Consistency lands Rogers first Strike King co-angler win
LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz. — Volatility from one day to the next is typically a fact of life for Strike King co-anglers. Fishing out of the back of a different pro’s boat each day, it’s not unusual to see a co-angler bring one fish to the scales one day and then a 15-pound limit the next.
Larry Rogers bucked that trend on Lake Havasu, representing a model of consistency at the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats event. Rogers backed up bags of 14 pounds, 15 ounces on Day 1 and 14-13 on Day 2 with a 15-2 sack on Day 3. That brought his total to 44-14 and earned him the win by more than 3 pounds over Blaine Christiansen.
For his first win, Rogers received a Phoenix Boats package worth $33,500 plus qualification to the Toyota Series Championship.
“It’s like not even real,” Rogers said. “Just a crazy feeling.”
Making Rogers’ consistent success all the more impressive was the fact that he had to adapt to three different depth ranges in three distinct zones of Lake Havasu during the course of the event. On Day 1, Jesse Marquez took Rogers into the riverine section of the reservoir, where they targeted shallow wood and tules. Day 2 saw him fishing mid-depth spots on the main lake with David Valdivia. Entering Day 3 in second place, he found himself offshore in 15 to 25 feet of water while fishing behind Mark Lassagne.
Rogers adapted his tackle to fit each scenario. When shallow, he relied on a weightless, Texas-rigged Senko. On Day 2, he rotated between the Senko, a finesse worm on a drop-shot and a 4-inch Keitech swimbait. All his keepers on Day 3 ate the drop-shot, and he had to grind to coax them into doing so.
“We had to work for it today,” Rogers said. “I didn’t get a limit until like 1 o’clock. I got six bites.”
Rogers attributed his ability to conquer varying conditions to his friendship with Valdivia. The two Riverside, California, natives travel and practice together, and Rogers said he’s learned a lot from the three-time Fishing Clash Angler of the Year in the Western Division Presented by Tackle Warehouse.
“He’s really taught me a lot on how to adjust throughout the days and when the conditions change, to try to read them a little bit and make the adjustments to where you can still get bit,” Rogers said.
Rogers is still mulling whether or not to make the leap to the boater side. But breaking through for his first win after nine years of fishing the Western Division as a co-angler certainly buoyed his belief in his ability to compete.
“It gives me a lot of confidence that I can compete with a lot of the anglers out here,” Rogers said. “How stacked the field is, it’s a big confidence boost for me.”
Top 10 Strike King co-anglers
- Larry Rogers — 44-14 (15) — $33,650
- Blaine Christiansen — 41-13 (15) — $2,744
- George Fedor — 41-6 (14) — $2,195
- Kirk Marshall — 38-6 (13) — $1,921
- Tracy Patton — 35-14 (13) — $1,646
- Colton Underwood-Garside — 35-10 (13) — $1,372
- Joe Balistreri — 35-9 (13) — $1,098
- Scott Bern — 35-6 (15) — $960
- Chad Roorda — 34-13 (13) — $823
- Mike Alvarez — 34-12 (14) — $686