Tight race on final day at Eufaula
Top three pros within 3 ounces of each other
EUFAULA, Ala. – The rain that was predicted to fall this morning dissipated, leaving behind mostly sunny skies and much warmer morning temperatures than Stren Series Southeast Division competitors have seen on Lake Eufaula all week.
Though the first three days of the tournament were hallmarked by a blazing sunshine all day long, today’s partly cloudy conditions probably won’t do much to hinder the bite. The Eufaula bite finally got cranked up yesterday after two days that brought good catches but complaints from competitors that conditions were tough.
Complicating matters was a 24-7 drawing down of the water levels by the Corps of Engineers, preceded by a cold front last seen at Wednesday morning’s bitter takeoff. The Eufaula bass had been making their way to the banks to spawn, but the cold front spooked them, and the falling water levels forced them out deeper.
But Eufaula this time of year usually provides a hot sight-fishing, prespawn-spawning bite, and competitors fished as such, certainly bringing in good fish on days one and two, but many of them weren’t consistent. Yesterday, though, the pulling of the water stopped, and the bite responded accordingly, as it had been predicted to do.
Several of the top 10 pros improved their day-two weight on day three, some by a large margin and some by a hair. Currently leading the Pro Division is Jesse Draime of Long Beach, Miss., with a three-day catch of 44 pounds, 3 ounces. He caught 13-4 on day one but busted a 17-3 sack on day two, following that up with four bass weighing 13-12 on day three.
Draime sits only 1 ounce in front of No. 2 Todd Auten of Lake Wylie, S.C., who is only 2 ounces ahead of No. 3 Ryan Ingram, last year’s winner. No. 10 Alex Ormand caught 37-12 over three days to put himself just 6 pounds, 7 ounces behind Draime, and judging by the winners of the big-bass awards this week, that’s less than one solid Eufaula bass behind the leader.
On the co-angler side, Alan Hults of Gautier, Miss., struggled yesterday but retained a sizable lead over his nearest competition, as he is currently out front by 6 pounds, 12 ounces.
The top 10 pros and co-anglers will weigh in their final catches today at 4 p.m. at the Wal-Mart store located at 1252 S. Eufaula Ave. in Eufaula.
Saturday’s conditions
Sunrise: 5:57 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 55 degrees
Expected high temperature: 75 degrees
Wind: NE at 2 mph
Maximum humidity: 55 percent
Day’s outlook: partly cloudy