Jasper, Texas – A&W Pro Chris McCall of Jasper, Texas, caught a two-day total weighing 30 pounds, 4 ounces to lead day two of the Stren Series Central Division event on Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Evinrude.
Pros are competing for as much as $64,500 and valuable points that could qualify them for a trip to the $1 million Stren Series Championship for a shot at $140,000. The highest-finishing pro from each division at the Stren Series Championship will also earn a spot in the new $2 million 2007 Forrest Wood Cup where they will compete against top pros from the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League and Ranger owners’ tournaments for bass fishing’s first $1 million top award.
I’m just covering a ton of water and moving around a lot,” said McCall, who locked up the Central Division points race by making the cut today “There’s a little thing I’m keying on, but I don’t want to let that out just yet.”
McCall, who won the Stren Series event on Sam Rayburn in March, used Gambler Cane Toads and Gambler Sweebo worms to lead the field going in to day three. He targeted fish in 2- to 5-feet of water using an ultra-slow presentation.
“They are post-spawn fish feeding on bluegill and shad,” he said. “There’s a little bit of a shad spawn right now and I think that’s what’s keeping them up shallow. Hopefully, they will stay that way for another day or two and not go deep.”
Rounding out the top five pros are Ricky D. Scott of Van Buren, Ark. (10 bass, 30 pounds, 1 ounce); Bert Thompson of Benton, La. (10 bass, 29 pounds, 11 ounces); Stephen Francis of Brookeland, Texas (10 bass, 29 pounds, 9 ounces); and Bradley Stringer of Hunting, Texas (eight bass, 28 pounds, 15 ounces).
Francis earned $625 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 7-pound, 5-ounce bass.
Tim Webb of Olpe, Kan., leads the Co-angler Division in the chase for a top award worth as much as $35,000, including a 519VX Ranger if contingency guidelines are met. He caught nine bass weighing 27 pounds, 6 ounces while fishing with pro Kevin Reynolds of Bentonville, Ark., who is currently in 61st place
“We fished sandy points on the main lake,” said Webb, who came into the final regular-season event 25th in points. “I caught a few on a wacky-rigged worm until mid-morning then it died off.”
Webb adjusted by switching to a 1/4-ounce Chompers jig.
“The big thing as a co-angler is being able to adapt to whatever your pro is doing,” he said. “You just have to make the right decisions based on what he’s trying to do.”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Bill Rogers of Jasper, Texas (seven bass, 25 pounds, 14 ounces); Robert Audett of Jasper, Texas (10 bass, 21 pounds, 14 ounces); Tom Medlock of Licking of Mo. (nine bass, 21 pounds, 9 ounces); and John Duhon of The Colony, Texas (nine bass, 20 pounds).
Ronny Webb of Dyersburg, Tenn., earned $225 for the Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 6-pound, 10-ounce bass.
Anglers will take off at 6:30 each morning from Umphrey Family Pavilion located at 5438 RR 255 West in Jasper, Texas. Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 800 West Gibson in Jasper beginning at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
The event is hosted by the Jasper/Sam Rayburn Area Chamber of Commerce. For more information, visit their Web site at www.jaspercoc.org.
Stren Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of two rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday and Thursday, and the top 20 pros and co-anglers – based on two-day accumulated weights – advance to day three. Anglers start at zero Friday and compete for 10 spots in each division on the final day. Winners are determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.