Open for interpretation
With time running out, Wal-Mart Open anglers desperately try to solve Beaver Lake’s piscatorial puzzle as Friday’s top-10 cut looms
ROGERS, Ark. – As the full field of 400 pros and co-anglers departed Prairie Creek Marina shortly after 6:30 a.m. Friday, the majority of the field undoubtedly will spend a good portion of the day searching for the keys to unlocking the current mystery of the fickle bite at Beaver Lake. However, one thing is clear: It’s not going to be easy.
With only eight anglers managing a limit 11 pounds or greater during yesterday’s competition, it’s quite obvious that more than just a few competitors are still scrambling to figure out what exactly the fish are doing in the 28,000-acre, gin-clear impoundment known as Beaver Lake.
“It seems like some bass are in a foot of water, some are suspended on deep trees, and others are suspended out in the middle of nowhere, kind of in no-man’s land, where only the stripers usually dare to roam,” said FLW Tour pro Jim Moynagh. “A lot of the fish are moving from the spawn to their summertime ways. The key is just trying to chase down these fish. Bass here are really finicky. And what works one day, doesn’t always work the next.”
Another problem that anglers are facing is the residual effects of a cold front that moved through the area just prior to the start of the tournament.
“This front really knocked the fish out of whack,” said Moynagh. “The front came through Tuesday, and you could really notice the difference in the fish’s behavior by Wednesday. Before the front came, the fish were really aggressive. In the morning, the bass were busting on the surface, but you really don’t see that now. The fish are very lethargic. They’re just very hard to find right now.”
Unfortunately for the anglers, time is of the essence. With only one day of competition left before the top-10 cut is announced, the field has precious little time to come up with answers.
The competition
After Friday’s events, both the pro and co-angler divisions will be whittled down to the 10 anglers who have recorded the largest two-day stringers over the course of Thursday and Friday. During the start of Saturday’s competition, weights will be zeroed out for all competitors and the top 10 will start from scratch. Co-anglers will fish one final day and whoever brings in the largest stringer will be awarded the top prize of $40,000. Meanwhile, the $200,000 first-place prize in the Pro Division will go to the angler who weighs in the largest two-day combined stringer during Saturday and Sunday’s action.
Currently, Andy Montgomery of Blacksburg, S.C., leads all pros with a one-day weight of 13 pounds, 11 ounces. Pete Bridges of Tallapoosa, Ga., holds the top spot in the Co-angler Division with a total catch of 9 pounds, 11 ounces.
Friday’s weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. Central time at Prairie Creek Marina, located at 1 Prairie Creek Marina Drive in Rogers, Ark.
Friday’s conditions
Sunrise: 6:08 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 50 degrees
Expected high temperature: 74 degrees
Water temperature: 70-75 degrees
Wind: ESE at 8 mph
Maximum humidity: 45 percent
Day’s outlook: mostly sunny