Goodwin eyes history, tightens grip on lead
Weaver nabs top co-angler spot on day two of Wal-Mart FLW Series National Guard Western on Lake Havasu
LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz. – For the second straight day, pro Mike Goodwin deftly employed his years of fishing experience and expert local knowledge of Lake Havasu to creep another step closer to history.
With the inaugural Wal-Mart FLW Series National Guard Western Division title on the line, Goodwin parlayed a tournament-leading, 13-pound, 13-ounce sack at Wednesday’s weigh-in into a two-day total of 24 pounds, 14 ounces in Thursday’s competition to keep firm command of the overall lead in the history-making $1 million event on Lake Havasu.
While other anglers scrambled around trying to make adjustments after witnessing the finicky conditions on Havasu during Wednesday’s opening round of competition, Goodwin stayed calm, cool and collected.
And then he collected, and collected some more – more bass that is.
“I fished the exact same water, the exact same baits and didn’t change anything,” said Goodwin, a current resident of Lake Havasu City, Ariz. “I’m even getting my clutch bites at the same exact time as well. Yesterday, I caught my last fish with only four minutes to go in the competition, and today I caught my last fish with 10 minutes remaining.”
Goodwin said that he’s continuing his strategy of running and gunning, targeting wood and grass in anywhere from 3 to 15 feet of water.
“I’ve caught most of my fish on wood and a little bit of the older grass that’s left over from summertime,” he said. “But it’s been a real grind. The pressure on all of these fish is just amazing.”
Using a jig with an Uncle Josh Pork Frog trailer to cover plenty of territory, Goodwin argues that if the conditions hold up – little or no cloud cover and plenty of sun – he has as good of a chance as any competitor to walk away with the first tournament title in the history of the FLW Series National Guard Western Division.
“I’ve left a couple of my best areas alone, and there’s plenty more fish out there,” he said. “Right now, I’m tuned in pretty good with my fish. And if I continue to get the same bites I’ve been getting, I’m going to be hard to beat.”
Strader second
While Goodwin may be hard to beat, Phil Strader of Glide, Ore., is doing everything in his power to make the Lake Havasu native as nervous as possible. After finishing in 15th place in yesterday’s competition, Strader used a 12-pound, 2-ounce stringer – the second best bag turned in at weigh-in today – to leapfrog all the way into second place with a total two-day catch of 21 pounds, 1 ounce.
“It feels great. To be in this position, in an inaugural event, with the type of money that’s on the line – it’s definitely special,” said Strader. “But it’s still tough fishing out there. I knew I could blank today just as easily as catch a couple of fish. I lost one fish early, but ultimately I came back and caught five fish in a row. I’ll tell you what, I feel a whole lot better heading into tomorrow’s competition than I did heading into today.”
Strader said he is using a new prototype bait to land the majority of his catch, targeting bass on breaklines, fishing in anywhere from 2 to 16 feet of water.
“Hopefully my fish will hold up another day, and I’ll get to fish on Saturday,” he said. “But no matter what happens, this is just an unbelievable experience. (This tourney trail) is what the West has been waiting for, for a long time.”
McFarland moves into third
Pro Eric McFarland – the native of Meridian, Idaho, who found himself in third place with a total catch of 20 pounds, 4 ounces – agreed wholeheartedly with Strader.
“This tournament is just unbelievable,” he said. “I have a wife and two kids back home, and it’s really tough for me to try and fish back out East. So I’m pretty happy to have the opportunity to fish out West right now.”
However, McFarland is under no illusions that the road ahead of him will be easy.
“It’s really tough fishing out there, and I really beat up my fish today,” said McFarland, who was able to narrow down 20 areas in practice to a select five once competition began. “I’m not sure about tomorrow. But it’s definitely nice to know that I have some spots left where you know there are fish, especially with the tough bite we’ve been having.”
McFarland said he will continue to target bass on chunk rock beds in 14 to 15 feet of water with a combination of plastic baits.
Phua fourth
Meanwhile, Mike Phua of Chino, Calif., used a total catch of 19 pounds, 15 ounces to grab fourth place.
“It’s just awesome,” Phua said. “I’m just really grateful I got the bites I did today. But we all know there are two days left.”
