ONALASKA, Wis. – Pro Jim Johnson of Lacrosse, Wis., caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds, 1 ounces to lead day one of the Stren Series Midwest Division event on the Mississippi River near Onalaska, Wis.
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.
“I love it here. It’s hard to beat northern bass fishing,” said Johnson, who posted a sixth-place finish on the Mississippi River in 2005 during Stren Series competition. “The largemouth bass up here will chase down a reaction lure much like a smallmouth.”
Johnson targeted flats containing eel grass in 5 to 6 feet of water with a swimming jig. Retrieving the lure at a rapid pace, he was able to get a limit by 6:45 this morning.
“After I got my limit, I locked through to Pool 9 and was able to upgrade a couple of fish,” he said. “I looked for some new water today and may have found a little something, but I have a few places I’m saving.”
Johnson plans to stick with his jig tomorrow, hoping to bring about 10 pounds to make the cut without burning up his supply of fish.
Rounding out the top five pros are Aaron Hochstedler of Greentown, Ind. (five bass, 15 pounds, 8 ounces); Chad Morgenthaler of Coulterville, Ill. (five bass, 15 pounds, 8 ounces); Rick Byrnes of Tamaroa, Ill. (five bass, 15 pounds, 5 ounces); and Chad Grigsby of Maple Grove, Minn. (five bass, 15 pounds, 4 ounces).
Jack Gadlage of Benton, Ky., earned $750 for the Snicker’s Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 5-pound bass.
Tom Medlock of Licking Mo., 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 15 pounds, 4 ounces while fishing with pro Derek Jenkel of Pinckneyville, Ill., who is currently in 86th place.
“I had a super good pro today,” said Medlock, who has two top-10 finishes this year in the Stren Central Division. “He found the fish, but they basically turned away from his lure and ate mine.”
Medlock used Texas-rigged Zoom worms and lizards around wood and grass to catch his tournament-leading limit.
“I plan to drag that worm and lizard all day tomorrow,” he said. “And maybe an Eakins’ jig if I get around some more timber.”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Michael Taylor of Muscatine, Iowa (five bass, 13 pounds, 10 ounces); Brady Farrell of Fort Atkinson, Wis. (five bass, 13 pounds, 7 ounces); Mark Myers of Minneapolis, Minn. (five bass, 13 pounds, 2 ounces); and Neil Stout of Onalaska, Wis. (five bass, 12 pounds, 4 ounces).
Tom Medlock earned $250 for the Snicker’s Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 4-pound, 8-ounce bass he caught on a green-pumpkin Zoom lizard.
“It was on our very first stop,” Medlock said. “I pitched that lizard up to a log and that big bass swallowed it as soon as it hit the water. My pro said we were in for a good day.”
Anglers will take off at 6 each morning from Clinton Street Landing West located at the Clinton Street Bridge in Lacrosse. Thursday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 3107 Marketplace in Onalaska beginning at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
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 presented by Abu Garcia, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, visit FLWOutdoors.com or 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.