoff Gallery – click here
Day 3 OTW Gallery – click here
Top 5 Patterns Story from Day 2 – click here
2:30 p.m.: A storm is approaching with one hour left to fish
Have a look at that radar image above. It doesn't look pretty. There's a wicked storm approaching Lake Ouachita. From a creature comfort standpoint, that's no fun. But from a fishing standpoint, the approaching front could fire up the bite.
David Dudley recently filled his limit and is looking at a good shot to make the final day. Zack Birge is probably going to be there too. Mark Daniels Jr. is really scraping and clawing. He just can't find Nos. 4 or 5. He'll have to grind it out to the last possible minute.
Still no changes at the top. Wheeler, Knight and company are leading the way heading into the final hour.
Dudley and Birge working hard, but trying different patterns
Scott Martin has a 1-2 punch pattern. Watch him in action midday.
2:10 p.m.: Pros are hunting and pecking for their limits
Unofficial count: 11 of the top 10 pros have landed a limit. At least four of those have been filled in the last hour. It's slow and very tough, but by weigh-in time this thing is going to be all knotted up.
Jacob Wheeler is the unofficial leader right now, followed by Brad Knight. Behind them, it's too close to call.
Still, the afternoon bluegill-based bite has been solid, not for numbers but for kicker fish. And there's a lot of time to make it happen still. The pros have to check in at 3:30 p.m. CT.
1:30 p.m.: Fishing slows across Lake Ouachita
After what was a very fast and furious morning, the action has really slowed for the top 20 pros in the Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Ouachita. Fish-catch updates have slowed to a trickle.
A lot of anglers are running and gunning now. That's smart strategy. If someone can find some new, unpressured water and land just one solid kicker, he could make a major jump up the leaderboard.
Ramie Colson Jr., Larry Nixon, Jacob Wheeler and Brad Knight have all left their primary areas and returned again at some point. That suggests they're confident the fish are still there, but for whatever reason they're not cooperating all day long.
Skies are partly cloudy, and a steady breeze continues to sweep across the lake. It should be good conditions to activate some fish as the day goes on.
1 p.m.: Midday weight estimates
Here's what we know right now about the top 20, in no particular order:
Baumgardner – 4 1/4 pounds
Wheeler – 13 1/2 pounds
Knight – 10 1/2 pounds
Nixon – 6 pounds
Auten – 0
Clausen – 0
Colson – 8 pounds
Monroe – 4 pounds
Daniels – 8 pounds
Arey – 4 1/2 pounds
Strader – 8 pounds
Biggs – 3 1/2 pounds
Thrift – 10 pounds
Cobb – 4 pounds
Dudley – 4 1/2 pounds
Blaylock – 7 pounds
Martin – 8 1/2 pounds
Wendlandt – 3 pounds
Birge – 11 pounds
Lefebre – N/A*
*Dave Lefebre has slipped our media crew and is apparently in an area with no cell service. We can't raise his marshal, nor can we reach anyone following him. We're hunting hard, so stand by for an update.
Ish is having a tough day, but he's got plenty of time. Hear more about his morning.
Take a look at MDJ in action earlier this morning
11:45 a.m.: Jacob Wheeler has the day's best limit, new leader
Unofficially, Jacob Wheeler's 13 1/2-pound limit moves his tournament total about 1 1/2 to 2 pounds ahead of that of Brad Knight coming up on noon on the third day. Wheeler has bounced around more this morning than previous mornings, but he's still playing with some of those schooling fish. Brad Knight has gotten quiet in recent minutes, but he had a few lulls yesterday too. He'll turn it around.
Zack Birge is the other pro with a hot hand. He culled out a tee-tiny little runt and replaced it with a 4-pounder to bump his limit up to 11 pounds. That might be just what he needs to make the top 10 and fish tomorrow.
Morning report from Brandon Cobb
10: 50 a.m.: Ramie really struggling to keep pace
Brad Knight has culled up to 10 1/2 pounds to take over the lead, while Bryan Thrift, Scott Martin and Zack Birge are already looking to improve their limits and move up the leaderboard too. The real story, however, is that Ramie Colson Jr.'s morning spot has let him down today. He's had no trouble catching an 11-pound limit from the spot the previous two mornings, which freed him up to go hunt big bites in brush piles. Today, the starting spot only produced three keepers. He left it, went to the brush and hasn't had a bite.
Byron Velvick caught up with Ramie this morning. Here's what he learned:
Brad Knight started strong on day two
Watch Ramie Colson Jr.'s day-two highlight reel
9:30 a.m.: Knight weighing his options
About 45 minutes ago, Brad Knight hinted to one of FLW's reporters that his area might be starting to fade. He's considering leaving, and he dug out a few more rods with some alternative baits.
The interesting part is that Mark Daniels Jr., who's sharing water with Knight, just landed a great fish and lost another giant. So the good ones are still there, and maybe Knight's bait change might work for him.
Elsewhere, Scott Martin has three solid keepers. He's chasing schoolers again. So is Jacob Wheeler, who has four keepers for about 9 pounds.
Our leader, Ramie Colson Jr., has about 6 1/2 pounds with three keepers.
The sun came out temporarily, but now it's looking like rain again. We'll have to see if the rain brings back the topwater bite.
8:15 a.m.: Brad Knight has a limit
Here's what we know early:
Brad Knight – 10 pounds
Jacob Wheeler – 5 1/2 pounds
Chris Baumgardner – one small keeper
Larry Nixon – 6 1/4 pounds
Ramie Colson – 4 pounds
Mark Daniels Jr. – 4 pounds
Wesley Strader – 8 pounds
Jason Biggs – 1 pound
Hear what Brad Knight had to say about his day-two performance
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7:50 a.m.: Brad Knight has three for 8 pounds
That didn't take long. Tennessee's Brad Knight scored a 4-pounder right off the bat at his starting area. He then added two more keepers for a total of 8 pounds for three fish. Ramie Colson Jr. has two keepers for about 3 pounds.
This one could turn out to be a shootout.
7:35 a.m.: Rain, rain make the big bass bite
After a very rainy takeoff ceremony, the clouds started to break up as anglers headed out into Lake Ouachita. The action started fast in these overcast conditions. Brad Knight and Larry Nixon each boxed a solid keeper, with Nixon adding a second quality fish after that. Ramie Colson Jr. has two keepers in the livewell, but one is little bitty. Four other anglers have registered keepers so far.
Check back soon for live Periscope and OTW videos.