Fulps Steams Ahead at Fort Gibson
Oklahoma pro moves from fourth to first on day two (updated)
Derek Fulps decided he’d go with the flow and that decision yielded the day-two lead at the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division event presented by Lowrance on Fort Gibson Lake. Specifically, that meant leveraging the current flowing through the Grand River.
Top five patterns from day two
Spending much of his day upriver, the pro from Broken Arrow, Okla., sacked up 16 pounds, 2 ounces for a two-day total of 33-9 and a lead of 2 pounds, 6 ounces over Keystone Light pro Jeff Sprague, who improved from 10th today.
Fulps caught his river fish by flipping a Texas-rigged Zoom Baby Brush Hog. Downsizing his bait, he says, proved essential to getting bit.
“I found my fish in practice using a 10-inch worm, but that deal was kind of done with the cold front that came through yesterday and the north wind,” Fulps says. “I downsized yesterday and I started with that bait today.”
Fulps says he located the spot he fished during practice, but it was more than location.
“I don't know how to describe how I found this spot — it’s just kind of a blessing that I stumbled onto these fish on Monday,” he says. “In practice, I was scratching my head, thinking ‘What am I doing wrong? I’m missing something.’”
Fulps says the missing piece of the puzzle was a small presentation adjustment. He kept mum on that specific point, but he says it had something to do with the way he worked with the current.
“I think there’s a current seam there and that’s why those fish don’t want to get away from that area, because when the current really kicks up they can hide in this one little spot,” he says.
On day one, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers started pulling water through the lake around 11 a.m., but Fulps says the current started earlier this morning. Because it takes a while for the water to gain momentum, Fulps says today’s earlier water release schedule had the fish ready earlier.
“I didn’t get to my spot until later in the morning yesterday and when I got there, the fish were already tucked into this seam,” he says. “This morning, they were kind of scattered; they hadn’t really sucked into that seam yet.
“The current forces them into position because there’s an obstacle that’s kind of slowing down the current and then there are some other little spots of cover down-current of that. So they kind of tuck in there and hover around that little spot.”
Fulps said he’s hopeful his spot will reload and deliver enough to push him across the finish line in tomorrow’s final round. Today, he caught seven keepers off his main spot and then spent the last couple of hours in the main lake.
“Tomorrow, I’m going to sit there and milk it until I can’t make a cast,” Fulps says.
Top 10 pros
1. Derek Fulps – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 33-9 (10)
2. Jeff Sprague – Point, Texas – 31-3 (10)
3. Zack Birge – Blanchard, Okla. – 31-1 (10)
4. Brandon Mosley – Choctaw, Okla. – 30-8 (10)
5. Kyle Cortiana – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 28-12 (10)
6. Brett Brumnett – Wagoner, Okla. – 28-11 (8)
7. Jeff Dobson – Ponca City, Okla. – 27-11 (10)
8. Brian Potter – Claremore, Okla. – 27-11 (10)
9. Jim Tutt – Longview, Texas – 26-14 (10)
10. Chad Warren – Sand Springs, Okla. – 26-5 (10)
Brumnett takes over on the co-angler side
Two key numbers define the impressive nature of Tate Brumnett’s day-two lead: 16 and 7-2. The first is his age, the latter is the margin by which the Wagoner High School sophomore leads the field. Sacking up 17 pounds even — the largest co-angler bag of the tournament — Brumnett posted a two-day total of 29-8.
Fishing mostly around chunk rock, Brumnett relied on a trio of baits — a Texas-rigged soft stick bait, a jig (details withheld) and a Gene Larew Biffle Bug on a Hardhead. The latter seemed to be more effective later in the day.
“I caught a 4-pounder early on the jig and that got things going,” Brumnett says. “Once I caught that fish, I thought today might work out good.”
Brumnett says he tried to heed the instruction he had received from local legend and Biffle Bug creator, Tommy Biffle (13th place).
“Tommy taught me to just reel the bait slowly and keep in contact with the bottom,” he says.
Top 10 co-anglers
1. Tate Brumnett – Wagoner, Okla. – 29-8 (9)
2. David Underwood – Waco, Texas – 22-6 (8)
3. Leroy Green — Alvin, Texas – 20-15 (7)
4. Branson Phillips – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 19-11 (8)
5. Lonnie Miller – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 16-6 (6)
6. Todd Brown – Little Rock, Ark. – 15-0 (6)
7. Wade Goins – Salina, Okla. – 14-5 (5)
8. Scott Pickett – Chandler, Texas – 14-2 (6)
9. Nick Muzljakovich – Wagoner, Okla. – 14-2 (5)
10. Steve Baskins – Owasso, Okla. – 13-14 (6)
Tournament Details
Format: All 112 boaters and co-anglers will compete for two days. The top 10 boaters and co-anglers based on cumulative weight after two days of competition will advance to the third and final round, with the winner determined by the heaviest cumulative three-day weight.
Takeoff Time: 7:30 a.m. CT
Takeoff Location: Taylor's Ferry North, Dock Road, Wagoner, OK 74467
Weigh-In Time: Days one and two at 3:30 p.m. CT, 4:30 p.m. CT on day three
Weigh-In Location: Days one and two at Taylor's Ferry North, Dock Road, Wagoner OK 74467, day three at Walmart, 410 S. Dewey Ave., Wagoner, OK 74467