Pros fishing March 8-11.
There are 164 FLW Tour pros from 26 states and Canada coming together on Lake Hartwell this week for the first major tournament of the year.
Five of South Carolina pros are included in the field.
During last year’s stop at Harwell, Todd Auten from Lake Wylie was the only Palmetto angler to make the the Top 20.
Auten finished in 14th and took home a check for $12,500, moving to number seven in the Angler of the Year standings.
Auten currently is ranked 25th in the AOY standings, and is looking to improving his ranking on Lake Hartwell.
Other Palmetto pros include Clemson graduates and local favorites Anthony Gagliardi from Prosperity and Lancen Halbert of Enoree.
Gagliardi was the 2006 FLW Angler of the Year.
Also competing will be Jay Keith and Dearal Rogers from Camden. Last year was Keith’s rookie year.
For the South Carolina co-anglers, Tommy Milligan of Seneca was the only one to make the Top 10 last year. Milligan, who was a 2009 All-American, had a three-day total of 29 pounds, 12 ounces and received a check for $2500.
Some of the pro anglers to watch include Jason Christie from Park Hill, OK., who won the FLW Lake Hartwell Tournament last year. Christie found several areas that fit his style of fishing; especially in the backs of the creeks that contained what he called, “Oklahoma water.”
Last years second -place finisher was Brent Ehrler from Redlands, Calif. Ehrler lost out to Christie last year by 10 pounds, and is currently ranked second in the AOY standings.
This years leader in the AOY is David Dudley from Lynchburg, Va. Dudley finished in 22nd place last year.
Of course, the man to always watch is TV angling pro Jimmy Houston from Cookson, Okla. Last year, Houston was in the Top 20 on last day when he spun the prop on his motor. Houston came in late and was disqualified for the day, but still managed to finish in 20th place.
The FLW pros will be fishing for a first-place prize of up to $125,000 with a full field, and the co-anglers will be going for $25,000.
Anglers will take off each morning from Portman Shoals Marina located at 1629 Marina Rd. in Anderson at 7 a.m. Thursday through Saturday and 7:30 a.m. on Sunday.
The tournament begins with Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins being held at Portman Shoals Marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday’s final weigh-ins will be held at the Greenville’s TD Covention Center located at One Exposition Drive in Greenville, S.C., beginning at 4 p.m.
Also the FLW Expo will be at the TD Center from noon to 4 pm. Expo activities include: meet the pros, samples and giveaways, interactive games, Walmart Kid Zone, plus rod and reel and an ATV giveaway. All activities are free and open to the public. For a complete schedule of events, visit: www.flwoutdoor.com.
Be the first to comment