WISCONSIN’S MONSOOR TAKES LEAD AFTER DAY TWO OF FLW TOUR ON POTOMAC RIVER PRESENTED BY COSTA SUNGLASSES
Bryan Thrift Clinches 2017 FLW Tour Angler of the Year title, $100,000
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MARBURY, Md. (June 16, 2017) – Yamamoto Baits pro Tom Monsoor of La Crosse, Wisconsin, brought a five-bass limit weighing 16 pounds, 14 ounces, to the scale Friday to grab the lead at the FLW Tour on the Potomac River presented by Costa Sunglasses. Monsoor’s two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 36-4 gives him a 1-pound, 2-ounce advantage heading into Day Three of the four-day event that features the best bass anglers from across the globe competing for a top cash award of up to $125,000.
“I have two areas – one is about five miles north from where we takeoff, and the other is five miles south,” said Monsoor, a 14-year Tour veteran with 38 career top-10 finishes in FLW competition. “Both areas were packed with boats. Yesterday wasn’t as bad, but today there were boats everywhere.”
Monsoor said that even with the heavy boat traffic he was still able to dial in on productive stretches of water.
“The stretches I’m hitting aren’t very big,” said Monsoor. “One is between 150 and 200 feet, and the other is about 100 yards, and they both have nice, clean weeds.”
The Wisconsin pro said he utilized a swimjig throughout his day, and was able to put 10 keepers in the boat.
“I had a limit by 8 (a.m.) and I culled four of them,” said Monsoor. “After noon I left the two areas alone. I figured I had a decent bag and wanted to let them rest. Hopefully I can get the spots to myself tomorrow.”
The top 20 pros that made the Buck Knives Cut and will fish Saturday on the Potomac River are:
1st: Yamamoto Baits pro Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 36-4
2nd: Robert Behrle, Hoover, Ala., 10 bass, 35-2
3rd: Chris Johnston, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, 10 bass, 34-2
4th: Polaris pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 10 bass, 33-9
5th: Andy Young, Mound, Minn., 10 bass, 33-8
6th: Andrew Upshaw, Tulsa, Okla., 10 bass, 33-8
7th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 10 bass, 33-3
8th: John Voyles, Petersburg, Ind., 10 bass, 33-1
9th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., 10 bass, 32-14
10th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., 10 bass, 32-12
11th: Jeff Sprague, Point, Texas, 10 bass, 32-11
12th: Livingston Lures pro Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 10 bass, 32-7
13th: Chad Warren, Sand Springs, Okla., 10 bass, 32-5
14th: Jason Meninger, Gainesville, Ga., 10 bass, 32-2
15th: Brandon McMillan, Clewiston, Fla., 10 bass, 32-0
16th: Mike Surman, Boca Raton, Fla., 10 bass, 32-0
17th: Shane LeHew, Catawba, N.C., 10 bass, 32-0
18th: Keith Bryan, Novato, Calif., 10 bass, 31-14
19th: Carl Jocumsen, Frisco, Texas, 10 bass, 31-11
20th: Cody Meyer, Auburn, Calif., 10 bass, 31-11
For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.
Michael Wooley of Collierville, Tennessee, earned the $500 Big Bass award in the Pro Division Friday after catching a largemouth weighing 6 pounds, 2 ounces.
Overall there were 777 bass weighing 2,083 pounds, 3 ounces caught by 157 pros Friday. The catch included 151 five-bass limits.
Bryan Thrift of Shelby, North Carolina, clinched the 2017 FLW Tour Angler of the Year title after accumulating 1,122 points in the annual Angler of the Year race. Thrift’s incredible regular-season was highlighted by four top-10 finishes including two back-to-back second-place efforts. Along with the title, Thrift earned $100,000 and an automatic berth into the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup.
Bradley Dortch of Atmore, Alabama, claimed the FLW Tour Rookie of the Year award, which is awarded to the rookie pro angler who finishes the season with the highest point total.
Ryan Cannon of Bullard, Texas, won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Friday with a two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 33 pounds, 6 ounces, followed by Richie Eaves of Nauvoo, Illinois, who finished in second place with 10 bass totaling 30 pounds, 3 ounces, worth $7,750.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Ryan Cannon, Bullard, Texas, 10 bass, 33-6, $20,000
2nd: Richie Eaves, Nauvoo, Ill., 10 bass, 30-3, $7,750
3rd: Wataru Iwahori, Palestine, Texas, 10 bass, 29-6, $5,000
4th: John Duarte, Middle River, Md., 10 bass, 28-15, $4,200
5th: Tom Yi, Vienna, Va., 10 bass, 28-14, $3,050
6th: Larry Church, Keysville, Va., nine bass, 28-13, $2,500
7th: Douglas Colson, Cadiz, Ky., 10 bass, 28-5, $2,000
8th: Larry Kempler, Bluemont, Va., 10 bass, 28-0, $1,800
9th: Kermit Crowder, Matoaca, Va., 10 bass, 27-9, $1,700
10th: Mark Horton, Nicholasville, Ky., 10 bass, 27-5, $1,600
Mike Phillips of Clayton, Delaware, caught a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass – the heaviest in the Co-angler Division – and earned the $250 Big Bass award.
Overall there were 698 bass weighing 1,565 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 157 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 113 five-bass limits.
Gary Haraguchi of Redding, California, won the FLW Tour Co-angler of the Year title and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
In FLW Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. The full field competes in the two-day opening round. Co-angler competition concludes following Friday’s weigh-in, while the top 20 pros based on their two-day accumulated weight advance to Saturday. Only the top 10 pros continue competition Sunday, with the winner determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from the four days of competition.
Throughout the season, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The 2017 Forrest Wood Cup will be on Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina, Aug. 11-13.
The total purse for the FLW Tour at the Potomac River presented by Costa Sunglasses is more than $800,000, including $10,000 through 50th place in the Pro Division.
Anglers will take off at 6:30 a.m. EDT each day from Smallwood State Park, located at 2750 Sweden Point Road, in Marbury. Saturday and Sunday’s weigh-ins, June 17-18, will be held at Smallwood State Park, and will begin at 4 p.m.
Prior to the weigh-ins Saturday and Sunday, fans are invited to come out and experience the free FLW Expo at Smallwood State Park from noon to 4 p.m. The FLW Expo is a great opportunity for fishing fans of all ages to meet-and-greet with top FLW Tour anglers, enjoy games, activities and giveaways provided by FLW sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities.
Youth are also invited to participate in the free FLW Foundation Unified Fishing Derby at Smallwood State Park on Saturday, June 17, from 9-11 a.m. The event, hosted by FLW Foundation pro Cody Kelley along with other FLW Tour anglers, is free and open to area youth (18 years of age and younger) and Special Olympics athletes (all ages). Rods and reels are available for the first 50 participants to use, but youth are encouraged to bring their own if they own one.
Television coverage of the FLW Tour at the Potomac River presented by Costa Sunglasses will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 20 from 12 p.m.-1 p.m. EDT. 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.