Shaw Takes Control
July 12, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
Team Kellogg’s pro Alvin Shaw of State Road, N.C., caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to capture the lead in a top-10 field that includes some of the greatest anglers in the world. Shaw now holds a 13-ounce edge over his closest competitor, Team Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio, heading into the final day of competition in the $1.5 million Wal-Mart FLW Tour Chevy Open on the Detroit River. If he holds on for the win, Shaw will pocket $200,000.
“This place isn’t about patterns,” said Shaw, who has won more than $516,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “I haven’t been able to put together a pattern. I’ve tried to put together some locations that have a variety of cover.”
On the third day of competition, Shaw continued to target small isolated clumps of grass, rocks and sand in 12 to 16 feet of water on Lake St. Clair. He said instead of the time-tested method of dragging a tube that is so popular on the area waters, he is electing to cast it with baitcasting equipment and 8-pound-test line. Shaw pulls a green-pumpkin gold flake tube to the top of the grass and holds it there and then pops the tube out of the grass. Most of the strikes occur when he pops the tube free.
“I’ve found the big fish area,” Shaw said. “I got my limit and left today. I’m really going to try and pound them tomorrow. I’ve got about three key areas and I hope I can get a 5-pounder off of each one. My partner the first day lost a 7-pounder off of one of them.”
Shaw said even though the tube has been his primary bait throughout the tournament, he caught his last keeper of the day Saturday on a Berkley Gulp! Leech.
“I had laid my rod down so I could retie a tube, and I picked it back up and there he was,” Shaw said. “That leech is going to play a factor before tomorrow is over.”
Vatalaro caught five fish weighing 20 pounds, 1 ounce to advance to the final day of competition as the No. 2 seed.
“I’m out in the middle of Lake St. Clair, basically 10 miles out from every shoreline,” Vatalaro said. “There’s some grass out there and I found some sandy spots when the sun was high. The first couple of days I marked where they are and I can go right back to them.”
Vatalaro said he’s relying heavily on a tube in 18 to 20 feet of water to catch his fish and believes he can pull another hefty sack out of his area on the final day of competition. Vatalaro caught 25 keepers Saturday from his spot.
“I’m going to catch a ton of fish, and I’m going to try to put some big ones in the boat,” Vatalaro said. “I’m fishing a giant area and I think it’s a feeding ground for the post-spawn fish. The fish are moving in and trapping the perch and other baitfish in these underwater bushes, and I just throw in my green tube and catch them.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros are Team BP pro J.T. Kenney of Port Charlotte, Fla. (five bass, 16-14); David Reault of Livonia, Mich. (five bass, 13-9); Mark Modrak of China Township, Mich. (five bass, 12-09); Team Chevy pro Kim Stricker of Howell, Mich. (five bass, 11-15); Team Duracell pro Michael Bennett of Lincoln, Calif. (three bass, 8-12); Keith Combs of Del Rio, Texas (three bass, 8-01); David McCrone of Minnetonka, Minn. (two bass, 6-15) and Keith Monson of Burgin, Ky. (three bass, 6-14).
Overall there were 41 bass weighing 126 pounds, 8 ounces caught in the Pro Division Saturday. The catch included six five-bass limits.
Tournament pros aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing, which offers $7.3 million in cash and prizes, FLW Outdoors presents anyone with the opportunity to land the catch of a lifetime. Players in the lucrative new fantasy sports league can become virtual pros by signing up for Player’s Advantage, which provides exclusive insider information that could guide them to a $100,000 victory at every FLW Tour stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage will give them an edge over the competition and increase their shot for a $1 million cash grand prize that will be awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Those who visit FantasyFishing.com today can sign up for Player’s Advantage and receive a complimentary $15 Wal-Mart gift card.
Mark Frickman of Grand Ledge, Mich., won the Co-angler Division and $30,000 Saturday with a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 4 ounces followed by Mike Weidman of Burton, Mich., in second place with five bass weighing 17-9 worth $10,000.
