California Delta to host Everstart Series event - Major League Fishing

California Delta to host Everstart Series event

Healthy grass has weights up in tidal fishery
Image for California Delta to host Everstart Series event
Stren Series finalists head out for one last round of action on a fickle California Delta. Photo by David A. Brown.
April 28, 2011 • MLF • Archives

STOCKTON, Calif. – The EverStart Series is headed to the California Delta May 5-7 for the third of four stops in the Western Division. The tournament will feature as many as 300 pros and co-anglers competing for top awards of up to $35,000 plus a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard for the pro and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard plus $5,000 for the co-angler.

“This should be a really phenomenal event,” said National Guard pro Brett Hite of Phoenix. “The Delta is very grass-related, and the grass is grown up and they’ve been having some really big weights there.”

Hite said anglers will be able to roam and find someplace on the Delta where they can fish to their strengths.

“This time of year it will be a little bit of everything,” Hite said. “You’re going to have fish in every stage – prespawn, spawn and postspawn. It’s going to be serious power-fishing. You’re going to be able to throw a crankbait, spinnerbait or ChatterBait or even go flipping or throw a topwater frog.

“The fish will be in spawning areas where there’s not a lot of tidal current,” Hite added. “Guys will need to look for the eddy spots where the fish can spawn without the current ripping up their bed.”

Anglers will take off from Weber Point Event Center in Stockton, Calif., at 6:30 each morning. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the Weber Point Event Center beginning at 2:30 p.m. daily. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Weber Point Event Center at 3 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

Pros will fish for a top award of $35,000 plus a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard if Ranger Cup guidelines are met. Co-anglers will cast for a top award consisting of a Ranger 177TR with 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $5,000 if Ranger Cup guidelines are met.

The EverStart Series consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western. Each division consists of four tournaments and competitors will be vying for valuable points in each division that could earn them the Strike King Angler of the Year title along with $5,000 for the pro and $2,000 for the co-angler. The top 40 pros and co-anglers from each respective division will qualify for the EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30.

The EverStart Series tournament on the California Delta is being hosted by the Stockton Sports Commission.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow FLW Outdoors on Facebook at Facebook.com/pages/EverStart-Series/196731477014096 and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWOutdoors.

About FLW Outdoors

FLW Outdoors is the largest tournament-fishing organization in the world, offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 191 tournaments in 2011. FLW Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing at FantasyFishing.com, where competitors can play for free as well as sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge.