Passing Sam Rayburn’s test

Top 10 Stren Texas pros, 10 co-anglers looking for lucrative wins Saturday

JASPER, Texas – Winning a Stren Series event on Sam Rayburn Reservoir seems to be as much a rite of passage in tournament fishing as it is a badge of honor. Add to that top awards worth as much as $65,000 for the winning pro and $35,000 for the co-angler winner, and it’s no wonder these competitors seemed as focused as laser beams before the final takeoff Saturday morning.

Last year’s pro winner, Stephen Johnston, made the leap to the tour level this year and will fish his first Wal-Mart FLW Tour event next week on Florida’s Lake Toho. Oh yeah, he’s also fishing in the top-10 pack today, looking for a second Sten Texas win. Local touring pro Chris McCall finally got the monkey off his back here in a 2006 Stren event, picking up his first FLW Outdoors win – and what a sweet one it was in his backyard. 2005 winner Jerry Green went on to fish his two best season on the FLW Tour after picking up his first Stren Series victory on Sam Rayburn.

There are many other examples of this lake seeming to serve as a pivotal proving ground for aspiring tournament anglers. That’s probably because Sam Rayburn Reservoir is known for being a fishery where the conditions and bass patterns can change in the time it takes you to tie on a new crankbait. So the angler who can keep up with those kinds of rapid transitions, who can adapt to them instead of getting rattled, is the type of angler who will do well fishing new water all over the country.

This week has proved as erratic as any in recent Stren Series history on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, dealing anglers warm, sunny days in practice, which gave way to overcast skies and cooler temperatures, which turned to humid warmth and fog so thick it hid the lake … and now finally a biting cold front with little sun to speak of over the course of the event.

There’s no doubt the anglers who win their respective division at day’s end will have earned every penny of their spoils. Currently at the head of the class is Willis, Texas, pro Russell Cecil with a three-day total of 52 pounds, 11 ounces and a 1-6 lead over his nearest competitor; Sam Rayburn’s star pupil among the co-anglers is currently Rich Dalbey of Greenville, Texas, who has amassed a 43-7 total and holds a scant 9-ounce lead over second place.

Tournament logistics

Pros will fish for a top award of $25,000 plus a $40,000 198VX Ranger powered by an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and equipped with a Minn Kota trolling motor and Lowrance electronics if contingency guidelines are met. Ranger will award another $3,000 to the winner if he or she is a participant in the Ranger Cup program. If the winner is not a Ranger Cup participant, Ranger will award $1,500 to the highest-finishing participant in the contingency program. Yamaha or Evinrude will match 50 percent of Ranger Cup earnings if “Powered by Yamaha” or “Powered by E-Tec” guidelines are met.

Co-anglers will cast for a top award of $5,000 plus a $30,000 Ranger boat and trailer if contingency guidelines are met.

In Stren Series competition, pros supply the boats, fish from the front deck against other pros and control boat movement. Co-anglers fish from the back deck and compete against other co-anglers. The full field competes on days one, two and three, with the top 10 pros and 10 co-anglers advancing to day four based on their three-day accumulated weight. Winners are determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days.

Event information

Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 800 W. Gibson St. in Jasper, beginning at 4 p.m. It is free and open to the public.

The Sam Rayburn Reservoir Stren Series tournament is hosted by the City of Jasper.

On the Web

For bass-fishing fans unable to attend the festivities in person, you can catch all the weigh-in action live at FLWOutdoors.com with FLW Live. Show time starts at 4 p.m. Central today.

Saturday’s conditions

Sunrise: 6:49 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 40 degrees

Expected high temperature: 66 degrees

Water temperature at the ramp: 54 degrees

Wind: calm

Maximum humidity: 100 percent

Day’s outlook: overcast becoming mostly sunny; highs in the mid-60s; light and variable winds becoming SE at around 10 mph in the afternoon