Quick Bites: FLW Tour, Table Rock Lake, Day 4

Walmart FLW Tour

Table Rock Lake, Branson, Mo.

Final round, Sunday

Talent to spare … After scanning the leaderboard at Table Rock, it is obvious that this group of 10 anglers is special. Among the pro finalists, there are three Forrest Wood Cup champions (two of which were instant millionaires), four FLW Tour Angler of the Year winners, one FLW Series Angler of the Year winner, one Stren Series Championship winner and the 2008 FLW Tour Rookie of the Year. That’s all in addition to numerous FLW Tour regular-season titles. “This is probably – no, not probably – this is the greatest top 10 ever assembled at any tournament in the history of our sport,” said FLW Outdoors CEO Charlie Evans. “Combined, these 10 anglers have tournament winnings of over $7.8 million.”

Ozark Mountain Spring … The second FLW Tour qualifier of 2009 was just one of many events Branson will host during the months of March, April and May. In fact, Branson is hosting 40 special events as part of their “Ozark Mountain Spring” campaign. The Ozark Mountain Spring is a celebration of 50 years of live-music shows in Branson. After all, Branson is known for being the live-music capital of the world. But the Ozark Mountain Spring is more than just music – it is a celebration of all the Branson-Lakes area offers in the form of entertainment. It includes everything from collector-car auctions to culinary demonstrations to the international folk music and cuisines of World-Fest. New for 2009 is the Great American Pie Show, which features NBC’s Al Roker as a celebrity judge. The show will be held April 24-25 at the Branson Convention Center. Plan to attend and trailer the boat too, because the bass will be in the aggressive spawn and postspawn stages.

Moe Bandy rocks the Rock … Moe Bandy, one of the most popular country music artists during the 1970s and ’80s, treated the crowd to a free concert prior to the final weigh-in. Bandy is famous for a number of hits including “Bandy the Rodeo Clown,” “Till I’m Too Old To Die Young” and “Just Good Ol’ Boys.” Despite living in Branson, a town with a strong fishing heritage, Bandy had never performed at a tournament. “It was the most fun I’ve had in a long time,” he said. “I am so happy with how this turned out. I think this really proves Branson can support an event of this magnitude.”

Table Rock healthy and improving … Last spring was a crazy time for Ozark residents in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. The area received record rainfall, and devastating flooding caused significant damage to property and homes. The lakes and rivers rose to record high levels, which drastically changed the fishing. Fans likely remember that the 2008 Walmart Open on Beaver Lake was dominated by muddy water and power-fishing as opposed to the usual finesse tactics. It turns out that the high water has had a positive effect on the overall health of Table Rock Lake. When the water level was up, the fish received very little pressure as they could scatter among the thousands of acres of new cover. The stained tint to the lakes also improved the spawn as fewer recreational anglers were able to sight-fish. Now that the lake has come back down, the fish are concentrated and aggressive. “This pond is just getting better and better,” said Missouri pro Dion Hibdon. “It used to be if you caught 16 or 17 pounds the first day, you were on top of the hill,” said David Walker. “Now you need to be in the 20s. That 26-6 (Walker’s day-one weight) was one of the biggest weights I’ve ever heard of for a major tournament up here.” And it’s not just Table Rock. Look at the weights from the recent BFL event on Lake of the Ozarks. The TBF numbers on Bull Shoals this week were exceptional as well. This likely means Beaver Lake will fish better than normal when the Tour visits in two months. “Beaver Lake is fishing great,” said Rogers, Ark., pro Greg Bohannan. “This fall was incredible – the best I’ve ever seen.”

Suggs’ sneaky swimbait pattern … While most of the field was fishing jerkbaits, crankbaits and jigs in relatively shallow water, Scott Suggs discovered a sneaky way to catch a quick limit each morning. Targeting suspended spotted bass in the 30-foot range (water was 100 feet deep), Suggs would throw a 4-inch Berkley Hollow Belly swimbait rigged on a jighead. Each day he had his limit by 9 a.m., and then he would put the swimbait down and search for prespawn kickers in shallow water. “I owe my whole week to Berkley,” he said. “I was doing something a little different than everyone else. I had a deal going where I could catch a bunch of spots swimming that new bait. I probably had 30 bites this morning, but they were just slapping at the bait. I knew it would be good, especially if conditions got tough.”

Shin DQ’d … After spending the opening round cranking in the James River, Shinichi Fukae knew he had to find a new area for the finals. The James River, as good as it was the first two days, was getting pounded with both tournament and recreational angling pressure. While in the search for new water on day three, Fukae unfortunately missed a no-powerboats sign and entered a wildlife refuge. It was an inadvertent mistake, and Fukae deeply regrets the incident. “There were two buoys, but there was dirt and green moss on them, and I did not understand what the sign said,” Fukae translated through his wife. “If I had practiced there, I would have known. It was a bad mistake, but 10th is still good.” Evans issued a statement on the matter: “BP pro Shinichi Fukae was disqualified for fishing in an area where power boats were not allowed. There may have been a misunderstanding due to the language barrier, but because of the rule violation, his weights for the final round were zeroed out.”

Quick numbers

20-6: Weight, in pounds and ounces, of Bohannan’s five-bass limit on day four of the Stren Series Championship on Table Rock.

0-0: Weight, in pounds and ounces, of Bohannan’s “catch” on day four of the FLW Tour event on Table Rock.

2: Percentage of all FLW Fantasy Fishing players who had pro winner Anthony Gagliardi on their roster.

5: Percentage of Player’s Advantage members who had Gagliardi on their roster.

3: Number of FLW Tour victories for Gagliardi.

3: Number of limits caught by the 10 pro finalists Sunday.

Sound bites

“From top to bottom, this is the largest crowd we’ve ever had at an FLW Tour qualifier. This is absolutely amazing – thank you, Branson.” – Evans.

“The first two days were incredible, and I thought I had saved some for the finals, but they weren’t there.” – Febreze pro Michael Bennett, who caught over 39 pounds the first two days, but only 6-11 the final two.

“They’re probably in such good shape because they had so much room in the livewell.” – Brent Ehrler, on why his two bass were so feisty.

“I love you daddy.” – Taylor Canterbury, speaking to her dad as he waited to weigh in his fish.

“That’s a hard one to swallow.” – Suggs, on losing by 10 ounces. (Editor’s note: Suggs is likely the least person on Tour to receive sympathy after winning $1 million at the 2007 Cup.)

“On a clear-water lake, you either need wind or color to get the shallow fish to bite. We had those conditions the first two days, and the weights were impressive.” – Walker, on how the bite changed in the finals.