Diet Mountain Dew pro dominates Lake Hartwell tournament
South Carolina’s Lake Hartwell served as the venue for the third Walmart FLW Tour event of the season. And while Hartwell is known for its clear water and blueback herring, pro Jason Christie ignored both and chose to explore the shallow, stained water in Beaverdam Creek. Fishing to his strengths, the Oklahoma native said he felt right at home slinging spinnerbaits to isolated pieces of cover. The result was a dominating wire-to-wire win, his first on Tour. Complete coverage of the event will airMay 8 from 1-2 p.m. ET on VERSUS as part of the weekly “FLW Outdoors” program.
Beaverdam Creek proved to be the perfect place for largemouth bass that were staging and spawning. Christie caught 22 pounds the first day, 20 pounds the second and then the bite slowed. But rather than scramble around, the Diet Mountain Dew pro chose to fish his area thoroughly and ended up with a total weight of 70 pounds, 11 ounces, winning by a 10-pound margin.
His main lure was a 1/2-ounce Booyah spinnerbait (white and chartreuse) with a single Colorado blade. When he occasionally sight-fished he opted for a Yum F2 Mighty Bug. For his first FLW Tour win, the 37-year-old former teacher and basketball coach earned $125,000. Christie now has victories at FLW Outdoors’ three different circuit levels bb the Bass Fishing League, EverStart Series and FLW Tour.
In second place with 60 pounds, 11 ounces was National Guard pro Brent Ehrler. While Christie largely worked the same pattern each day, Ehrler adjusted with the conditions. He opened the tournament by sight-fishing, and then got on a strong Senko pattern underneath docks. On the final two days, he threw a Swimming Senko and a shaky head. Ehrler’s second-place finish earned him $35,000.
Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz, Ky., took third and earned $30,000 with a total weight of 59 pounds, 4 ounces. Colson also fished in Beaverdam Creek, although he worked the opposite side. Colson started each morning throwing a wacky-rigged Zoom Trick Worm (green pumpkin magic). Later in the afternoon the fish would get more active and he’d throw a 5/16-ounce War Eagle spinnerbait.
“FLW Outdoors” airs on VERSUS in high-definition (HD) Sundays from 1-2 p.m. ET. Hosted by Jason Harper, “FLW Outdoors,” is broadcast to more than 500 million households worldwide through agreements with WFN (World Fishing Network) and Matchroom Sport. FLWOutdoors.comalso provides an online guidelisting upcoming episodes of “FLW Outdoors.” In addition, each episode of “FLW Outdoors” is available on demand in its entirety on the FLWOutdoors website/flwondemand.
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By: Chad Gay, Director – Public Relations
