Quick Bites: FLW Tour, Lewis Smith Lake, Day 1

Wal-Mart FLW Tour

Lewis Smith Lake, Jasper, Ala.

Opening round, Thursday

The biggest losers … FLW Tour pros Chip Harrison and Dan Morehead have been losing a lot lately – not in fishing tournaments, but in weight. This fall both anglers committed to a new regimen of diet and exercise, and the results have been amazing, especially for Harrison, who has shed 66 pounds since November. “I went pheasant hunting last fall, and after walking for about an hour, I got winded; I decided right then to do something about it.” The first thing Harrison gave up: soft drinks. “I was a soda addict,” he revealed. “I used to drink five or six sodas a day. I simply quit sodas, and in 10 days I had lost 20 pounds – I couldn’t believe it. That motivated me even more. Coincidentally, an old school buddy of mine just opened a gym back home in Bremen, Indiana, so I joined the gym and started working out, which only compounded the weight loss.” Morehead’s inspiration came from a scary incident that put him the hospital. “I was working a boat show last fall and started having pains – I thought I was having a heart attack. I laid up in the coronary unit of the hospital for two days, having all kinds of tests run on me. It turns out my heart was fine, but it really put life into perspective, and I decided right then I wanted be around to see my kids grow up. As soon as I got out, I got on the Advocare nutrition program and started carefully watching what I ate. And like Chip said, once the weight started coming off from the diet alone, that motivated me to exercise to see how much more I could lose.” To date, Morehead has lost 34 pounds. Both anglers say that losing their weight has made a tremendous difference in how they feel and their overall outlook on life. “I actually have energy at the end of a long fishing day now,” Harrison said. “And other ailments, like my back pain and tennis elbow, have disappeared.” “I can actually bend over and tie my shoes again,” Morehead added with a laugh.

When you’re hot, you’re hot … Dayton, Tennessee’s Andy Morgan has been burning up FLW Outdoors’ circuits in the first part of 2008. He’s made the top-10 cut in the first three events of the season, including an 8th-place showing at the first FLW Series event at Okeechobee, a 4th-place finish at the first FLW Tour stop at Toho and then a 5th-place finish at the FLW Series at Wheeler last week. Morgan says it can all be traced back to his Wal-Mart Open win last year at Beaver Lake, where he collected $200,000. “For the first time in my career, that win really gave me peace of mind financially,” Morgan said. “It gave me the freedom to court a few new sponsors in the offseason and get on board with them. And that has sort of carried over into this year. The best way I can describe it is with one word: `flowing’ – everything is flowing, and it feels right, especially on the water. I’m in one of those wonderful periods right now where there is no self-doubt; every decision is the right decision, 100 percent – there is no second-guessing. I’m making the right stops at the right places. Whatever bait I pick up is the right bait for that moment. It’s just awesome when you’re in that groove. I don’t know what causes it; I don’t know how long it’s going to last. All I know is I’m in that groove and it feels great. It’s the whole reason we do this, and I’m going to keep riding it as long as I can.” Morgan currently sits in 68th place at Lewis Smith with a five-bass limit for 8 pounds, 12 ounces.

Lefebre taking risks … Kellogg’s pro Dave Lefebre brought in just one bass today to start the Lewis Smith Lake event in 179th place. This comes on the heels of a 167th-place showing at Toho – uncharacteristic of Lefebre. He’s fared well in the FLW Series, though, with a 14th at Okeechobee and 59th at Wheeler. “I’ve got the Forrest Wood Cup made (through the FLW Series East-West Fish-Off), and I’m taking some bigger chances this year by fishing some different ways,” Lefebre explained. “This tournament is a perfect example of that. There are fish up spawning, and I know that. I love to sight-fish, and I’ve done well in sight-fishing tournaments. Normally, I’d be up there fishing the banks looking for them like everyone else. But coming into this event, I made a conscious decision not to do that; I never spent a day looking for beds. Instead, I wanted to break away from the norm and really get on something completely different. In fact, I had one of the best practices I’ve ever had this week. I figured out a little deal around those suspended schooling fish that’s just unreal when it works. And it just didn’t work today. But instead of panicking and running for the security of sight-fishing, I stayed out there and stuck with my game plan. I wanted to see it through. Ultimately, I think that’s the way you become a better angler – to push yourself into big risks like that and learn from them.”

Quick numbers

66: Number of pounds lost by Chip Harrison since November.

34: Number of pounds lost by Dan Morehead since November.

65,116: Amount, in dollars, Andy Morgan has won in the first quarter of 2008.

58: Number of limits caught in the Pro Division on Thursday.

4: Number of limits caught in Co-angler Division on Thursday.

1: Number of pros in the top 10 from Rob Newell’s Fantasy Fishing Pundits’ Picks after day one.

0: Number of pros in the top 10 from Brett Carlson’s Fantasy Fishing Pundits’ Picks after day one.

Quick Bites

“He showed me how to crank a shaky head today.” – Co-angler Jim Russell, describing his day with crankbait king David Fritts.

“I told my dad to lock it in the gun vault and then guard it.” – Lake Wheeler FLW Series winner Ramie Colson, telling Charlie Evans where his $125,000 winner’s check is located.

“I didn’t think I could catch five fish in the whole tournament, and I caught five today, so I’m way ahead of myself.” – BP pro David Walker, on his day-one five-bass limit.

“These guys are human ospreys.” – Dan Morehead, describing FLW Tour pros picking bass beds clean before he got to them.