Big O finals ensue
Cold snap could cool off bass bite even further
CLEWISTON, Fla. – After day three of Wal-Mart FLW Tour competition at Lake Okeechobee, it appeared that all 10 pro finalists at least had a shot at winning this week’s top prize, $100,000, even those who only caught one bass apiece Friday. But enthusiasm for any miracle comebacks cooled considerably along with the weather Saturday morning as anglers took off from Roland Martin’s Marina with steam rising off the water and temperatures bottoming out in the low 40s.
“You can catch some really big sacks on this lake,” Larry Nixon of Bee Branch, Ark., said, “but these bass don’t always like to bite when it gets cold like this.”
Nixon, who caught just one bass weighing 13 ounces and took off in the No. 10 boat Saturday morning, is one of three pros who might have been effectively frozen out of contention by the weather overnight. Rick Lillegard of Atkinson, N.H., and Billy Bowen Jr. of Ocala, Fla., also just managed one bass in yesterday’s action.
The remaining contenders who landed limits Friday still have a tight competition, however, particularly the top five. Ray Scheide of Russellville, Ark., leads with a weight of 14 pounds, 8 ounces, but opening-round leader Chris McCall of Jasper, Texas, is just over a pound behind him with 13-6. David Dudley of Manteo, N.C., Dave Lefebre of Erie, Pa., and Shinichi Fukae of Osaka, Japan, are also just a solid hookset away from Scheide, each with over 10 pounds to their name.
Saturday’s forecast is calling for conditions similar to Friday, which means cooler temperatures and a north wind. That muddied the water and knocked most sight-fishermen off of their bedding bass yesterday. If the low-weight trend continues Saturday, that means the pros who tallied the biggest sacks Friday, Scheide and McCall, are looking pretty good for the title.
Saturday’s final weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. EST at the Wal-Mart store located at 1005 W. Sugarland Highway in Clewiston. The FLW Tour’s Family Fun Zone – featuring product giveaways, interactive displays and games for fishing fans of all ages – opens in the Wal-Mart parking lot at 11 a.m.
For bass-fishing fans unable to attend the festivities in person, you can catch all the weigh-in action live at FLWOutdoors.com with FLW Live. Show time starts at 3 p.m. Eastern.
Saturday’s conditions
Sunrise: 7:13 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 45 degrees
Expected high temperature: 68 degrees
Water temperature at the ramp: 59 degrees
Wind: from the north at 6 mph
Relative humidity: 93 percent
Day’s outlook: sunny
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