Roberts rises to the occasion

Big limit leads Kentucky co-angler to victory

PITTSBURGH – Talk about updating your resume. Prior to his entry into the Forrest Wood Cup on Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers, Brad Roberts had never won a bass tournament. Now he has a big fat W on his record, a check for $50,000 and a sweet trophy to put on the mantle of the new home his prize will help build.

“My wife, Lisa, and I have been married about six years, and we started out in a smaller house, but we’re in the process of getting some plans together for a new house,” he said. “We already have our property to build on, so this (prize money) is going to be helpful.

“This is the biggest win of my career, and to do it at the Forrest Wood Cup is unbelievable.”

Holding their 6-month-old son, Landon, Lisa said: “This is such a blessing. I have prayed and prayed for him to pull one off. I knew he could do it – he can (compete) with anybody.”

Roberts said such support plays a big role in his performance. “If you don’t have your family behind you, it’s hard to come out here and do this. Having that love and support of the family means everything in the world.”

Today brought significant change from day two. For one thing, the weather switched from cloudy and rainy to mostly clear and sunny. Also, the co-angler leaderboard saw several significant changes – including Roberts’ rise from eighth place to first.

On day one, Roberts fished a ¼-ounce and 3/8-ounce Cumberland Pro casting jig over rocks in 5 to 10 feet of water and finished 14th with three fish weighing 2 pounds, 9 ounces. He caught a pair of keepers on day two – one on the jig, another on 1/8- and 3/16-ounce Cumberland Pro shaky heads with 5-inch Senkos in watermelon-candy and green-pumpkin-candy colors. That 3-pound, 4-ounce effort moved him up to eighth. In the final round, he stuck with the shaky head and caught the day’s only co-angler limit with a weight of 6-4.

“I was able to cull two times, and that shaky head was the key bait that did it for me,” Roberts said. “I had seven total keepers, and they were quality fish.”

Paired with New Jersey pro Mike Iaconelli, Roberts started the day fishing a small island off Point State Park at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela and the Ohio rivers. They later traversed two locks on the Ohio and fished the same pattern they established earlier.

“We fished current eddies – anything that would break the water,” Roberts said. “It seemed like the smallmouth were coming in and feeding in those areas. It seemed like the key was to get your bait into some rocks and shake it.”

Roberts said he put a keeper in the boat early, but then he had to endure an unnerving wait before tightening his line again.

“I fished hard, and I didn’t leave anything behind,” Roberts said. “After I caught my first fish, I had the jitters for about 45 minutes until I caught my next one.”

Oba makes big move to second

Hailing from Tokyo, Michi Oba caught two fish weighing 1 pound, 13 ounces and rose from ninth place to second. This big move came after an even bigger one on day two. A single fish of 1-11 in the opening round left Oba in 28th place, but a limit weighing 4 pounds gave him the boost he needed to make the top-10 cut.

His day-one fish came on a buzzbait and a shaky head. Day two saw him boat seven keepers on a 1/2-ounce Depps Flatback jig with a green-pumpkin trailer. He caught one of his day-three fish on the jig and the other on a shaky head with a 5-inch green-pumpkin/watermelon laminate Senko cut in half for a smaller presentation.

“It was hard to catch keepers,” Oba said. “I probably caught 11 fish today.”

Tactically, Oba said the keys to his success were A) fishing deeper (10-15 feet) and B) fishing with a slack line.

“I think that is a more natural presentation. Also, it doesn’t make noise – tight line makes noise in the water.”

Schultz shuffles into third

Greg Schultz of Wayzata, Minn., caught two fish weighing 1 pound, 11 ounces and moved up to third place. Holding in the fourth-place spot for the first two days, Schulz was the most consistent of the co-anglers, with 4-4 on day one and 3-3 on day two.

Shultz relied on a 4 1/2-inch Venom swimbait for days one and two. In the final round, he switched to a drop-shot with a 3-inch green-pumpkin Senko. He caught his fish by working the rig slowly over rocks in the Pittsburgh pool of the Allegheny River.

Fabiszak falls to fourth

Entering day three in third place, South Bend, Ind., angler Ron Fabiszak caught one fish weighing 1-6 and slipped a spot to fourth.

After finishing 47th on day one, Fabiszak scored big on day two with a limit weighing 7-5. He caught those fish in a shallow man-made cove off the Allegheny River. He ended up fishing the same spot today and caught his keeper there.

Fabiszak caught his day-one fish on a drop-shot. He used a 4-inch green-pumpkin Zoom finesse worm, rigged wacky style with a nail in the head, along with two fish on a shad-colored crankbait and a spinnerbait. The wacky worm delivered on day three.

“I only had two bites today – one was a walleye, two were short bass and one was a keeper largemouth,” Fabiszak said.

Less than a pound moves Bucy to fifth

It may have been a “squeaker,” but the 12-ounce bass that Blaine Bucy caught was just enough to move the Wellsburg, W.Va., co-angler from 10th place to fifth. After blanking on day one, Bucy bolted up the standings by catching three fish weighing 5-10.

A local angler living 30 miles from Pittsburgh, Bucy said he knew what he would throw well before arriving. His baits of choice were a green-pumpkin Strike King Bitsy Tube and a 4-inch green-pumpkin/purple-fleck Yum Dinger, rigged Texas style with an 1/8-ounce tungsten weight. The Dinger produced all of his fish.

“I lost three good fish today, but it was the thrill of a lifetime to get to fish this tournament in my backyard,” Bucy said.

Best of the rest

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers at the 2009 Forrest Wood Cup:

6th: Lyne Baciuska Jr. of Afton, N.Y., 0-0

7th: Tommie Goldston of Garnerville, Nev., 0-0

8th: Teddy Bradley of Mishawaka, Ind., 0-0

9th: David Lauer of South Bend, Ind., 0-0

10th: Kevin Hawk of Ramona, Calif., 0-0