Kentucky kickoff

EverStart anglers vie for $250,000 tournament purse on Kentucky Lake

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. – Although a series of violent thunderstorms rolled through the area last evening, anglers were greeted with relatively calm conditions this morning as they made their way past Moors Resort Marina shortly after 6 a.m. to open up the start of the EverStart Central Division tournament on Kentucky Lake.

Four hundred anglers representing approximately 24 states will vie for the top prize of up to $61,000 in the Pro Division and more than $30,000 in the Co-angler Division during the four-day event.

With water temperatures nearing the high 60s, anglers should also find plenty of bass up in the shallows awaiting the spawn. Pitching and flipping techniques should be prevalent as well considering the abundance of available grass cover in Kentucky Lake.

“The bass are really moving in shallow now,” said EverStart and FLW Tour pro Koby Kreiger, winner of the 2001 EverStart Kentucky Lake tournament. “This should be a really good tournament. There are some fish as big as footballs on the beds already.”

In addition to the quarter-million dollar purse, valuable year-end points totals will be up for grabs as well. Anglers will receive 200 points for a first-place finish, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on. The top 40 Central Division anglers in the year-end points-total race will receive an automatic berth in the 2003 EverStart Championship, slated for this November on Old Hickory Lake in Gallatin, Tenn.

Currently, Jonathan Newton of Rogersville, Ala., is leading the Central Division with 395 points. However, Eric Holt of Galena, Mo., (second) with 394 points and Jackie Davis of Willard, Mo., (third) with 378 points are well within striking distance of the division’s Angler of the Year honors.

With only one more regular-season tournament in the Central Division after Kentucky Lake, many anglers have no choice but to turn in a successful performance this week if they are to qualify for the year-end championship.

EverStart action continues at today’s weigh-in, scheduled to take place at 3 p.m. at Moors Resort, located at 570 Moors Road in Gilbertsville, Ky.

Vital statistics:

Sunrise: 6:01 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 61 degrees
Expected high temperature: 85 degrees
Water temperature: 67 degrees
Wind: calm
Relative humidity: 93 percent
Day’s outlook: partly cloudy

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