2019 FLW Tour Lake San Rayburn Day 3: Terry Bolton Continues to Lead with 73-13lbs!

Canadian Sim makes final day cut  with 10th! 

by Justin Onslow

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Bolton eye first FLW win cranking red Rapala crankbaits.
(Photo: FLW)

Terry Bolton has done a great many things in his professional fishing career. He has 46 top-10 finishes in FLW competition, 29 of which were also top fives. He has a Costa FLW Series victory and another in T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) competition. With over $1.1 million in career earnings and 13 FLW Cup appearances to his name, there’s not much Bolton can say he hasn’t done in the sport of bass fishing.

Save for a victory on the FLW Tour.

Luckily for Bolton and the fans watching him at Sam Rayburn this week, the Kentucky pro is just a day away from reaching that goal. With a total of 73 pounds, 13 ounces, he’s nearly 5 pounds ahead after weighing 19-10 on day three of the FLW Tour event presented by Polaris.

Still, don’t expect Bolton to put any pressure on himself to get his first win — or even to chase down the elusive century mark with a 26-plus-pound bag tomorrow. Both would be nice, he admits, but that’s not what it’s all about for the 23-year pro from Benton, Ky.

“If it’s your time to win, you cannot stop it,” Bolton says. “I’ve been in this position. If it’s your turn, it’s your turn. If it’s not, it’s not. You might as well go enjoy it. You’re going to get to fish the final day on a great fishery. Would I love to win? Sure. It would be big for me. Is it the end-all if I don’t win? No.”

That’s been Bolton’s approach all week, even on Friday when he walked onto the weigh-in stage with a megabag of bass good for 33 pounds and 9 ounces. On Saturday, when Big Sam was fishing a little tougher than it had the previous two days, Bolton took the same approach and landed enough big fish to retain the lead.

With any luck, that same laid-back approach will produce enough big bass to earn him a win.

Bolton has done many of the same things all week. He’s relied on a Rapala DT 14 and DT 16 for some deep fish at several of the same spots, though he did mix in a 3/4-ounce Accent spinnerbait — his favorite technique — to land one keeper that made his final five.

Tomorrow will be business as usual for Bolton. He’ll run some of the same spots and throw some of the same baits, but who knows? According to the crafty vet, he may try some new things if that’s what the lake is asking for. And he won’t feel one ounce of pressure while he’s out there.

Nick LeBrun – 69-1 (20-13 day three)

FLW Tour rookie Nick LeBrun went swinging for the fences Saturday and legged out a triple. He didn’t clear the fence, but he sure put a charge into one with a 20-pound, 13-ounce bag that was one of only two 20-plus-pound stringers on the day.

“I went swinging early,” he admits. “I thought, man, if I can get one of those big ones to bite… I caught one little spot on that deep stuff, and then I went to my third spot and jacked them.”

2017 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 2: Ehrler Leads Only by 2 Ounces!

Tight race on Rayburn
BASS PRESS RELEASE

After two days, the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has turned into an all-out slugfest with some of the biggest names in professional bass fishing at the top of the leaderboard.

The Top 10 anglers have all averaged more than 20 pounds apiece the first two days on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, and the top two pros have averaged better than 23.

Jerkbait pattern key to Ehrler's lead.  (Photo: BASS)

California pro Brent Ehrler holds the top spot for the second day in a row with a two-day mark of 47-11. He caught 22-5 Thursday in the 90-degree Texas heat to maintain a slim lead over Idaho pro Brandon Palaniuk, who is just 2 ounces back with 47-9 after catching 23-2 Thursday.
Ehrler also still holds the lead for Toyota Big Bass of the week with a 9-1 he caught Wednesday. The winner of that award will receive a Toyota Tundra pickup valued at $50,000.

“I didn’t really find any new stuff today,” Ehrler said. “I checked one spot where I thought I could catch a good one, and I caught about a 4 1/2-pounder later in the day. But I still didn’t get that real clear feeling for what I’m going to do the rest of the week.”

Mark Rose Wins 2017 Walmart FLW Tour Lake Guntersville with 79-11 lbs!

Rose milks Brown's creek for win.

by Rob Newell 

FLW PRESS RELESE

Coming into the FLW Tour event presented by Lowrance at Lake Guntersville, Mark Rose had quite a laundry list of reasons why he wanted to win the tournament.

First of all, Lake Guntersville has a rich history in the sport of professional bass fishing. Fishing legends such as Zell Rowland, George Cochran, Rick Clunn and David Fritts have all won national events on the historic lake. Rose has always wanted to put his name alongside such icons as a professional tournament winner on Guntersville.

Consistency key to Rose's win.
(Photo: FLW)

Second, Rose has been so close to victory in other events on Guntersville. He has finished runner-up in a Costa FLW Series event and a Tour event at the lake.

Rose is also well known for his deep-water prowess. He has earned his moniker as a “ledgemaster” through multiple offshore wins along the Tennessee River. With that, he felt like he had become almost pigeonholed as a deep-water specialist and was ready to prove to himself that he can win events in waist-deep water as well.

Finally, Rose was ready to erase a memory from Sam Rayburn Reservoir in 2014 when he lead an FLW Tour event going into the last day and faltered, letting none other than Bryan Thrift slip past him and grab the brass ring.