Quick Bites: FLW Tour, Lewis Smith Lake, Day 3

Wal-Mart FLW Tour

Lewis Smith Lake, Jasper, Ala.

Final round, Saturday

Bennett takes the `spot’ light … When Duracell pro Michael Bennett of Roseville, Calif., fished the FLW Series event on Lewis Smith Lake in November 2006, the weights were extremely poor and many anglers said if they ever saw Smith Lake again, it would be too soon. Bennett finished 107th in that event and amazingly was one of the few anglers who said he actually liked the lake and hoped that FLW would come back to it. Well, he got his wish, and now he’s on top of the leaderboard at Lewis Smith. So what’s the deal with Bennett and Smith Lake? “I really like the lake because it feels just like I’m fishing back home in California. This lake is like a cross between Oroville, Shasta and Folsom – all of which I grew up fishing. Smith has a few more boat docks, but other that that, the water clarity and the way the banks fall off are almost identical – the banks, the points, the water depth the fish are in this time of year – everything just makes sense to me.”

Bennett on spots version 2.0 … Another interesting tidbit about Bennett’s love for Smith is that it’s full of Alabama spotted bass – the exact strain of bass that California used to stock Oroville, Shasta and Folsom. “There are basically four different types of spotted bass,” Bennett explained. “Alabama, Coosa, Kentucky and Redeye – and each one has behavior traits that set it apart from the other strains. The lakes I grew up on are stocked with Alabama spots, so I know them best. Over the years I’ve learned a lot of tricks that I have up my sleeve for getting bigger bites, and those are coming into play here. Even though I’m not from here and this is only the second time I’ve ever fished this lake in my life, I feel like a local.”

Divis nears 200K … With his fourth-place finish in the Co-angler Division today, which paid $8,000, Frank Divis Sr. of Fayetteville, Ark., looks like he is going to be the first co-angler in history to surpass the $200,000 mark in career winnings. Before this event began, Divis was at nearly $180,000 in co-angler winnings. Now he sits just $12,000 shy of such an incredible feat. During his 11-year co-angling career with FLW Outdoors, Divis has scored 15 top-10s, two Stren Series wins and two FLW Tour wins. “After I crossed the first $100,000 mark, I said, `Well, why not go for $200,000?’ And after I cross that mark – which hopefully will be soon – I’m going to eye the $300,000 mark. Who knows where it’s going to end?” So how does Divis do it? The co-angler expert offers two pieces of advice for co-anglers wanting to follow in his footsteps: “First, fish against the fish, not against the pro. So many first-time co-anglers think it’s their job to fish exactly what the pro is fishing and match them cast for cast on their water. I can tell you that’s the worst mistake you can make. Analyze what your pro is doing and then develop your own game plan for fish he’s not fishing for. Going head to head with a pro is just senseless. Also, respect your pro, work with him and, above all, don’t make him mad. The second you make a pro mad, it’s over and it makes for a miserable day. We as co-anglers are here to learn and have fun, not go cast for cast with a pro on their water and irritate them.”

Top 10 newbies … Four pros in the Lewis Smith Lake top 10 are fishing their first FLW Tour top-10 cut: Scott Canterbury (2nd) of Odenville, Ala., an FLW Tour rookie; Jason Christie (7th) of Park Hill, Okla., another FLW Tour rookie; Danny Pierce (8th) of Greenbrier, Ark.; and Brandon Coulter (10th) of Knoxville, Tenn.

Quick numbers

23: Age, in years, of tournament leader Michael Bennett.

12,000: Amount, in dollars, Frank Divis Sr. needs to be the first co-angler in history to pass the $200,000 mark.

7: Number of co-anglers that zeroed on day three.

4: Total number of fish caught in the Co-angler Division on day three.

3-5: Weight, in pounds and ounces, of Lynn Owalt’s two bass that allowed him to win the co-angler title.

20,000: Amount, in dollars, won by co-angler champion Oswalt.

1: Number of FLW Outdoors tournaments Oswalt had fished before entering the FLW Tour event on his home lake.

Sound Bites

“I have to thank Todd Lee (of Jasper) for this. He told me if I got in the tournament and just caught a couple of keepers, I could probably get my money back. Well, I did a little better than get my money back.” – Co-angler Division champion Lynn Oswalt of Jasper, Ala., explaining what provoked him to enter the FLW Tour event on his home lake, where he won $20,000.

“I love Alabama’s spotted bass; they’ve been pretty lucrative for me.” – Fourth place pro Luke Clausen, who won the 2004 Forrest Wood Cup on Logan Martin for $500,000.

“Today, I saw some of the biggest bass I’ve seen since I’ve been here, so maybe they’ll bite for me tomorrow.” – Third place pro Koby Kreiger, on his sight-fishing exploits on day three.

“Thanks for reminding me.” – Tenth-place pro Brandon Coulter, after Charlie Evans told him he was only about 11 pounds off the lead.