Post by yihunt on Jul 31, 2009 10:18:38 GMT -4
Pennsylvania man lands early lead
First few casts net Lefebre small edge
Friday, July 31, 2009
By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pennsylvania's Dave Lefebre squeaked past the competition on Day 1 of the Forrest Wood Cup.
Lefebre, of Union City, Pa., leads the pro field with a five-fish limit totalling 8 pounds, 13 ounces.
"I'm not 100 percent certain," said Lefebre, "but I think I had my limit caught in the first 10 casts of the morning."
David Curtis, of Trinity, Texas, nearly tied for first in the pro standings with five smallmouth bass weighing 8 pounds, 12 ounces. Larry Nixon, of Bee Branch, Ark., was third with 8 pounds, 4 ounces.
Crowd favorite Michael Iaconelli of New Jersey turned in a five-fish stringer weighing 7 pounds, 12 inches, and underdog Adam Wagner of Cookeville, Tenn., a non-pro "weekend fisherman" who made it to the Cup through the Walmart Bass Fishing League, finished seventh in first-day standings with five bass weighing 7 pounds, 7 ounces.
Land o' Lakes Angler of the Year Clark Wendlandt placed 32nd with three fish weighing 3 pounds, 9 ounces; and Robert Harkness of Elizabeth, W.Va., placed 46th with a three-fish, 2-pound, 9-ounce stringer. The 2008 Forrest Wood Cup winner, Michael Bennett of Lincoln, Calif., was 62nd among 77 anglers in the pro field with one keeper weighing 1 pound, 3 ounces.
Former Forrest Wood Cup champion David Fritts of Lexington, N.C., cast into an off-limits area and reported the rules infraction to tournament officials. His Day 1 weight was voided.
Scattered showers Wednesday across the region kept the currents moving, staining some areas and clouding the water in others. At the weigh-in at Mellon Arena, some anglers complained about the rain; others said it helped.
"The rain impacted the rivers as a whole in this tournament, but more important was all the rain we've had in the last month," said Lefebre. "Everything is a little bit behind where it's supposed to be. It's not a hot, typical August. I thought it was going to be a running game, but it turned out to be a passing game."
Lefebre, who placed second in the event last year, said that over three days of pre-tournament fishing he discovered a spot with good habitat that he thought might be productive. He spent most of Day 1 on the same spot with one lure, pulling out more than 20 bass.
"When I find a good spot in practice, I don't fish it too hard because those fish won't hit well for the next couple of days," he said. "These fish were not too aggressive. It's a school of fish, and they got aggressive after a while, but then they stopped biting and were a little hard to catch."
Most of his bass were caught deep, but Lefebre said he caught fish in waters as shallow as 12 inches and as deep as 15 feet.
"Bait is the key," he said, "These rivers are alive, man. It's unbelievable -- minnows, crawfish, bluegills. You have to figure out what they want. In all the spots in this one hole, the fish responded to one bait that I just love to throw."
In the co-angler field, Tommy Goldston of Gardnerville, Nev., leads after Day 1 with a five-fish weight of 7 pounds, 10 ounces. Johnstown's Jason Ober was 19th with 2 pounds, 5 ounces and Doug Caldwell of Kane, Pa., gathered a back-of-the-boat total of two fish weighing 1 pound, 15 ounces.
A total of 333 bass were caught in combined pro and co-angler fields in the first day of the Forrest Wood Cup. The tournament continues through Sunday.
First few casts net Lefebre small edge
Friday, July 31, 2009
By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pennsylvania's Dave Lefebre squeaked past the competition on Day 1 of the Forrest Wood Cup.
Lefebre, of Union City, Pa., leads the pro field with a five-fish limit totalling 8 pounds, 13 ounces.
"I'm not 100 percent certain," said Lefebre, "but I think I had my limit caught in the first 10 casts of the morning."
David Curtis, of Trinity, Texas, nearly tied for first in the pro standings with five smallmouth bass weighing 8 pounds, 12 ounces. Larry Nixon, of Bee Branch, Ark., was third with 8 pounds, 4 ounces.
Crowd favorite Michael Iaconelli of New Jersey turned in a five-fish stringer weighing 7 pounds, 12 inches, and underdog Adam Wagner of Cookeville, Tenn., a non-pro "weekend fisherman" who made it to the Cup through the Walmart Bass Fishing League, finished seventh in first-day standings with five bass weighing 7 pounds, 7 ounces.
Land o' Lakes Angler of the Year Clark Wendlandt placed 32nd with three fish weighing 3 pounds, 9 ounces; and Robert Harkness of Elizabeth, W.Va., placed 46th with a three-fish, 2-pound, 9-ounce stringer. The 2008 Forrest Wood Cup winner, Michael Bennett of Lincoln, Calif., was 62nd among 77 anglers in the pro field with one keeper weighing 1 pound, 3 ounces.
Former Forrest Wood Cup champion David Fritts of Lexington, N.C., cast into an off-limits area and reported the rules infraction to tournament officials. His Day 1 weight was voided.
Scattered showers Wednesday across the region kept the currents moving, staining some areas and clouding the water in others. At the weigh-in at Mellon Arena, some anglers complained about the rain; others said it helped.
"The rain impacted the rivers as a whole in this tournament, but more important was all the rain we've had in the last month," said Lefebre. "Everything is a little bit behind where it's supposed to be. It's not a hot, typical August. I thought it was going to be a running game, but it turned out to be a passing game."
Lefebre, who placed second in the event last year, said that over three days of pre-tournament fishing he discovered a spot with good habitat that he thought might be productive. He spent most of Day 1 on the same spot with one lure, pulling out more than 20 bass.
"When I find a good spot in practice, I don't fish it too hard because those fish won't hit well for the next couple of days," he said. "These fish were not too aggressive. It's a school of fish, and they got aggressive after a while, but then they stopped biting and were a little hard to catch."
Most of his bass were caught deep, but Lefebre said he caught fish in waters as shallow as 12 inches and as deep as 15 feet.
"Bait is the key," he said, "These rivers are alive, man. It's unbelievable -- minnows, crawfish, bluegills. You have to figure out what they want. In all the spots in this one hole, the fish responded to one bait that I just love to throw."
In the co-angler field, Tommy Goldston of Gardnerville, Nev., leads after Day 1 with a five-fish weight of 7 pounds, 10 ounces. Johnstown's Jason Ober was 19th with 2 pounds, 5 ounces and Doug Caldwell of Kane, Pa., gathered a back-of-the-boat total of two fish weighing 1 pound, 15 ounces.
A total of 333 bass were caught in combined pro and co-angler fields in the first day of the Forrest Wood Cup. The tournament continues through Sunday.