Quick Bites: FLW Series Eastern Lake Okeechobee, Day 4

Wal-Mart FLW Series BP Eastern Division

Lake Okeechobee, Clewiston, Fla.

Final round, Saturday

Jones gets hooked … The Lake Okeechobee bass weren’t the only ones getting stuck during the final round of competition. As pro Jim Dillard was displaying his key baits on stage, FLW Series Tournament Director Chris Jones inadvertently got snagged. The culprit was Dillard’s Yozuri Rat-L-Trap. After struggling to remove the hook, Jones said, “I promise you I weigh a lot more than 12-7,” which was the amount Dillard needed to take the hot seat.

Dudley nears $2 million mark … Known around bass-fishing circles as the million-dollar man, David Dudley might very well have to get a new nickname in the near future. With his latest payday of $125,000, Dudley’s career earnings with FLW Outdoors have surpassed $1.9 million. And if you think Dudley is content to rest on his laurels, think again. “Two million would be a goal for today,” said the 31-year-old pro. “Three million would be a good goal for tomorrow. I don’t want to stop. If you set a goal, that means there’s an end. I don’t want to stop. Shoot, let’s go $4 million, $5 million, $8 million.” The scary part is that Dudley seems to only be getting better with age. “I fished a flawless tournament. I can’t recall a fish I missed. I can’t recall a fish I lost. I threw back eight or nine fish today that were anywhere from 2-10 to 2-12. I was just chucking them back. I couldn’t use them.” The all-time FLW Outdoors money leader now has $1,935,342 in career FLW Outdoors earnings and has already qualified for the 2007 $2 million Forrest Wood Cup. Two million, here comes David Dudley.

Canals catch fire … Dudley wasn’t the only angler in the top-10 who relied on Lake Okeechobee’s numerous canals. In fact, nine of the top 10 pros used the many connecting rivers, canals, creeks and ditches to bolster their catches in some way. The most popular tactic on these canals was throwing a deep-diving crankbait in a parallel fashion with the bank. Why were the canals so much more productive than the main lake? According to local Clewiston, Fla., pro Scott Martin, the canals and rivers contain far more stable water in terms of depth and temperature. For a better illustration, Martin said the water temperature on the main lake dropped from approximately 70 degrees to roughly 55 or 60 degrees in just a 24-hour period. But in the canals, the water temps stayed around 65 degrees. Moreover, when the weather is cold, baitfish such as shad ball up and retreat deep. So where’s the deepest part of the lake? If you guessed canals, you’re starting to figure it out. The most popular canals this week were the J&S Canal, which is 15- to 20-feet deep in spots, the Kissimmee River and Indian Prairie Canal.

Strader gets tricked … Poor Wesley Strader got tricked today. Not by the fish, but by Lake Okeechobee itself. Fishing in the Kissimmee River, Strader was experiencing 3- to 4-foot swells. With waves that size, he figured it would be wise to leave early and give himself plenty of time to return to the marina. “I left with about two hours to go,” Strader said. Oddly enough, when he reached the main lake it was as smooth as could be. “I probably could have had 35 or 40 more minutes.” Despite his error in judgment, Strader still caught the heaviest five-bass limit of the final round. His stringer weighed 20 pounds, 1 ounce, which earned him a second-place check worth $50,000. “I got the Lake Okeechobee monkey off my back.”

Chamber of Commerce weather … Its not much consolation for the 190 pros and 200 co-anglers who didn’t get to experience it, but day four on Lake Okeechobee was absolutely perfect, with high temperatures in the upper 70s and just a slight breeze. While the wind picked up a little in the afternoon, there were times when the main lake was as slick as glass, a rarity for a 460,000-acre fishery. As a result of the perfect weather, the Big O fished up to its billing as the bass capital of the world, churning out six limits, four of which were over 13 pounds. Consider that on day three, only 29 pros out of a full-field of 200 boats caught limits.

Quick numbers:

7-11: Dudley’s massive margin of victory over No. 2 Strader, in pounds and ounces.

18-8: Pounds and ounces of Dudley’s day-four catch.

1,934,317: Career FLW Outdoors bass earnings, in dollars, for the Lynchburg, Va., pro.

1,935,342: Career FLW Outdoors earnings, including the Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series, in dollars, for Dudley.

4: Number of pros who caught more than 13 pounds today.

6: Number of pros who weighed in a limit on day four.

7: Number of pros who weighed in, unable to claim the hot seat from Dudley.

3: Number of days until the next FLW Series event, the National Guard Western Division season opener on Lake Havasu.

Sound bites:

“Wow, you’re making a lot of money just sitting here.” – Keith Lebowitz, as a seventh pro was unable to unseat Dudley.

“My all-time favorite hero in the world….Andy Morgan!” – Dudley, who was temporarily allowed the use of Lebowitz’s microphone to introduce his good friend.

“A spot man ain’t supposed to come to Okeechobee and make a top-10.” – sixth-place pro Tim Farley.

“Now can I sit in there?” – 10th-place pro Pat Fisher, who caught three fish Saturday and announced his family is expecting another child.

“Joe Thomas, I remember reading his book in high school.” – young pro Jason Knapp.

“David Dudley is like Tiger Woods. When he has a lead, he ain’t going to relinquish it.” – Strader, the Spring City, Tenn., pro.

“Dudley, you’ve won $1.8 million. I think its time you let somebody else win some money.” – Strader, pleading with the eventual pro winner shortly before he weighed in.

“He won’t get those to the scale if I break his arms.” – Strader, revealing his only option for preventing Dudley from victory.

The next BP Eastern Division event of the FLW Series is slated for May 9-12 on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Ark.