ONALASKA, Wis. – Veteran pro Stacey King of Reeds Springs, Mo., caught five bass weighing 15 pounds, 7 ounces to lead day three 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 had a great day,” said King, who has 12 Bassmaster Classic appearances to his credit. “I caught 10 to 12 keepers and culled a few.”
King isn’t locked into a single pattern. He used small crankbaits, a Shaky Head worm and a jig to catch his tournament-leading limit going into the final day of competition.
“The bigger smallmouth are in the current,” said King, who has 31 top-10 finishes. “I can usually get two or three of the better fish to hit. Other than that, I’m just mixing it up and covering a lot of water.”
In addition to current, King is also targeting rocks on the main river and other available cover.
Rounding out the top five pros are Rick Byrnes of Tamaroa, Ill. (five bass, 15 pounds, 1 ounce); Dan Morehead of Paducah, Ky. (five bass, 15 pounds); Troy Eakins of Nixa, Mo. (five bass, 14 pounds, 5 ounces); and William Davis of Russellville, Ala. (five bass, 13 pounds, 13 ounces).
Jeramiah Sifers of Sellersberg, Ind., 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 12 pounds, 2 ounces while fishing with pro John Bomkamp of Muscoda, Wis., is currently in 10th place.
“This is typical river fishing,” said Sifers, who had a second-place Stren Series finish on Kentucky Lake last month. “We are fishing a lot of current and grass.”
Sifers fished a jig and a frog to make his second top-10 in as many tournaments.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Dave Knutstrom of Stronghearst, Ill., (five bass, 12 pounds, 2 ounces); Mark Myers of Minneapolis, Minn. (five bass, 12 pounds); Neil Stout of Onalaska, Wis. (Five bass, 11 pounds, 8 ounces); and Brady Farrell of Fort Atkinson, Wis. (five bass, 11 pounds, 4 ounces).
Anglers will take off at 6 each morning from Clinton Street Landing West located at the Clinton Street Bridge in La Crosse. 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.