Consistency counts at Red River

Morgan leads EverStart Series Central Division event with two solid limits

NATCHITOCHES, La. – The Red River has shown little pity to those in the EverStart Series Central Division who stumbled on day one and hoped for a big comeback on day two.

Consistent catches over two days have been the key to topping the leaderboard at the Red River.

Trey Morgan of Goldonna, La., provided a good example of that consistency today by following up his day-one weight of 15 pounds, 3 ounces with another solid limit weighing 12 pounds, 13 ounces for a two-day total of 28 pounds even, which put him in the lead.

Morgan is flipping soft plastics in backwater oxbows in Pool Four.

“I went to my primary place this morning and caught three fish that weighed about 11 pounds in 45 minutes and then left,” Morgan said. “From there I went scouting other water and picked up another keeper.

“I feel confident that there are still plenty of good fish in my best area,” he said. “There were a few boats in there today, but most of them honored my water and didn’t hurt it too much.”

Rook second

Scott Rook of Little Rock, Ark., has been another model of consistency the last two days and is in second place.

He checked in 13 pounds, 11 ounces yesterday and 12 pounds, 11 ounces today for a two-day total of 26 pounds, 6 ounces.

“I’m making a long run and locking twice, so I only have about three and a half to four hours of fishing time each day,” Rook said. “I’ve got one little area that does not have a lot of fish in it, but they seem to be good ones.”

Rook is looking forward to better conditions tomorrow.

“If I can get in there early, I really think I can catch them good,” he said. “They seem to bite right off the bat. With fewer boats locking tomorrow, maybe I get there a little earlier. Also, I don’t think there will be near as many boats in there as there have been the last two days; that should help me a bunch.”

Maxwell in third

Glenn Maxwell of Crossett, Ark., is another pro who has proven that consistency is critical on the Red River. His catches of 13 pounds, 15 ounces on day one and 11 pounds, 12 ounces on day two have added up to 25 pounds, 11 ounces, which puts him in third place.

Maxwell is fishing a spinnerbait in an oxbow on Pool Four.

“I’m just chunking to every piece of wood I can find,” he said. “It was much tougher on me today. The water came up about a foot, and there has been a bunch of boats fishing the area, so I don’t really know which one caused it to get so tough. I really don’t have anything saved for tomorrow; I’m just going to go in there and keep fishing like I have been and hope for the best.”

Morehead in fourth

Dan Morehead of Paducah, Ky., has also been consistent the past two days. Actually, Morehead has been consistent all year in the EverStart Series Central Division as he was the points leader coming into this event.

His two-day total of 24 pounds, 6 ounces at the Red River puts him in fourth place for now. If he can finish high, he will likely still be the points leader after Saturday.

Morehead is flipping and pitching soft plastics in Pool Four.

“Fishing here is more like hunting than fishing,” Morehead said. “The key is hunting the right combination of cover. Once you find it, catching them is easy.”

That “right combination” of cover for the 2003 FLW Tour Angler of the Year is wood in grass.

“I don’t need this water to keep rising like it’s doing,” he said. “It’s coming up fast, and, if it comes up any higher, I won’t be able to see those wood targets in the grass and it’s going to scatter the fish.”

Martin in fifth

Lendell Martin of Nacogdoches, Texas, has also put together two nice limits of bass over the last two days to hold down fifth place with a two-day total of 23 pounds, 11 ounces.

Big bass

Jason Ammerman of Grant, Mich., won $750 for catching the big bass of the day in the Pro Division. His bass weighed 5 pounds, 15 ounces.

Pro stats

On day two, pros caught 51 limits and the top-20 cut ended up being 18 pounds, 12 ounces.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 in the Pro Division are Robert Robinson of Mobile, Ala., in sixth with a two-day total of 23 pounds, 8 ounces; Toby Hartsell of Livingston, Texas, in seventh with a two-day total of 22 pounds, 4 ounces; Kelby Waldrip of Bloomington, Ind., in eighth with a two-day total of 21 pounds, 13 ounces; Kenneth Sheets of Pevely, Mo., in ninth with a two-day total of 21 pounds, 8 ounces; and Charles King of Shreveport, La., in 10th with a two-day total of 12 pounds, 1 ounces.

Barnett leads co-anglers

While consistency has been the key for pros, many of the top co-anglers at the Red River EverStart have had better luck with the good-one-day-stringer approach.

For instance, Emmet Barnett of Waldron, Ark., only had 2 pounds, 7 ounces yesterday, but he followed it up with a 13-pound, 10-ounce limit today, which put him in first place with a two-day total of 16 pounds, 1 ounce.

“I caught all my fish from one little area on spinnerbaits,” Barnett said. “I feel pretty good about tomorrow because I think my pro is going to be fishing the same kind of water I fished today.”

Francis in second

Stephen Francis of Brookeland, Texas, is in second place with a two-day total of 15 pounds, 15 ounces.

“I got really fortunate today to get all my fish in the boat,” Francis said. “I was casting into some nasty stuff, and my fish got hung up in trot lines, stumps and all kinds of junk. But I just kept winding on my reel and they miraculously came out.”

Gift in third

Bill Gift of Alix, Ark., is in third place with a two-day total of 15 pounds, 1 ounce thanks to a limit weighing 10-pounds, 4 ounces today.

Co-angler big-bass award

Bill Rogers of Jasper, Texas, won $250 for catching the big bass of the day in the Co-angler Division. His bass weighed 5 pounds, 10 ounces.

Co-angler stats

On day two, co-anglers caught 11 limits and the top-20 cut ended up being 10 pounds, 5 ounces.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 in the Co-angler Division are Brian Branum of Lewisville, Texas, in fourth with a two-day total of 13 pounds, 12 ounces; Jay Lamb of Kansas City, Mo., in fifth with a two-day total of 13 pounds, 9 ounces; Daniel Armstrong of Fayetteville, Ark., in sixth with a two-day total of 13 pounds, 6 ounces; Tony Cooper of Horn Lake, Miss., in seventh with a two-day total of 12 pounds, 6 ounces; James Jacobs of San Angelo, Texas, in eighth with a two-day total of 12 pounds, 5 ounces; Kerry Barnett of Waldron, Ark., in ninth with a two-day total of 12 pounds, 2 ounces; and Mark King of Gurdon, Ark., in 10th with a two-day total of 12 pounds, 2 ounces.

The top 20 pros and 20 co-anglers start from zero in day-three action starting tomorrow at the Grand Encore boat launch at 6:30 a.m. Central.