Frickman opened the tournament in 53rd place Thursday with five bass weighing 15-01 while fishing with Team Duracell pro Brennan Bosley of Benton, Ark. On Friday he jumped into fifth place on the strength of a five-bass catch weighing 17-10 while fishing with Team Castrol pro Carl Svebek of Siloam Springs, Ark. He wrapped up his win while fishing with Team Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio.
“This is unbelievable,” said Frickman, who won the first FLW Tour event he fished Saturday. “This was my treat for the year — to fish my first FLW Tour event.
“I just can’t describe it,” Frickman added. “To start out 53rd on Day 1 and making it to the finals and then winning … don’t ever, ever give up. Be positive. Do the right thing.”
Frickman credits the Berkley Gulp! Goby as the key to his championship title. Frickman said he caught between 20 and 25 fish during the course of the day, including about 20 keepers.
“I was throwing 3-pounders back at 8:30 this morning,” Frickman said. “It was just phenomenal.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are J.B. Young of Deer Park, Texas (five bass, 16-03, $9,000); Jerry Weisinger of Wyandotte, Okla. (three bass, 11-08, $8,000); Andrew Lemle of Perrysburg, Ohio (five bass, 11-07, $7,000); Team National Guard co-angler Diane Delagarza of Garland, Texas (four bass, 10-04, $6,000); Scott Gibson of Biloxi, Miss. (three bass, 6-11, $5,000); Ron Fabiszak of South Bend, Ind. (one bass, 4-02, $4,000); Team Wal-Mart co-angler Hector Delagarza of Garland, Texas (one bass, 2-09, $3,000) and Todd Robbins of Romulus, Mich. (one bass, 1-13, $2,000).
Hector and Diane Delagarza shared the weigh-in stage Saturday as the first husband and wife in FLW Outdoors history to make a top 10 together.
Overall there were 33 bass weighing 101 pounds, 6 ounces caught in the Co-angler Division Saturday. The catch included four five-bass limits.
McCrone Moves Ahead
July 11, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
David McCrone of Minnetonka, Minn., caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 15 ounces Friday to capture the lead in the Wal-Mart FLW Tour’s $1.5 million Chevy Open on the Detroit River with a two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 42-05. He now holds a 1-pound, 2-ounce lead in the tournament featuring 200 pros and 200 co-anglers representing 35 states, Mexico, Australia and Japan.
McCrone said he repeated his Day 1 strategy and made a long run of about 60 miles to Lake Erie in search of a limit of huge smallies to secure his spot in the top 10.
“The water was quite rough today,” said McCrone, who is fishing in only his second FLW Tour event. “It was nothing like yesterday. I ran a total of about five hours.
“The spots where I ran to, well, there’s all kinds of big fish,” McCrone added. “But tomorrow’s going to be a problem if it’s rougher. I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it because it will leave me with a minimum amount of time to fish.”
McCrone admits he has put all his eggs in one basket — Lake Erie. McCrone said he has never fished Lake St. Clair, which many anglers are relying on for their big limits.
“I don’t have any closer spots I can go to,” McCrone said. “Nothing like (Lake Erie). Tomorrow might be tough.”
Team Kellogg’s pro Alvin Shaw of State Road, N.C., advanced to the final round of 10 pros in the No. 2 spot with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 41-03. Shaw has relied on Lake St. Clair to carry him the first two days of competition.
“I spent all four days of practice there to ensure myself of an easy run to the Forrest Wood Cup,” Shaw said. “The more I practiced, the better it kept getting.”
Shaw targeted small isolated clumps of grass, rocks and sand in 12 to 16 feet of water he located on his electronics while the surface of the water was smooth.
“Everybody else was fishing and I was running from point to point just looking,” Shaw said. “When you have all of that wave action, you can’t tell what’s going on on your electronics.”
The majority of the field that crossed the stage Friday admitted their fish came on a Berkley Gulp! Goby or Leech fished on drop-shot rigs.