Yelas’ backwater bite good for fifth
Two days left and two more days for the leaders to worry about bass-fishing legend Jay Yelas making a run at yet another tournament title. Using a total catch of 19 pounds, 6 ounces, Yelas found himself comfortably in fifth place overall by the end of the second day of competition. However, while Yelas remains nearly a full 5 pounds off the lead, the rest of the competition probably wouldn’t be too excited to learn that Yelas is employing a secret weapon – which just may tip the scales in his favor.
“I’m using a 17-foot, aluminum G3 boat and trying to stay as light as I can. And that’s going to be the real key for me this week,” said Yelas. “A lot of the guys are fishing the main lake, just rotating from spot to spot, but the key for me is being able to get into these backwater lakes. You’d never be able to do that in a fiberglass boat. I’m doing a lot of push-polling, but hopefully that will give me an edge. I don’t have to worry about fishing pressure, and I’m pretty sure nobody has fished these spots for months. And that’s a big edge. And you have to have some kind of an edge when you fish these four-day events.”
But regardless of the outcome, Yelas said he couldn’t be happier to be fishing out West once again after a nearly two-decade absence.
“It’s really fun to be back and see my old friends again,” said Yelas. “It’s been about 18 years since I’ve been back, and I just love it out here. I feel great.”
Yelas – who caught 9 pounds, 10 ounces Wednesday and another 9 pounds, 12 ounces in today’s competition – believes consistency is important.
“So far I’ve had a great start,” said Yelas, who is throwing a brown jig with a purple trailer for the “first time in 18 years” to land the majority of his catch. “I thought coming in that you could win this tournament with 9 or 10 pounds a day. And I still think that 40 pounds (over four days) might just be enough to win this thing. We’ll just have to see.”
Notables
Neil Russell of Nampa, Idaho, found himself in sixth place with a total catch of 19 pounds, 3 ounces, while Randy McAbee of Bakersfield, Calif., grabbed seventh place with a catch of 17 pounds, 14 ounces.
However, lurking just behind are three anglers that no FLW Series pro would want to compete against in the finals: West Coast fishing legend Gary Dobyns of Yuba City, Calif., (eighth place) with a total catch of 17 pounds, 3 ounces; 2006 FLW Tour Champion Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., (ninth) with a catch of 15 pounds, 8 ounces; and FLW Tour pro Art Berry of Hemet, Calif., (10th) with a catch of 15 pounds, 4 ounces.
Pro Dustin Baker of Lakeside, Calif., won the day’s Snickers Big Bass award after weighing in a 4-pound, 12-ounce bass. His catch was good enough to earn a check for $488.
Weaver snags co-angler lead
Rebounding from a mediocre 2-pound catch in Wednesday’s competition, retired firefighter Larry Weaver of Long Beach, Calif., used a strong 10-pound, 8-ounce catch in today’s competition to leapfrog from 40th place to first place overall in the Co-angler Division. And he couldn’t have been happier.
“It’s just incredible. This is my first limit in a long time and only the second limit I’ve ever weighed in at an FLW Outdoors tournament,” said Weaver, who now boasts the only five-fish limit in the Co-angler Division so far at this event. “I’m very excited, but tomorrow is another day. Hopefully my pro will take me to productive water, and I’ll be able to catch some fish and have a shot at the title.”
Best of the rest
Scott Jensen of New Plymouth, Idaho, found himself in second place overall in the Co-angler Division with a total catch of 10 pounds, 6 ounces.
“Nothing wrong with that,” said Jensen of his second-place finish. “I’m still pretty nervous. But hopefully, if I draw the right partner, I can go out and do it again.”
Rounding out the top five co-angler leaders at the FLW Series Lake Havasu event:
3rd: Day-one leader Robert O’Donnell of Payson, Ariz., 9-12
4th: Jacques Fleischmann of Valencia, Calif., 8-2
5th: Rus Snyders of San Mateo, Calif., 7-8
Hong X. “Sam” Moua of Fresno, Calif., won the day’s Snickers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division with a 4-pound, 8-ounce bass. Moua won $295 for his efforts.
Day three of FLW Series Western Division action at Lake Havasu continues at Friday’s takeoff, scheduled to take place at 7:30 a.m. (Mountain time) at Lake Havasu State Park, located at 699 London Bridge Road in Lake Havasu City, Ariz.