Bright hopes for final round

Sunshine may return for last day of Stren action on Kentucky-Barkley lakes

Gilbertsville, Ky. – After a day spent in rain jackets, Stren Central Division anglers may actually need sunscreen toward the end of their final round of competition on Kentucky-Barkley lakes.

Skies remained cloudy for all of day two, with sporadic storms delivering wet, windy conditions across much of the area. Day three dawned with parking lot puddles from the previous night’s storm, but thinning cloud cover is expected to break open by late morning. Midday fishing should be warmed by partly sunny skies and that suits seventh place pro Craig Powers just fine.

Hailing from Rockwood, Tenn. Powers sits 2 pounds, 6 ounces out of the lead with 36-2. He believes there’s plenty of good fishing to be found around the shoreline brush, but not necessarily with the flipping tactics that many have employed this week.

“I’m starting off deep, but as soon as the sun gets up and the deep bite goes away, I’m going Pop-R fishing,” Powers said. “I like the sun because it’s like current – it positions fish. When they get tighter to those buck bushes later in the day, that Pop-R really (excels).

“My dad taught me how to cast and when you can cast that Pop-R right in the middle of one of those buck bushes and it doesn’t even make a ripple, the fish willl come up and hit it right away. It’s like sitting in your living room and you see someone walk by, you don’t think a whole lot of it. But if you’re sitting in your recliner watching TV and all of sudden someone’s right there in your face, you’re going to react to that. Bass are the same way.”

On this important day, Powers won’t trust his fortune to just any lure. Only a plug with a proven track record will do, and that’s how he described the well-worn Pop-R tied on his baitcaster.

“This plug’s name is Geronimo and there’s a reason behind that,” Powers said. “What was Geronimo? He was a warrior. This plug is a warrior and it’s game day, baby.”

Leading the pro field since day one, Paris, Tenn. pro Tommy Ellis holds a lead of just 15 ounces with his 38-8 total. Ellis bagged 24-4 on day one and 14-4 on day two by flipping a Texas-rigged Strike King Rodent in the bushes, but he’ll modify his game plan today.

“I might change things up a little and throw a crankbait,” he said. “I haven’t done that (this week), but I know some deeper places in the area I’ve been flipping and I’m going to try that because the fish are moving out. I’ll be looking at the first point or the first break after the spawning pockets.”

Ellis is joined by top co-angler Brian Somrek, who also topped his division on days one and two. Somrek fared well on day two with a Rat-L-trap, so he’ll throw the lipless crank again today.

Second place pro Mike Ward of Paris, Tenn. will commit his day to flipping bushes with a Texas-rigged Rodent in the Bama Bug color.

“I won’t change a thing today,” Ward said. “I know there are some fish being caught on ledges and I love ledge fishing, but I think I’ll just stick with what I’ve been doing, otherwise you’re going to waste some time when you go looking.”

With a long run to the south end of the lake, Ward knows the importance of time management, but he’ll also need plenty of resolve to deal with what will be a crowded scenario. “There’s a 200-boat local tournament down there today and that’s really tough for me because I don’t like fishing in a crowd. However, I have to get it in my head that I can still catch fish behind (other boats).

“You can’t hesitate to go over a spot that another boat has fished. You just have to hope that they didn’t flip where you flip.”

Logistics

Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Walmart store located at 310 West Main Street in Benton, Ky. beginning at 4 p.m. Weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

The Kentucky/Barkley Lake Stren Series tournament is hosted by the Marshall County Tourist Commission. The entire field competes for the first two days of Stren Series events. The top 10 professionals and co-anglers continue competition on day three, and the winner in each division is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all three days.

Pros will fish for a top award of $25,000 plus a 198VX Ranger powered by an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and equipped with a Minn Kota trolling motor and Lowrance electronics if Ranger Cup guidelines are met. If the winner is not a Ranger Cup participant, Ranger will award $7,500 to the highest-finishing Ranger Cup participant in the contingency program.

Co-anglers will cast for a top award of a 177TR Ranger powered by an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and trailer. If the co-angler meets the Ranger Cup guidelines, they will earn an additional $5,000. If the winner is not a Ranger Cup participant, Ranger will award $2,500 to the highest-finishing Ranger Cup participant in the contingency program.

Saturday’s conditions:

Sunrise: 5:50 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 63 degrees

Expected high temperature: 71 degrees

Water temperature: 67 degrees

Wind: from the WNW 8-12 mph

Humidity: 51 percent

Day’s outlook: Cloudy to partly sunny