Rounding out the top five pros who will continue competition Saturday and Sunday are Team Chevy pro Kim Stricker of Howell, Mich. (10 bass, 40-02); David Reault of Livonia, Mich. (10 bass, 39-02); and Team Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio (10 bass, 38-10).
Also clearing the top-10 cut weight of 37 pounds, 3 ounces and adding to this already power-packed top-10 field are Team Duracell pro Michael Bennett of Lincoln, Calif.; Team BP pro J.T. Kenney of Port Charlotte, Fla.; Keith Monson of Burgin, Ky.; Mark Modrak of China Township, Mich.; and Keith Combs of Del Rio, Texas.
Danny Pierce of Greenbrier, Ark., earned the day’s $1,000 Snickers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 5-pound, 15-ounce bass. He also won an extra $1,000 for having the biggest bass of the tournament.
Overall there were 827 bass weighing 2,484 pounds, 7 ounces caught by 184 pros Friday. The catch included 138 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of $200,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup presented by Castrol in Columbia, S.C., Aug. 14-17, where the winning pro will earn as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award. The top 40 pros after three $1 million qualifiers and three $1.5 million opens will advance to the Forrest Wood Cup.
Tournament pros aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing, which offers $7.3 million in cash and prizes, FLW Outdoors presents anyone with the opportunity to land the catch of a lifetime. Players in the lucrative new fantasy sports league can become virtual pros by signing up for Player’s Advantage, which provides exclusive insider information that could guide them to a $100,000 victory at every Wal-Mart FLW Tour stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage will give them an edge over the competition and increase their shot for a $1 million cash grand prize that will be awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Those who visit FantasyFishing.com today can sign up for Player’s Advantage and receive a complimentary $15 Wal-Mart gift card.
Jerry Weisinger of Wyandotte, Okla., leads the Co-angler Division with an opening-round total of 10 bass weighing 40 pounds, 12 ounces, followed by Mike Weidman of Burton, Mich., in second place with 10 bass weighing 35-3.
“We were fishing St. Clair, and every spot we went to I caught a pretty good one,” said Weisinger, who is fishing in his first season of FLW Tour competition. “I had most of what I weighed in today by 10:30.
“I’m just glad to get my shot at a top-10 finish,” Weisinger added. “Now, whatever’s going to happen is going to happen.”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Scott Gibson of Biloxi, Miss. (10 bass, 33-14); Team Wal-Mart co-angler Hector Delagarza of Garland, Texas (10 bass, 33-00) and Mark Frickman of Grand Ledge, Mich. (10 bass, 32-11).
Also clearing the top-10 cut weight of 32 pounds, 00 ounces in the Co-angler Division are Team National Guard co-angler Diane Delagarza of Garland, Texas; J.B. Young of Deer Park, Texas; Andrew Lemle of Perrysburg, Ohio; Ron Fabiszak of South Bend, Ind.; and Todd Robbins of Romulus, Mich.
Hector Delagarza earned $500 for the day’s Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 6-pound, 4-ounce bass he caught while fishing with pro Rick Marsh of High Point, N.C.
Overall there were 705 bass weighing 1,962 pounds, 1 ounce caught by 184 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 89 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $40,000 this week.
Vatalaro Leads on Detroit River
July 10, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
Team Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio, crossed the stage Thursday with a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 11 ounces to lead day one of the Wal-Mart FLW Tour’s Chevy Open on the Detroit River. Vatalaro now holds a slim two-ounce lead in the $1.5 million tournament featuring 400 anglers from 35 states, Mexico, Australia and Japan.
Anglers set an FLW Tour record Thursday with a one-day total catch of 5,137 pounds, 6 ounces, which was 262 pounds, 1 ounce heavier than the previous record of 4,874-05 set in 2006 on Lake Champlain in New York. Before the event began, many anglers found that the better bite might have shifted from Lake Erie to Lake St. Clair. Vatalaro was no exception, opting to fish St. Clair on opening day despite spending most of his practice on Lake Erie.
