IBASSIN Exclusive Interview with Spiro Agouros FLW co-angler (PART 2)

By Luigi De Rose

DAY 3

According to FLW rules, the co-angler is paired with the corresponding ranked pro. So, Spiro being first on the co-angler side took his place with Randall Tharp, the tournament leader on the pro’s side. This was a double edge sword. Sharing water with the leader on the pro side is not always a blessing. This problem multiplied 10 fold considering Randall’s case. Randall had an amazing string of second place finishes last year including one at the Open on Lake Okeechobee and the FLW Championship. Trying to shake the second place jinx would take top priority. Not wanting to interfere, Spiro gave Randall plenty of room and it might have cost him the win.


He knew he let it slip away.
(photo: Brett Carlson FLW)

Spiro's luck wouldn't be with him as Lake Okeechobee turned ugly on Saturday morning.  Air temps went cold and the wind increased by the hour. Day 3 had the boat pointed north and Spiro and Randall headed to the edge of the Monkey Box.

“Randall’s spot is not a secret. I’ve fished it before and the amount of boats beating the weed mats was wild. We always fished in a crowd.” explains Spiro. Both anglers focused on the heavy mats and we’re willing to keep at it all day. By day 3 there were so many boat motors chopping through the
grass; the fish became more difficult to catch.





“Randall was a super partner. He really knows how to fish. But, he asked me to give him his space to make sure he would catch a decent limit.” Admits Spiro " I didn’t want to get in the guy’s way (Randall) so I kept at it but made sure I didn’t hit anything he didn’t get a chance to work.”

The wind interlocked weed mats making them impossible to pierce. Spiro kept with the 4” TriggerX Flapping Bug in Black Blue Sapphire that worked so well the past two days. Randall kept with a Beaver creature bait in black blue but upgraded to a 2oz weight.  Overall, the bite dried up for everyone.

Trigger X in Black Blue Sapphire

"I wanted to respect Randall and not cut the guy out of the lead." says Spiro "but by 1pm I only had one 13" bass. I was starting to really worry." Spiro decided to change to a black and blue Terminator spinnerbait to salvage the day. It was working but only the small bass were hitting. "I did manage to land 2 keepers. I just ran out of time. Right at the end of the day, I lost two 3 pounders on consecutive casts." explained a disappointed Spiro

As the scales settled, Spiro’s hopes were sunk as his three bass weighted a disappointing 5-03 lbs. Although he was unable to retake the lead from Aymon Wilcox, last year’s Open co-angler champion, Spiro still had his best finish as a co-angler. Randall ended up with 5 bass total of 14-13. A dramatic fall from his day 2 limit of 30-04 pounds.

Overall

“I’m bummed out I didn’t win. I had the fish to win, especially on the first day. But, I had an amazing tournament and had three super partners.” declared Agouros. Missing out on $20 000 of prize money stung hard but his upbeat attitude didn’t ooze of regret. "I got a lot of confidence going into the next tournament at Hartwell. " laments Spiro. Considering he got the experience of fishing with three top pro plus adding over $7000 to his bank account, Spiro should be very proud of his experience at the Walmart FLW Lake Okeechobee Open.

If you wish to keep tabs on Spiro Agouros during the season, check out his website.
http://ontourfishing.com/