FLW pros take off for final day of regular season
Horton leads chase for $200,000
FLORENCE, Ala. – Local pro veteran Tim Horton leads the hunt for the $200,000 top prize on the final day of competition at the 2003 Forrest Wood Open, but he’s going to have to fend off a charge from some of the Wal-Mart FLW Tour’s top pros to clinch victory. Four other pro finalists sit within 5 pounds of the leader and are looking to pounce on the big payout should Horton make one false move in the final round of this tournament.
From nearby Muscle Shoals, Ala., Horton is fishing his first FLW event since 2001. He has one prior top-10 finish, in 1997, but has yet to contend for a title. Calm and focused, he said nerves weren’t really a factor at takeoff Saturday morning.
Perhaps they should be. His top three pursuers – Aaron Martens, Scott Martin and Kevin VanDam – each have either already won an FLW event or finished second. Martens, who finished second at the FLW Wheeler tourney last season, has the best shot to catch Horton. He’s just 2 pounds, 9 ounces behind the leader.
Pretty much all of the finalists will come out as winners despite what happens in Saturday’s showdown, especially the top two. At this event – which is presented by Kellogg’s – the pro winner, as mentioned, receives $200,000 and the runner-up receives $100,000.
Saturday’s final weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. at the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 3100 Hough Road in Florence. The free Family Fun Zone opens at 11 a.m.
For FLW fans unable to attend the weigh-in in person, you can catch real-time results at FLWOutdoors.com with FLW Live™. It’s easy, and it’s free. Come back to FLWOutdoors.com at 3 p.m. Central Daylight Time and watch the drama unfold at Wheeler Lake as it happens.
Saturday’s conditions
Sunrise: 5:38 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 64 degrees
Expected high temperature: 85 degrees
Water temperature at the ramp: 79 degrees
Wind: from the east at 5 mph
Relative humidity: 70 percent
Day’s outlook: sunny
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