“I decided to change up and go the other direction,” said Vatalaro, who has won more than $412,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “(In practice) I couldn’t get Lake Erie to do the job.
“We caught them pretty quick this morning,” Vatalaro added. “Both me and my co-angler caught fish right off the bat, exactly where we stopped.”
Vatalaro said he caught his keeper limit by noon in a big area he was able to roam, targeting weed openings in 18 to 20 feet of water and flipping tubes into the openings he had marked on his electronics. He also claimed a few fish on a drop-shot rig.
“The thing about St. Clair is, the tournament can definitely be won there,” Vatalaro said. “Those fish are definitely growing up. There’s lots of food over there and those fish are healthy. The 3-pounders that were around just a couple of years ago are now 4- and 5-pounders.”
Rounding out the top five places are Bryan Coates of Amherst, Ohio (five bass, 21-09); David McCrone of Minnetonka, Minn. (five bass, 21-06); Mike Hawkes of Sabinal, Texas (five bass, 20-12); and Terry Baksay of Easton, Conn., and Greg Vinson of Wetumpka, Ala. (five bass, 20-10).
Keith Monson of Burgin, Ky., earned the day’s $1,000 Snickers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 5-pound, 10-ounce bass. If that weight holds up Friday as the heaviest of the two-day opening round, he will earn an additional $1,000.
Overall there were 945 bass weighing 2,885 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 199 pros Thursday. The catch included 174 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of $200,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup presented by BP and Castrol in Columbia, S.C., Aug. 14-17, where they could win as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
The Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year title is still up for grabs, as Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., who has 926 points, and Team Berkley pro Glenn Browne of Ocala, Florida, who has 904 points, finished the day in 175th place and 190th place, respectively.
Tournament pros aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing™, which offers $7.3 million in cash and prizes, FLW Outdoors® presents anyone with the opportunity to land the catch of a lifetime. Players in the lucrative new fantasy sports league can become virtual pros by signing up for Player’s Advantage, which provides exclusive insider information that could guide them to a $100,000 victory at every Wal-Mart FLW Tour stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage will give them an edge over the competition and increase their shot for a $1 million cash grand prize that will be awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner.
Those who visit FantasyFishing.com today can sign up for Player’s Advantage and receive a complimentary $15 Wal-Mart gift card.
Jerry Weisinger of Wyandotte, Okla., leads the Co-angler Division with five bass weighing 20-10 followed by Brandon Hunter of Benton, Ky., in second place with five bass weighing 19-01.
“We made a pretty long run and fished offshore in 18 feet of water,” said Weisinger, who is fishing in his first season of FLW Tour competition. “We fished mainly a goby on a drop-shot rig. We kept working areas and changing. We’d get one bite here and one bite there.
“I’m not even sure where we were,” Weisinger added. “We were so far offshore I couldn’t even see land.”
Weisinger took the early lead in the tournament while fishing with Team Kellogg’s pro Dave Lefebre of Union City, Penn., who is currently in 13th place with five bass weighing 19-11.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Scott Gibson of Biloxi, Miss. (five bass, 18-14); Mike Lawrence of Toledo, Ohio (five bass, 18-13) and Kris Thornton of Osceola, Ind. (five bass, 18-10).
Michael Marshall of Dawsonville, Ga., earned the day’s $500 Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass.
Overall there were 771 bass weighing 2,251 pounds, 12 ounces caught by 190 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 108 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $40,000 this week.
Dudley Dials-In For Win
June 23, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
Team Castrol pro David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va., caught a final-round total of 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 11 ounces to win $125,000 in the $1 million Wal-Mart FLW Tour event presented by BP on Fort Loudoun-Tellico Lakes. Dudley topped his closest rival, Team National Guard pro Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla., by 1 pound, 4 ounces to earn the win and 200 points toward qualifying for the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup in Columbia, S.C., where the winner will earn as much as $1 million – the biggest award in bass fishing – Aug. 14-17.
