Big Field Headed to Seminole
More than 200 boats will slug it out at springtime derby in Georgia
The second tournament of the 2017 Costa FLW Series Southeastern Division begins tomorrow at Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Ga. The three-day tournament is presented by Mud Hole Custom Tackle, and FLW expects more than 200 pros and co-anglers to compete. Other than Southeastern Division season openers at Okeechobee, which regularly draw mega-fields, this should be one of the largest Costa FLW Series events on record.
The crowd will be pleased with what it finds at Seminole this week, as an early spring has the fishing red hot already.
“The weather has been really hot down here, so the water is a little warmer and the spawn is ahead of schedule,” says FLW Tour pro Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Ga. “With no cooldown in sight, it’s going to be a great tournament sight-fishing for some big fish up shallow. Spring Creek will be popular because it’s the clearest part on the lake.
“Grass will also be a major player in this event,” Morrow adds. “I don’t think it will be won solely by sight-fishing. There are a lot of productive flats where the Flint River feeds into Spring Creek. I see vibrating jigs cleaning up along the grass edges. There also might be some lipless crankbait action if anglers can find good grass in cooler water.”
Morrow says that isolated pockets on the Chattahoochee River could also be a strong bet for anglers looking to change up their patterns.
“You can never rule out throwing a frog to lily pads, or flipping soft plastics to hyacinths and matted grass on Seminole,” he says.
The Georgia pro predicts that a three-day total of 62 pounds should be enough to win the tournament.
“Someone will likely bring in a 24- or 25-pound limit at some point, but they’ll have to average 20 pounds the other two days to win it all,” Morrow says.
Anglers will take off from Bainbridge Earle May Boat Basin, located at 100 Boat Basin Circle in Bainbridge, at 7 a.m. ET each day. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Walmart at 500 E. Alice St. in Bainbridge, and will begin at 4 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public. The event is hosted by the Bainbridge Convention & Visitors Bureau.