MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Randy Blaukat of Joplin, Mo., turned in an impressive catch of five bass weighing 21 pounds, 14 ounces Wednesday on opening day of the $500,000 Wal-Mart FLW Tour stop in Memphis. The catch came despite dropping water levels and a stiff southwest wind that made fishing the mighty Mississippi difficult at best.
The wind – at times gusting over 20 mph – wasn’t enough, however, to deter Blaukat and several other anglers from making a 180-mile run south past Millwood Lake to better fishing.
“It took me about three hours to get to my spot this morning,” said Blaukat, who is leading the field toward a $100,000 first-place award. “Once I got there I only fished for an hour and a half before I had to make the run back to weigh-in. It took about three hours and 40 minutes coming back against the current.”
Blaukat caught his best fish flipping a jig to isolated wood just 15 minutes before his return run. “The water dropped about 2 feet and it’s going to drop another 3 feet tomorrow,” he said. “The place where I’m fishing is going to fish different each day of the tournament. A couple of the places I fished today will be dry tomorrow.”
Finishing the day in second and third positions in the Pro Division were Allen Armour of Dallas, Ga., with five bass weighing 20-12 and Rick Gasaway of Kennesaw, Ga., with five bass weighing 20-11.
In the Co-Angler Division, Michael Roberts of Tunica, Miss., jumped to an early lead after landing four bass that tipped the scales at 13-4. The co-angler champion will receive $15,000.
Rounding out the top three co-angler spots were Tom Hunley of Stamping Ground, Ky., with four bass weighing 12-10 and T.R. Fuller of Auburn, Ala., with four bass weighing 11-6.
Big bass and $750 in the Pro Division went to Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ark., for a 7-pound, 9-ounce largemouth. Stoney Stone of Griffin, Ga., claimed big bass in the Co-Angler Division with a 6-pound, 4-ounce largemouth worth $500.
The pro or co-angler that catches the biggest bass during the first two days of competition will receive $1,000 from Coca-Cola. At the end of the season, Coca-Cola also will award $5,000 for the biggest bass of the year. Co-Angler Quinten Stacy of Bassett, Va., is leading the Coca-Cola Big Bass race with an 8-pound, 10-ounce largemouth he caught on Lake Murray near Lexington, S.C.
Overall, 491 bass weighing 1,381 pounds, 11 ounces were brought to the scales, including 36 five-bass limits.
On Thursday, the field of 175 pros and 175 co-anglers will set out again to add to their first day’s catch in hopes of securing one of 10 slots available in Friday’s second round. During the second round, anglers start over and compete for one day to determine the top five pros that will advance to Saturday’s final round. Co-angler competition ends Friday.
If a competitor catches a state record largemouth, smallmouth or spotted bass during the tournament, Visa USA will award the angler $1 million as part of the Visa $2 Million Challenge. Visa will also award an additional $1 million to the angler’s randomly selected fan partner. No product purchase is necessary to participate.
Competition resumes at 6 a.m. Thursday at Mud Island River Park followed by a 3 p.m. weigh-in at Jefferson Davis Park. Friday’s takeoff starts at 8 a.m., and the weigh-in begins at 5 p.m. at the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 8400 Highway 64 in Bartlett, Tenn. Saturday’s final weigh-in at the Wal-Mart Supercenter begins at 3:30 p.m. The final weigh-in will be broadcast live via satellite to the electronics departments of Wal-Mart stores nationwide. It also will air June 3 as part of the Wal-Mart FLW Tour series on ESPN at noon EST.
The tournament, presented by Coca-Cola, features colorful NASCAR-styled Chevy tow vehicles and Ranger Comanche fishing machines that are used by competitors during the final two rounds of competition.