Crews maintains lead at Eufaula

Hawkins leads co-anglers in Stren Series Southeast event

EUFAULA, Ala. – The water continued to fall Thursday at the Stren Series Southeast event on Lake Eufaula. And with every fraction of an inch gone, tournament leader Johnny Crews of Lakeland, Fla., winced.

Crews did manage another limit today weighing 15 pounds, 7 ounces for a two-day total of 37 pounds, 7 ounces, but he’s worried sick about the falling water level.

“Here’s the irony,” Crews said. “I’m not fishing very far from the ramp here at Lakepoint, and I filled my boat up full of gas after practice. It’s so shallow, my boat is now sitting on the bottom where I’m fishing. I actually considered running around for about an hour today just to burn the gas out of the boat so I could float around better in there.”

Crews revealed his primary lure is a 3/8-ounce Berkley Power jig and that he is casting it as far as he can up to bedding fish that are spawning in mere inches of water around thick matted vines and bank vegetation.

“That’s what Bobby (Lane) helped me with in practice,” Crews said. “At first, I was using mono and the fish were burying up in the vines – I couldn’t get them out, and yet I couldn’t go get them either because it’s too shallow. He gave me some Spiderwire Stealth braid, and now when I get one on, I drag the fish, vines and all, to the boat.”

Fast bite pays for Ingram

Yesterday, Ryan Ingram of Phoenix City, Ala., caught his limit in about six casts. Today he caught his limit in about 40 casts. And those two limits have given Ingram a two-day total of 35 pounds, 1 ounce for second place.

“I’m actually worried about it taking more than about 10 casts to catch them today,” he said. “I’m afraid it’s warmed up too much, and they’re leaving my area to go spawn.”

Ingram is targeting a prespawn area adjacent to spawning flats, featuring 3 to 8 feet of water with stumps.

“I’m fishing specific, isolated stuff, and when they’re stacked up like they have been, you get bit on every cast,” he said. “Today I was going too long between bites, and that tells me they’re moving to the bank.”

Since Ingram acquired his limit early this morning, he spent the rest of the day looking for sight-bass to see if his fish had hit the bank yet.

“I don’t want the fish to leave me stranded out there on that deeper stuff over the next two days,” he said. “I want to move with them to the bank.”

Cox third

John Cox of Debary, Fla., is in third place with 33 pounds, 8 ounces.

Cox is sight-fishing, and the falling water is actually helping him. He found some deeper beds that were hardly visible earlier in the week, but with the dropping water, they are becoming easier to see.

“Each day reveals a new group of bedding fish,” Cox said. “I’ve got about five places, and I just keep rechecking those spots throughout the day. Today, I didn’t have a fish at 11:30, went back to one of my spots and a new group had just pulled up. I sat right there and caught all five of my keepers.”

Beaver rockets into fourth

Rodger Beaver of Dawson, Ga., had the comeback stringer of the day – 21 pounds, 2 ounces – to rocket from 51st to fourth with a two-day total of 32 pounds, 14 ounces.

“I connected with them today,” Beaver said. “I zigged when I should have zigged and zagged when I should have zagged – my decisions lined up right for a change.”

Yesterday, Beaver “stayed out” in 8 to 15 feet of water all day and caught 11 pounds, 12 ounces. Today he alternated between deep and shallow.

“Whenever I moved up shallow in the grass, I’d catch a couple of good ones,” he said. “Then I’d back out, try a deep spot and catch another good one. Then I’d go shallow again and catch a couple more. And then back out again and catch them again.”

Beaver estimates that a lot of the sight-fish being caught are resident fish in backwater ponds that spawn early and that the biggest wave of main-lake fish have yet to completely migrate in for the spawn.

“I’m targeting main-lake fish, and I dialed in on them a little better today,” he added. “The big ones are making a move shallow, and I just stayed out deep too long yesterday to catch them.”

Ditch fishing working for Hayes

Scott Hayes of Newnan, Ga., holds down fifth place with a two-day total of 31 pounds, 3 ounces.

Hayes is also targeting prespawn bass in a 6-foot ditch that runs through a 2-foot flat.

“It’s slow fishing,” he said. “I’m getting in there and fishing real slow for about seven or eight bites a day. I think this falling water is helping me. It’s fallen about a foot since Monday, and the fish are retreating off the flat into the ditch.”

Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., caught the day-two Pro Division big bass, weighing 8 pounds, 14 ounces, worth $750.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 pros at the Lake Eufaula Stren Series:

6th: Koby Kreiger of Okeechobee, Fla., with a two-day total of 31-2

7th: David Williams of Maiden, N.C., with a two-day total of 30-13

8th: Chuck Howard of Elloree, S.C., with a two-day total of 30-8

9th: Billy Bowen of Ocala, Fla., with a two-day total of 30-5

10th: Ken Ellis of Bowman, S.C., with a two-day total of 30-3

Hawkins leads co-anglers

Anthony Hawkins of Pell City, Ala., leads the Co-angler Division of the Stren Series Southeast Division event on Lake Eufaula with a two-day total of 19 pounds, 9 ounces.

This is only Hawkins’ third Stren Series event.

Yesterday, Hawkins produced four bass for 7 pounds, 15 ounces on a Chatterbait. And today he used a Senko to catch a limit weighing 11 pounds, 10 ounces.

“I went to lighter line – 10-pound-test – on that Senko today, and that seemed to help get more bites fishing behind these guys,” Hawkins noted.

Mike Mahady of Kennesaw, Ga., is in second with a two-day total of 19 pounds, 5 ounces.

“I’ve had two fantastic partners,” Mahady said. “I fished with John Cox on day one. I caught three fish on my own, and then he sat there and let me catch two of his sight-fish. Today, I fished with Ryan Ingram, and we had another great day.”

Aaron Fahnestock of Enterprise, Ala., zeroed today, but his monster day-one sack of 19 pounds, 4 ounces kept him in third.

Jim Buchanan of Dothan, Ala., is in fourth with a two-day total of 18 pounds, 14 ounces.

Kevin Roberts of West Chester, Ohio, is in fifth with a two-day total of 17 pounds, 15 ounces.

Jim Barnick of Pembroke Pines, Fla., caught the day-two Co-angler Division big bass, weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces, worth $250.

Rest of the best

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers at the Lake Eufaula Stren Series:

6th: Garry Collins of Russell Springs, Ky., with a two-day total of 17-3

7th: Matt Leavel of Hamilton, Ala., with a two-day total of 17-0

8th: Matthew Parker of Whitesburg, Ga., with a two-day total of 16-9

9th: Brad Fowler of Pendleton, S.C., with a two-day total of 16-8

10th: Steve Smith of Mariana, Fla., with a two-day total of 16-4

The day-three takeoff will begin at 6 a.m. Central at Lakepoint State Park.