Top 5 Patterns from Fort Gibson Day 2
Sprague and Birge are hot on the heels of the leader
Heading into the final day of the Costa FLW Series Southwestern division event presented by Lowrance on Fort Gibson, the story so far has been leaderboard movement. Though the lake has been a bit stingy, catching five or six of the right fish has let some pros move up a long way. Remaining consistent, Derek Fulps has edged out into the lead, going from fourth to first, but he’s got a pair of Walmart FLW Tour pros hot on his heels.
2. Jeff Sprague – Point, Texas – 31-3 (10)
Diversity was the name of the game for the Keystone Light pro, who caught a limit of 16-4 and improved from 10th place.
“I’m going back and forth, I’m running around quite a bit,” he says. “I have a few different things going and I think that’s what’s benefitting me. I’m not dependent on the river or the lake. I’m working it all together.”
In the lake, Sprague fished a Black Label Balsa Ricochet crankbait. In the river, he flipped wood with a V&M Pacemaker Adrenaline Flippin’ Jig and strategically worked a certain stage of the current cycle. He chose not to elaborate, but noted that timing was essential to seizing certain windows of opportunity.
“It’s really hard, because there’s not a really clear schedule to show when they’re going to generate current,” Sprague says. “You just fly by the seat of your pants and let that Ranger boat run until you find out what the water’s doing and what the fish are doing.
“You can tell by the mood of the fish what the water’s doing. They pulled current earlier today and I think that’s why the fish down-lake bit more. That worked out well because I was able to put a couple of key fish in the bag.”
3. Zack Birge – Blanchard, Okla. – 31-1 (10)
After a solid start on day one, Zack Birge of Blanchard, Okla., essentially repeated his day-one strategy, but adjusted the timing to fit today’s conditions. Birge started out flipping docks near the takeoff site and then ran upriver once the current started rolling. The plan yielded a limit of 13-9 and kept Birge in third place.
“They turned it on around 9 this morning and then it takes about another hour for the current to (reach the river), so I waited around and fished some high percentage areas until about 10,” he says. “I caught the bulk of my weight up there again today.”
Birge says he caught his fish by pitching a Texas-rigged Missile Baits D-Bomb to logs in the current. Green pumpkin/blue and super bug were his best colors.
“Most of my fish came on the up-current side today,” he says. “It’s like they’re sitting right in front of the log looking out. When something falls in front of them, they eat it.
“I’m using a heavy tungsten weight and 50-pound-test braid. I’m just throwing into the nastiest stuff I can find and wrenching them out.”
4. Brandon Mosley – Choctaw, Okla. – 30-8 (10)
Making a big move up from 20th place, Mosley sacked up 17-3 — the day’s heaviest bag — after finding another spot like the one that produced three keepers in as many casts at the start of day one.
“I’d be an idiot to not stop in the same place today, so I stopped there and caught one keeper,” he says. “But I had another laydown in a tributary that had three on it and two of them were 4-pounders.”
Mosley says he fished most of his day in the Grand River and fared best before the current intensified. Later in the day, he culled a fish down the lake shortly before weigh-in.
5. Kyle Cortiana – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 28-12 (10)
Another big mover, Kyle Cortiana turned in a strong performance with 16-11 — the day’s second-heaviest bag — and gained 19 spots to settle in fifth place.
“I found some fish in practice in a unique scenario, it’s an area that nobody will fish,” he says. “I left it for today. I lost three big fish there today, but I think they’ll stay there — they’re resident fish.”
Cortiana says that timing based on current flow was essential. He caught most of his fish on a 1/2- to 5/8-ounce Gene Larew Hardhead with a Biffle Bug fished over rock and wood. He says he also caught a few fish on a jig.
“There are places you go on this lake with biguns there, and when the current starts running, they bite,” he says.
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