LAKEPORT, Calif. – Pro Jimmy Reese of Witter Springs, Calif., caught a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 9 ounces to lead day three of the Stren Series Western Division event on Clear Lake.
Pros are competing for as much as $64,500 and valuable points that could qualify them for a trip to the $1 million Stren Series Championship for a shot at $140,000. The highest-finishing pro from each division at the Stren Series Championship will also earn a spot in the new $2 million 2007 Forrest Wood Cup where they will compete against top pros from the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League and Ranger owners’ tournaments for bass fishing’s first $1 million top award.
The anglers launched in some unusual weather early on day three – a 2-inch blanket of snow. Rain and low temperatures have made fishing conditions less than comfortable all week, and have made the bass a little sluggish and finicky. However, plenty of strong limits have been caught, as evidenced by Mike Folkestad’s leading two-day opening weight of 45 pounds, 11 ounces.
“This front seems like it’s going on forever,” Reese chuckled. “It was crazy this morning to look out and see all that snow, but I don’t think it hurt the bite that much.
“I’ve been catching most of my fish on a purple Roboworm rigged on a Darter jighead, but I caught two good ones on a jig today as well.” Though Reese, like many anglers en route to the renowned big-bass factory, would’ve liked the big-fish-attracting action of a swimbait or the fast, throbbing action of a big spinnerbait in the shallows, he’s been forced to slow it down and fish subtle, finesse-type tactics to get his bites.
Rounding out the top five pros are Todd Woods of Murrieta, Calif. (five bass, 18 pounds); Jim Lyon of Reno, Nev. (five bass, 16 pounds, 14 ounces); Michael Tuck of Antelope, Calif. (five bass, 16 pounds, 9 ounces); and Dean McDaniel of Sacramento, Calif. (five bass, 16 pounds, 1 ounce).
Andy Scholz of Reno, Nev., leads the Co-angler Division in the chase for a top award worth as much as $35,000, including a 519VX Ranger if contingency guidelines are met. He caught five bass weighing 17 pounds, 14 ounces while fishing with pro Robert Lee of Angels Camp, Calif.
Scholz has been catching his bass on a Dandy jig, a lure of his own design, with a Roboworm Zipper Worm for a trailer.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Philip Garcia of Yuba City, Calif. (four bass, 16 pounds, 3 ounces); Mike Nichelini of Napa, Calif. (five bass, 16 pounds, 2 ounces); Charlie Crawford of Peoria, Ariz. (five bass, 14 pounds, 3 ounces); and Douglas Davis of New Castle, Colo. (five bass, 13 pounds, 13 ounces).
A field of 40 anglers – 20 pros and 20 co-anglers – caught 192 bass weighing 502 pounds, 2 ounces. Thirty-five of the anglers weighed in limits.
Stren Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of three rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday and Thursday, and the top 20 pros and co-anglers – based on two-day accumulated weights – advance to day three. Anglers start at zero Thursday and compete for 10 spots in each division in the final round. Winners are determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $36.9 million through 241 events in 2006.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, call (270) 252-1000.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.