FLW Tour on Lake Hartwell Day 1: Christie Still in Command

Lake Hartwell 3/24/11 - 3/27/11 -- Lake Hartwell
Portman Shoals Marina, Greenville, SC

FLW Press Release

Jason Christie retains first place targeting
bushes.
(Photo: Rob Newman FLW)

Diet Mountain Dew pro Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 4 ounces Friday to extend his lead on day two of the Walmart FLW Tour on Lake Hartwell presented by Chevy. His two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 42 pounds, 8 ounces gives him a massive 9-pound, 1-ounce lead heading into the third day of the tournament. There were 155 pros and 155 co-anglers from across the United States and Canada that started the tournament. The top 20 will fish day three and the top 10 will compete for the title on day four.

“It was kind of the opposite of yesterday where I caught them pretty fast,” Christie said. “I pulled in and after about an hour had caught a 5-pounder and a 3-pounder.”


Christie said he had a limit by 1:30 p.m. and had been changing locations when he happened to pull into an area where he expected boat traffic. He had the area to himself, however, and he caught fish weighing 6, 4 and 2 1/2 pounds. Christie said the fish fell for a BOOYAH spinnerbait.


“I actually had two more big fish in there, so I left and got back closer to (check-in),” Christie said.


Christie said he’s confident his areas will replenish with fish over the next two days of competition and hopes for anything but a bright, sunny sky.


“If it’s cloudy I think I can catch them,” Christie said. “I know where they’re living. They’re bedding so shallow I can see them whether it’s cloudy or not. I hope the wind blows. That would be fine with me.

Tom Monsoor with his second day's catch.
(Photo: Brett Carlson FLW)

“There’s big fish around me,” Christie added. “I’ve just got to get the bites and get them in the boat. It seems like I’m either catching 12-inchers or big ones. I’m not catching anything in between.”


Rounding out the top 20 pros that will fish another day on Lake Hartwell are:


2nd: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 33-7


3rd: Todd Auten, Lake Wylie, S.C., 10 bass, 32-14


4th: Chevy pro Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 10 bass, 32-8


5th: Stacey King, Reeds Spring, Mo., 10 bass, 32-7


6th: Prevacid 24HR pro Dan Morehead, Paducah, Ky., 10 bass, 32-3


7th: Mike Reynolds, Modesto, Calif., 10 bass, 32-1


8th: National Guard pro Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 10 bass, 31-12


9th: AMP Energy pro Stetson Blaylock, Benton, Ark., 10 bass, 31-1


10th: Joe Thomas, Milford, Ohio, 10 bass, 30-14


11th: Ishama Monroe, Hughson, Calif., 10 bass, 30-9


12th: Ramie Colson Jr., Cadiz, Ky., 10 bass, 30-8


13th: Chevy pro Larry Nixon, Bee Branch, Ark., 10 bass, 30-6


14th: Walmart pro Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 10 bass, 30-6


15th: National Guard pro Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., 10 bass, 30-5


16th: Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes pro Dave Lefebre, Union City, Pa., 10 bass, 29-14


17th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 10 bass, 29-12


18th: Chevy pro Jimmy Houston, Cookson, Okla., 10 bass, 29-7


19th: Straight Talk pro J.T. Kenney, Palm Bay, Fla., 10 bass, 29-1


20th: Troy Morrow, Toccoa, Ga., 10 bass, 28-15


Thrift caught the Snickers® Big Bass of 6-9 on the pro side and won $500.

Bryan's Day 2 6-09 Big Bass

Overall there were 689 bass weighing 1,571 pounds, 5 ounces caught by 152 pros Friday. The catch included 119 five-bass limits.


Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Cup will be in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachitawhere pros are competing for a top prize of $600,000 – the sport’s biggest award. Pro anglers are also vying for the prestigious 2011 Walmart FLW Tour Angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s that will be determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour Majors with the winner receiving $100,000 for their accomplishment.


J.R. Wright of Truckee, Calif., leads the Co-angler Division with an opening-round total of 10 bass weighing 28 pounds, 5 ounces, followed by Jade Keeton of Florence, Ala., in second place with 10 bass weighing 25-6.


Rounding out the top 20 co-anglers are:


3rd: Keith Honeycutt, Temple, Texas, 10 bass, 24-8


4th: Andy Scholz, Reno, Nev., 10 bass, 23-9


5th: Jeff Sprague, Forney, Texas, 10 bass, 22-14


6th: Tony Nation, Springdale, Ark., 10 bass, 22-7


7th: Moo Bae, West Friendship, Md., 10 bass, 21-9


8th: Tommy Milligan, Seneca, S.C., 10 bass, 21-3


9th: Doug Caldwell, Kane, Pa., nine bass, 21-0


10th: Chad Pipkens, Holt, Mich., 10 bass, 20-14


11th: Nick Hensley, Cumming, Ga., 10 bass, 19-13


12th: Richard Peek, Centre, Ala., nine bass, 19-10


13th: Luke Dehaan, Summerville, S.C., nine bass, 19-9


14th: Larry Hostetler, Floyds Knobs, Ind., eight bass, 18-15


15th: Spencer Shuffield, Bismarck, Ark., eight bass, 18-12


16th: Bob Ebel, Concord, Calif., eight bass, 18-7


17th: Mike Helton, Jeffersonville, Ind., nine bass, 18-2


18th: Shane Melton, Greentown, Ind., 10 bass, 17-9


19th: Timothy Lane, Momence, Ill., eight bass, 17-9


20th: Patrick Bone, Cleveland, Ga., eight bass, 17-8


Grant Holderman of Augusta, Kan., caught the Snickers® Big Bass of 6-8 in the co-angler division to win $250.


Overall there were 486 bass weighing 878 pounds, 1 ounce caught by 137 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 52 five-bass limits.


Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $25,000 this week plus valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup.The Walmart FLW Tour Co-angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s will be determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour Majors and the winner will receive a new Ranger 198VX with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.


Anglers will take off from Portman Shoals Marina located at 1629 Marina Rd. in Anderson, S.C., at 7:30 each morning. Saturday and Sunday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Carolina First Center located at One Exposition Drive in Greenville beginning at 4 p.m.


Fans will be treated to the FLW Outdoors Expo at the Carolina First Center on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. prior to the weigh-ins. The Expo provides the opportunity for fans to interact with professional anglers, ride Ranger boat simulators, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. The first 300 kids 14 and under to the Expo on Sunday will receive a free rod & reel courtesy of The Greenville News. Plus, one lucky fan will win a Can-Am ATV compliments of 92.5 WESC following Sunday’s final weigh-in. You must be present to win. All activities are free and open to the public.


Coverage of the Lake Hartwell tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors” will air May 8 from 1 to 2 p.m. ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper and Laura Schara, is broadcast to more than 500 million households worldwide.


For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow FLW Outdoors on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWOutdoors.


About FLW Outdoors


FLW Outdoors is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 191 tournaments in 2011. FLW Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing presented by Straight Talk, where competitors can play for free as well as sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge. For more information about FLW Outdoors and FLW Fantasy Fishing, browse FLWOutdoors.com or visit FantasyFishing.com.