EverStart Batteries Series
Central Division
Fort Gibson Lake, Wagoner, Okla.
June 7-10
Lady Mize on the rise … Kudos to angler Lucy Mize of Ben Lomond, Ark., for her strong performance on Fort Gibson Lake and for pushing open the door just a little bit further for women in pro bass fishing. The first two days she weighed in 22 pounds, 1 ounce of fish, which was just over 8 pounds short of the pro lead. She also shared the day-two Big Bass award for a 5-pound, 12-ounce heavyweight. She topped out in third place on day three with a 12-pound, 2-ounce catch. She eventually placed ninth for the tournament. Overall, Mize caught 39 pounds, 6 ounces of bass and netted herself a handy $4,000. Many of the boys were abuzz about the Mize factor and didn’t hesitate to give her credit. Said Joe Glover of Guy, Ark., her day-three co-angler, “She’s a great fisherman and I admire her. She can hang with any of the fellas out here.” Lest you think this performance was a fluke: Mize is in 12th place in the EverStart Central standings for the year.
Oklahoma, okay! … Think the home field isn’t an advantage in fishing? Think again. Of the anglers who made it into round two – that’s 30 fishermen in each division – 15 of them were Oklahomans on the pro side, 16 on the co-angler side. Of the top 10 pros and co-anglers to fish the final round, five in each division were Oklahoma natives. The pro winner, Sam Newby, hails from Pocola, Okla., while the top four co-angler finishers were Oklahomans, including winner Tom Haynes from Tulsa. Said sixth-place pro finisher Mark Davis of Mount Ida, Ark., “Those Oklahoma guys can flat out catch these bass.”
Fly fishing … Tournament bass fishing takes an immense amount of concentration – just ask any competitor on the tournament trail. No problem for seventh-place co-angler finisher Jeffery Stockdale, however; for his day job he’s a helicopter pilot for the Kansas City (Mo.) Police Department.
All in the family … It was a family affair in Wagoner. Pairs of family members competing in the tourney included the father-son duo John and Jason Bond of Tulsa, Okla.; the husband-and-wife team Jim and Gail Criswell (Jim placed second on the pro side) of Del Rio, Texas; and local favorites Charles and John Carlile (John placed second and Charles placed 12th on the co-angler side) a father-son duo from Broken Arrow, Okla. Onstage, John Carlile acknowledged his father’s influence on his fishing career. “Yeah, he taught me everything I know,” he said.
Steady as he goes … At Fort Gibson Lake, EverStart standout co-angler Fred Hill of Gibsonville, N.C., had another solid tournament performance. He weighed in a total of 13 pounds, 2 ounces and placed 10th for the tourney. Hill’s consistent fishing has landed him in first place in the 2000 EverStart Central co-angler standings. “I’ve had the greatest year of all,” he gushed. “Honestly, you guys run the best tournaments.” With only the Invitational Challenge left to go, look for Hill to be the favorite to capture the co-angler standings title at Cypress Gardens in November.
Mmmm, donuts … Thanks goes out to Daylight Donuts of Tulsa, particularly John and Jason Bond, who generously provided boxes of donuts for more than 300 anglers before takeoff Wednesday morning, the first day of competition.
Quick numbers:
7-11: Number of pounds and ounces by which pro Taylor Hutchings of Phoenix, Ariz., took the lead on day one. He weighed in 23 pounds, 8 ounces while second-place Jim Carnell of Muskogee, Okla., weighed in 15 pounds, 13 ounces.
134: Amount, in dollars, pro winner Newby spent on lures at the local Wal-Mart store the night before the final round.
Sound bites:
“I would have bet my hat and my house cat on you making the top 10.”
– Tournament director Jerry Stakely to Carnell, who weighed in 27 pounds, 7 ounces of fish the first two days but missed the final-round cut.
“One day you’re the windshield, the next day you’re the bug.”
– Stakely, to co-angler Tyrone Phillips of Little Rock, Ark., who blanked on the last day after entering the final round in fourth place.
“I’m catching some of them shallow and some of them deep.”
– Pro Mize, cryptically explaining her successful fishing technique.
“It was kind of tough. You know I had the human seine in my boat today.”
– Pro Chris McCall of Jasper, Texas, who was paired with co-angler winner Haynes in the final round, describing his fishing.
“I only lost one fish all week, so I guess that helped.”
– Haynes, on his win.