MORROW RETAINS LEAD AT WALMART FLW TOUR ON LAKE EUFAULA PRESENTED BY QUAKER STATE

EUFAULA, Ala. (May 16, 2015) – Pro Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, caught a five-bass limit Saturday weighing 15 pounds, 4 ounce to retain the lead on day three of the Walmart FLW Tour at Lake Eufaula presented by Quaker State. Morrow’s three-day total of 15 bass weighing 54 pounds, 13 ounces gives him a slim 4-ounce lead over second-place pro Bryan Thrift of Shelby, North Carolina, heading into the fourth and final day of competition. The field is now cut to the final 10 anglers in the event that featured 149 of the best bass-fishing anglers in the world competing for a top cash award of up to $125,000.

“Today was a pretty tough, slow day for me,” said Morrow, a five-year veteran who has six previous top-10 finishes but is still seeking his first win on the FLW Tour. “I used four baits today to catch my fish, and that was really out of desperation. I’ve been adding as I go – one bait the first day, two baits on the second day and then four today. I’m having to do something different in order to get the right bites.”

Morrow said that he caught 15 keepers throughout the day and estimated that he fished around 30 different brush piles.

“Tomorrow I’m going to have to do the same thing,” Morrow continued. “Maybe I’ll change up the order, or which ones I choose to fish first, but I’m going to keep doing what got me here.”

When asked if he felt any pressure leading a Walmart FLW Tour event into the final day for the first time in his career, Morrow said that he was focused on only one thing.

“Where I’m at in my career right now, that is what I need next – a big win. At the end of the day, I’m not going to change anything tomorrow. I’ve got one more day of fishing. It’s just me against the bass.”

The top 10 pros advancing to the final day of competition on Lake Eufaula are:

               1^st:          Troy Morrow, Eastanollee, Ga., 15 bass, 54-13

               2^nd:         Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 15 bass, 54-9

               3^rd:          Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., 15 bass, 52-12

               4^th:          Jeff Gustafson, Keewatin, Ontario, Canada, 15 bass, 49-11

               5^th:          Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 15 bass, 49-8

               6^th:          Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 15 bass, 47-12

               7^th:          John Cox, Debary, Fla., 15 bass, 47-10

               8^th:          Adrian Avena, Vineland, N.J., 15 bass, 45-14

               9^th:          Randy Haynes, Counce, Tenn., 15 bass, 44-11

               10^th:        Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 15 bass, 44-11

Finishing in 11th through 20th are:

               11^th:        Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 15 bass, 43-15, $11,909

               12^th:        Dave Lefebre, Erie, Pa., 15 bass, 42-13, $11,909

               13^th:        Darrell Davis, Dover, Fla., 15 bass, 41-8, $11,909

               14^th:        Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 15 bass, 40-13, $11,909

               15^th:        David Fritts, Lexington, N.C., 14 bass, 38-2, $11,909

               16^th:        Peter Thliveros, Saint Augustine, Fla., 14 bass, 36-2, $11,909

               17^th:        Terry Bolton, Paducah, Ky., 14 bass, 36-0, $11,909

               18^th:        Ramie Colson, Jr., Cadiz, Ky., 14 bass, 35-9, $11,909

               19^th:        Derrick Snavely, Rogersville, Tenn., 12 bass, 35-6, $11,909

               20^th:        Cody Kelley, Conway, Ark., 14 bass, 35-6, $11,909

For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.

Overall there were 92 bass weighing 235 pounds, 2 ounces caught by pros Saturday. Fourteen of the final 20 pros weighed in five-bass limits.

Keith Honeycutt of Temple, Texas, won the co-angler division and $25,000 Friday with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 22 pounds, 12 ounces, followed by Hiroyuki Watanabe of Shizuoka, Honshu, Japan, who finished in second place with 10 bass weighing 22 pounds, 12 ounces worth $7,448.

In addition to casting for top awards of up to $125,000 cash in the pro division and up to $25,000 cash in the co-angler division, anglers are also competing for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2015 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing. The 2015 Forrest Wood Cup will be in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Aug. 20-23 on Lake Ouachita and is hosted by Visit Hot Springs. The Forrest Wood Cup Champion could win as much as $500,000 – professional bass-fishing’s richest prize.

Anglers will take off for the fourth and final day of competition from the Lakepoint Resort State Park Marina located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula at 6:30 a.m. Sunday. Sunday’s final weigh-ins will be held at Walmart, located at 3176 S. Eufaula Ave., in Eufaula beginning at 4 p.m.

Fans will also be treated to the FLW Expo on Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. at Walmart prior to the final weigh-ins. The Expo includes a Ranger boat simulator, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public.

Coverage of the Lake Eufaula tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) October 19 from 7 p.m.-8 p.m. ET. when Season 20 of “FLW” returns this fall. The Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.