Due to a winter storm and dangerous icy road conditions, day two of the Rayovac FLW Series at Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Mercury has been canceled. Weather permitting, competition will resume as scheduled Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. at the Umphrey Family Pavilion. Saturday’s final weigh-in, originally slated to be held at the Walmart in Jasper, will remain lakeside and the champion will be crowned at the Umphrey Family Pavilion in Brookeland.
“Obviously, the safety of our anglers is always our first priority,” said Rayovac FLW Series Tournament Director Ron Lappin. “It rained for three hours last night, and then the temperatures dropped into the lower 30s. Then, we got hit with a winter storm and it dumped 4½ inches of snow on us. The roads were incredibly icy. We could hardly drive to the ramp this morning at 4 a.m. to make a decision. I couldn’t imagine trying to pull a boat. It was just too dangerous.
“We’ll continue to monitor the weather throughout the day to ensure that conditions are safe to continue fishing Saturday.”
Due to the cancellation, the entire field of 112 pros and 112 co-anglers will advance to Saturday’s final day of competition. The champion will be determined by the heaviest accumulated two-day total weight from Thursday and Saturday.
Pro Ray Hanselman of Del Rio, Texas, led the field after day one with a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 5 ounces. Right behind Hanselman is Chevy pro Jay Yelas of Corvallis, Ore., who brought five bass to the scale weighing 18-8. Hanselman will hold a 2-pound, 12-ounce lead heading into the final day of competition.
