Gunning for the big bite
FLW Okeechobee finals under way; Jordon aiming for repeat $100,000 victory
CLEWISTON, Fla. – The top 10 pros taking off Saturday morning for the second half of Wal-Mart FLW Tour final-round competition at Lake Okeechobee each had their minds set on one thing: finding the big bass bite.
They’re out to there to be had; the lake’s not called the “Big O” for nothing. The biggest fish seen so far this week have clocked in at just over 9 pounds. The finalists, especially those within spitting distance of leader Keith Pace, are hoping to at least approach that kind weight with one or two bass today.
“I’m a little bit nervous, but the fish are out there for anybody to win this,” Pace said Saturday morning. “It’s just about getting that one big bite.”
If last year’s final day of action at Okeechobee was any indication, no one in the top 10 should feel comfortable. Or, to put it another way, everyone from Pace on down to 10th-place Sean Hoernke should be looking forward to the possibilities offered at this lake. Kelly Jordon, who took off in boat No. 2 just over a pound behind Pace today, overcome more than a 7-pound deficit on Saturday last year to win this event.
“I don’t have as big of a hole this year,” Jordon said. “It’s just a matter of getting it done.”
If he does find that big bite and takes the win, Jordon would become the first FLW pro to successfully defend his title in subsequent years on the same lake since Gary Klein did it at the Mississippi River in 1999 and 2000.
But it is by no means a done deal for Jordon. Looming right behind him and Pace are 2004 FLW Angler of the Year Shinichi Fukae and another former FLW Lake Okeechobee champion, David Fritts (2001).
The winner’s take at this event is $100,000.
Saturday’s final weigh-in begins at 4 p.m. Eastern time at the Wal-Mart store located at 1005 W. Sugarland Highway in Clewiston. The free Family Fun Zone – which features interactive displays, product samples and games – opens to the public at 11 a.m.
Saturday’s conditions:
Sunrise: 7:13 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 72 degrees
Expected high temperature: 80 degrees
Wind: ESE 14 mph
Maximum humidity: 70 percent
Day’s outlook: partly cloudy