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Napier Leads Field into Semifinal
Round of $185,000 EverStart Series Tournament
HENDERSON, N.C.-May 31, 2001--Arlie Napier of
Middlesboro, Ky., will lead 30 of the nation's top professional
bass
anglers into Friday's semifinal round at the final $185,000 EverStart
Series Eastern Division tournament on Kerr Lake with a two-day
total
of 10 bass weighing 33 pounds, 7 ounces.
Napier caught five bass weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces Wednesday
to
finish in fourth place then turned in five bass weighing 17 pounds,
5
ounces Thursday to finish the opening round on top of the 162-angler
Pro Division. Friday the top 30 pros and co-anglers will start
from
zero and fish for one day to determine the top 10 anglers who
will
advance to Saturday's final round for a shot at top awards of
$15,000
and a Mercury- or Yamaha-powered Ranger boat in the Pro Division
and
$6,000 cash in the Co-Angler Division.
"I feel that if I had to sit there and milk it all day,
I could
catch 20 pounds," said Napier, who caught the majority of
his bass
from a single deep-water location using a crankbait. "But
my strategy
is to go in there and catch five 3-pounders and get out."
Napier says the strategy has served him well so far. "I
lost a
5-pounder (Thursday), but I made seven casts and put seven fish
in the
boat after that."
Pro Terry Tucker of Gadsden, Ala., caught 10 bass weighing
29
pounds, 10 ounces over two days to secure the No. 2 spot in Friday's
competition. Rounding out the top five pros were Pat Fisher of
Stone
Mountain, Ga., with 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 2 ounces; Jay
Kendrick
of Kingston, Ga., with 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 14 ounces;
and
Shaun Hunter of Pilot Mountain, N.C., with 10 bass weighing 27
pounds,
11 ounces.
In the 162-person Co-Angler Division, Eastern Division points
leader Greg Lineberry of Galax, Va., claimed the top spot with
a
two-day total of 10 bass weighing 21 pounds, 1 ounce. He caught
the
majority of his bass by flipping a 4-inch green-pumpkin colored
Gambler
crawdad into bushes.
Big bass and $750 in the Pro Division went to Sean Stickler
of
Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for a 6-pound, 7-ounce bass. Big bass
and $250
in the Co-Angler Division went to Paul Kaptis of Boynton Beach,
Fla.,
for a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass.
A total of 773 bass were caught by 255 anglers Thursday including
66 five-bass limits. More than 98 percent of the bass were released
alive.
Competition begins at 5:30 a.m. each day at Satterwhite Point
in
Henderson. Friday's weigh-in begins at 2:30 p.m. at Satterwhite
Point,
and Saturday's final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart Supercenter
located at 200 North Cooper Road in Henderson at 3:30 p.m.
For complete results, visit www.everstartseries.com.
Rogers Takes Early Lead in Final
$185,000 EverStart Series Eastern Division Tournament
HENDERSON, N.C.-May 30, 2001--Pro Mark Rogers of
Naples, Fla., landed the opening day lead among 324 hopeful bass
anglers Wednesday in the final Eastern Division EverStart Series
tournament of 2001. At stake in the event on Kerr Lake are top
awards
of $50,000 cash and prizes in the Pro Division and $6,000 in
the
Co-Angler Division plus eligibility to compete in the $325,000
EverStart Championship presented by Conseco.
Rogers took the lead with five bass weighing 19 pounds followed
by
Scott Dameron of Gahent, W.Va., with five bass weighing 16 pounds,
15
ounces.
Rounding out the top five were Terry Tucker of Gadsden, Ala.,
with
five bass weighing 16 pounds, 4 ounces; Arlie Napier of Middlesboro,
Ky., with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces; and Roger Farmer
of
Dalton, Ga., with five bass weighing 15 pounds, 11 ounces.
In the Co-Angler Division, Chris Brunn of Murray, Ky., took
the
early lead with five bass weighing 13 pounds, 10 ounces followed
by
Jimmy Hale Jr. of Rocky Mount, Va., with five bass weighing 11
pounds,
7 ounces and Jonathan Johnson of Bessemer City, N.C., with four
bass
weighing 10 pounds, 14 ounces.
"I'm enjoying this quite a bit," said Brunn, who
is fishing his
first full season on the EverStart Series. "I've been needing
a good
tournament."
Last season, while fishing his first EverStart Series tournament,
Brunn finished ninth on Lake Cumberland after leading the first
two
days of competition. It is his highest finish to date.
Big bass and $750 in the Pro Division went to Andrew Scitez
of
Kenova, W.Va., for a 6-pound, 2-ounce largemouth. Big bass and
$250 in
the Co-Angler Division went to James Benningfield of Jamestown,
Ky.,
for a 4-pound, 15-ounce largemouth.
A total of 893 bass were caught Wednesday including 95 five-bass
limits. More than 96 percent of the bass were released alive.
For a shot at victory, anglers in both divisions must secure
one
of 30 slots available in Friday's semifinal round by catching
the
heaviest two-day total of bass in round one. During the semifinal
round, anglers start from zero and compete for one day to determine
the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers who will compete in Saturday's
finale. Catch weights are cleared again for the final day of
competition, and the winner of each division is determined by
the
weight of that day's catch.
Competition begins at 5:30 a.m. each morning at Satterwhite
Point
in Henderson. Weigh-ins Thursday and Friday will also be held
at
Satterwhite Point starting at 2:30 p.m. each day. Saturday's
final
weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at
200 North
Cooper Road in Henderson at 3:30 p.m.
Mar 2001 | Feb 2001
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