The Stren Series wrapped up its Southeast Division tournament at Pickwick Lake last weekend, and there could definitely be something of value to take out of that contest.
While in Alabama, Pickwick Lake actually sits on the same Tennessee River system that will be hosting the upcoming FLW tournament upriver on Fort Loudoun and Tellico lakes. The prevailing theme at both of these events was and will be: Look for the guys who can find schooling bass on ledges.
It’s summertime, and that means the bass have escaped the shallows and hunkered down on the river ledges, moving in and out daily as the current changes. Certain anglers on tour have made a career out of their ability to find deeper fish on river ledges, especially along the TVA chain, which probably spawns more competitive bass anglers per capita than any other watershed.
That in mind, a glance at the results from last week’s Pickwick-Wilson lakes Stren tournament could yield some valuable clues about what to expect at Fort Loudoun-Tellico. There was definitely some FLW cross-pollination with that Stren event since many of the current FLW pros came up through the Southeast Division and still like to fish those tournaments. While most of the top 10 there were locals and thus not on the FLW Tour, a fair number in the top 50 at Pickwick will be heading to Tennessee next week.
Here are a few names that jump out:
Michael Murphy (6th place at Pickwick)
Jonathan Newton (7th)
George Jeane Jr. (13th)
Koby Kreiger (26th)
Craig Dowling (27th)
Mark Rose (29th)
Glenn Browne (32nd)
Ott Defoe (34th)
J.T. Kenney (49th)
Greg Pugh (50th)
Rest assured, all of these guys know a thing or two about fishing TVA ledges and could warrant even more picks consideration at Fort Loudoun-Tellico based on their performances at Pickwick-Wilson. A few – like Defoe, Kreiger and especially Browne – are also already sitting pretty high in the FLW standings, which shows they’re having good seasons overall, another point in their favor.
Just a thought. If you’re looking for a little extra guidance on your picks for Fort Loudoun-Tellico, a glance at the Pickwick results probably wouldn’t hurt. But keep in mind, there are lot more pros on the FLW Tour than just the ones listed here who know how to fish a summer ledge-and-current pattern really well.