Wind Played Havoc For Leaders
Jacob Wheeler of Indianapolis, Ind., weighed a five-bass limit Friday totaling 10 pounds, 4 ounces to lead day two of the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy on Cross Lake. Wheeler, with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 28-10, holds a massive 9-pound, 8-ounce lead going into the final day of competition. Mike Brueggen of La Crosse, Wis., is in second place with a two day total of 19 pounds, 2 ounces in a tournament featuring the top 49 boaters and top 49 co-anglers from across the country.
“Today was a much tougher day for me,” said Wheeler, who is fishing in his first BFL All-American. “The wind really muddied up a lot of my water and changed the way I fished today. I slowed down a lot and just tried to maintain my lead, I was very fortunate to gain a few pounds with a much smaller bag than yesterday.
“Yesterday I hit about 30 spots, today only 10. I tried to fish each area thoroughly and didn’t do nearly the running and gunning I did yesterday. Most of my fish were caught on tubes, cranking and with topwater baits. I had a ton of unders today, but only five keepers. I know tomorrow is going to be different again and I just hope I can figure something out.”
While the wind hurt both the leaders in the boater and co-angler division today, it helped second place Brueggen jump all the way from 42nd place into second place with a massive 17-14 stringer. Brueggen entered the day with only 1-4.
Rounding out the top 10 boaters and fishing tomorrow for the BFL All-American crown are:
3rd: Lloyd Pickett Jr., Bartlett, Tenn., 10 bass, 18-10
4th: Kip Carter, Loganville, Ga., six bass, 17-7
5th: Mike Hicks, Goochland, Va., seven bass, 17-4
6th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., six bass, 17-0
7th: Charles Cummings, Leeds, Ala., nine bass, 16-7
8th: Jake Morris, McKee, Ky., nine bass, 15-4
9th: Don Boeger, Caldwell, Idaho, eight bass, 14-11
10th: Harry Barton, Sterrett, Ala., seven bass, 13-6
Overall there were 126 bass weighing 224 pounds, 11 ounces caught by 49 boaters Friday. The catch included nine five-bass limits.
Boaters are competing for a top award of up to $130,000 this week plus qualification into the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Cup is being held in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachita where pros are competing for a top prize of $600,000 – the sport’s biggest award.
Shane Winchester of Glasgow, Ky., leads the Co-angler Division with a two day total of six bass weighing 14-8 followed by Greg Gilley of Orange Beach, Ala., in second place with a two day total of five bass weighing 12-6.
“I’m still shaking from my catch yesterday, I didn’t get much sleep last night,” said Winchester, who caught the biggest bass of the tournament so far. “The wind really hurt me today. I just couldn’t get my game on. I had a lot of bites and I had a lot of fish in the slot. I just couldn’t do what I did yesterday. I am hoping tomorrow is better.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers and fishing the final day are:
3rd: Kermit Crowder, Matoaca, Va., seven bass, 11-3
4th: Tyler Wood, Collinsville, Miss., four bass, 11-2
5th: Gerrit Goins, Cleveland, Tenn., seven bass, 11-0
6th: Kevin Crady, Desoto, Mo., five bass, 10-8
7th: Kyle Radake, Cape Girardeau, Mo., five bass, 9-10
8th: David Williams, Fredericksburg, Va., five bass, 9-5
9th: Tony Grubb, Ann Arbor, Mich., seven bass, 7-11
10th: Jason Hester, Haleyville, Ala., four bass, 7-10
Overall there were 58 bass weighing 77 pounds, 6 ounces caught by 49 co-anglers Friday. The catch included only one five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $60,000 this week plus qualification into the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off from the American Legion Hall located at 5315 South Lakeshore Drive in Shreveport at 7 a.m. Saturday morning. Final weigh-in will be at the Shreveport Convention Center located at 400 Caddo Street in Shreveport, starting at 3 p.m. prior to the day three weigh-in of the Walmart FLW Tour on the Red River presented by OFF!.
Fans will be treated to the FLW Outdoors Expo at the Shreveport Convention Center on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. The first 300 kids 14 and under on Sunday will receive a free rod and reel combo compliments of KTBS 3. Fans can also register to win a Can-Am ATV courtesy of Kiss Country 93.7 and 99X which will be given away on Sunday following the final weigh-in of the FLW Tour event. The Expo includes Ranger boat simulators, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and fans can learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public.
Coverage of the BFL All-American tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” will air Sept. 4 from 1 to 2 p.m. ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to more than 500 million households worldwide.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, offering bigger prizes to those who qualify for regional championships and those who make it to the BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the FLW Tour.
By: Julie Huber,
