Twenty to win

Stren Series pros believe a limit per day will deliver win on Kerr

HENDERSON, N.C. – Pros fishing the Stren Series event on Kerr Lake this week are not talking about quality fish or kickers, but rather just about steady limits each and every day to go the distance.

Yesterday there were a total of 26 limits weighed in on the pro side, but the consensus is that number of daily limits will fall as the event wears on.

Surviving attrition will be the goal of the week. Filling out a perfect scorecard of 20 keeper bass after four days of competition will likely get a pro close to the winner’s circle.

With that in mind, managing fish will be a key component to this event. Despite this tournament being a cumulative weight event, saving fish for the coming days is foremost on the leaders’ minds.

“If you already have 12 pounds in the well, I don’t think it’s worth it to go to another good area and burn through another four or five keepers just to cull up a pound or two,” noted leader Dustin Wilks. “You’re better off saving that area for the next day and using those fish to fill out another daily limit. The bites are just too few and far between to go culling through a bunch of keepers each day.”

On day one, Wilks had planned on fishing a lot of water, but once he started to build a solid bag of bass early, which included a 5-pounder, he quickly decided to save the rest of his water for the following days.

Also, covering new water each day will likely be a key component as the event continues, especially for those fishing shallow.

Pros fishing deep, such a 7th place pro Dave Lefebre, may be able to grind in their areas for multiple days because the deep fish are more prone to replenish.

But pros fishing shallow, like 5th place pro Mike Iaconelli, will have to stay on the move to find new fish each day.

The day two weigh-in of the Stren Series Northern event on Kerr Lake will begin at 3 p.m. Thursday at Satterwhite Point Recreational Area located at 6470 Satterwhite Point Road in Henderson, N.C.

Thursday’s conditions

Sunrise: 7:15 a.m.

Temperature at takeoff: 58 degrees

Expected high temperature: 75 degrees

Water temperature: 77 degrees

Wind: NE 5 to 10 mph

Day’s outlook: sunny, breezy