OSAGE BEACH, Mo. – If Wal-Mart FLW Series pros Wesley and Shawn Strader want a little fishing advice, they might want to check with their dad, Bud Strader.
That’s because the elder Strader of Rockwood, Tenn., won the Co-angler Division of the FLW Series event on Lake of the Ozarks, demonstrating superior mastery of the lake’s superdeep bass along the way.
OK, so maybe Mr. Strader had a little unfair advantage over his sons, namely a guide trip with tournament leader Dion Hibdon on day one of competition.
“I drew Dion the first day, and he clued me in to what the fish were doing,” Strader said after collecting $20,000 for his win. “He was catching fish deep – like 30 to 40 feet deep. We fish like that back home in east Tennessee, but not until it gets really cold.”
Though Strader only caught 5 pounds, 10 ounces with Hibdon, he took his deep-water lessons into the next two days, throwing a 1-ounce PJ’s football-head jig out of the other side of the boat into 50 feet of water.
Strader reeled in 12-2 on day two while fishing with pro Jason Abram and 12-14 on day three while fishing with pro Scott Lunsford for a three-day winning total of 30-10.
“The fish were on the points – those deep-ledge, rock-type points,” he clarified. “Like I said, it’s very similar to the way we fish back home, but not until December.”
And what about the boys?
Wesley finished 113th and Shawn finished 144th in the Pro Division.
And while it would be easy to rib the two youngsters for not following their father’s advice, they should actually be commended for having the conviction to stick to their own game plans.
“They actually had some pretty solid shallow-water patterns going in practice,” Strader said in their defense. “I can’t blame them for sticking it out and trying to make the shallow bite work.”
High five co-anglers
David Lawson of Richmond, Ky., who was the co-angler winner of the Lake Cumberland FLW Series, finished second with a three-day total of 29-9 worth $10,000.
Gayle Julian of Bakersfield, Mo., finished third with a three-day total of 26-1 worth $9,000.
Bill Gift of Alix, Ark., finished fourth with a three-day total of 25-6 for $8,000
And Jim Short of Ocean Pines, Md., finished fifth with a three-day total of 24-0 worth $7,000.
Rest of the best
Rounding out the top 10 co-angler finishers in the FLW Series event at Lake of the Ozarks:
6th: Trevor Jancasz of White Pigeon, Mich., with a three-day total of 23-01; $6000
7th: Darrel Stevens of Roseland, Va., with a three-day total of 22-06; $5,000
8th: Chris Malone of Ironton, Ohio, with a three-day total of 22-04; $4,000
9th: Jim McDevitt of Eldon, Mo., with a three-day total of 21-15; $3,000
10th: Dave Dill of O’Fallon, Mo., with a three-day total of 21-06; $2,500