Anyone’s tourney
It's a tight bass fishing race for Walmart FLW Tour anglers after day one. Less than four pounds separates first place from 17th place in the pro division. A good day today could vault any number of anglers into the top 20, which is necessary to advance to Saturday's round.
Anglers reported catching more fish during the three-day practice period Sunday through Tuesday than they did on Thursday. Comments at the weigh-in Thursday indicate crankbaits and jigs were productive lures.
The weather was cloudier, windier and cooler during practice. Day one was sunny with little wind. That can make catching bass tough.
Locals shine in co-angler race
Four area fishermen are in the top 10 in co-angler competition, two from Centerton and two from Fayetteville.
Jason Sandidge of Centerton is in first place with 13 pounds, 14 ounces. Teddy Holt, also from Centerton, is in fourth with 12 pounds, 9 ounces.
Jeff Campbell of Fayetteville is in sixth with 10-12. Rocky Hopkins is seventh with 10-5.
Co-angler competition ends with today's weigh-in, which begins at 3 p.m. at Prairie Creek park.
FLW big bass a whopper
JT Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla., is the leading pro angler. He also had big bass Thursday with a 6-pound, 10-ounce largemouth. That's the second heaviest bass weighed in the 18 FLW tournaments that have been held at Beaver Lake.
"Beaver Lake giveth and Beaver Lake taketh away," Kenney said at the weigh-in. "I punched Beaver Lake in the face today."
Some like it muddy
Much of Beaver Lake remains muddy after major flooding in December. Many anglers praised the dirty water, which is usually clear.
"Thank God for this muddy water and the big flood you had in December," said Jeff Sprague of Texas, who's in eighth among the pros. He usually has a tough tournament at Beaver, he added.
Steven Meador, a co-angler from Bella Vista, had a different take.
"The bite is a little better in the muddy water. Fishing is harder in the clear water, and I like it when the fishing's hard. I'm not any good at a slug fest," he said.
Meador said he caught his bass Thursday with jig and a Carolina rig. He's in 15th place.
Legends of fishing
Two legendary pro anglers, Jimmy Houston and Larry Nixon, enjoyed good fishing Thursday. Houston of Cookson, Okla., is in second place with five bass at 17-13. Nixon of Bee Branch is ninth with five at 15-2. Nixon had a 5-pounder in his bag Thursday.
One fish at 16 pounds
Several international anglers fish the Walmart FLW Tour. A few are from Canada. Others hail from Japan. Jaime Luengo is from Mexico City.
"I caught one really big fish today," Luengo told the weigh-in audience, "a 16-pound striper."
Only black bass may be weighed, not striped bass or white bass.
Luengo said the striper bit a jig.
High school fishing
The Bentonville High School fishing team is helping out at the FLW Tour event. The students assist anglers in getting their fish to the catch-and-release boat. They organize weigh-in bags and help out as needed.
Students on hand Thursday were Bryce Lane, Evan Shorb, Chandler Shewmaker, Zach Parker, Tristen Rudder, Daniel Jones and Kyle Sibley.
The boys won't be at Beaver Lake on Saturday. They'll be fishing a high school tournament at Table Rock Lake.
Sports on 04/15/2016