Posted -  April 4th, 2008   8:41pm CST

Two-Day Total of 27-06 Leads - 22-07 the Cut.....Luke Clausen

Story by Dru Smith - Photos by Dan O'Sullivan

Jasper, AL – Rain and storms plagued the second day of the Wal-Mart FLW Tour event on Smith Lake. However, the tougher conditions gave rise to better weights as the 200 man field battled for the ten weekend invites. Pouring rain may have dampened the spirits and halted the weigh-in, but it will not stop ten deserving anglers from moving on to the finals. 

Sight fishing was the technique of choice on Thursday, but limited visibility, due to the rain, kept many anglers from raiding the beds. Overall, the weights did improve with three limits breaking the 15 pound mark. The BASS ZONE’s pre-tournament favorite, Greg Pugh made the biggest move on Friday jumping from 69th into the third seed for Saturday’s round. Greg brought the day’s best weight to the scales at 17-11 pounds.

Glenn Browne took top honors on Friday with a two day total of 27-06. The Florida angler will lead the ten man field into the final two rounds. Representing the Yellowhammer State are Pugh and fellow Alabamian, Scott Canterbury. Scott brought 15-04 to the scales on Friday and his 26-12 totla placed him in second.

Two Floridians also made the top ten. Glenn Browne in first was followed by Koby Kreiger, from Okeechobee, who held on to the 8th spot and a trip to the finals.

A pair of Okies joined the ten man field as well. Long time FLW pro, Darrel Robertson was joined by first year pro, Jason Christie. The Oklahomans held down fourth and eight, respectively.

Rounding out the top ten were Tennessee’s Brandon Coulter, Washington’s Luke Clausen, California’s Michael Bennett and Arkansas angler Danny Pierce.

The weekend roster looks like this:

Glenn Browne 27-06
Scott Canterbury 26-12
Greg Pugh 26-05
Darrel Robertson 25-10
Brandon Coulter 25-05
Michael Bennett 25-01
Danny Pierce 23-01
Koby Kreiger 22-15
Jason Christie 22-11
Like Clausen 22-07

Day one leader, Terry Baksay managed just one fish on Friday and fell to 46th. 30 limits were brought in on Friday dropping from 58 on day one. Greg Pugh’s 17-11 pound limit on day two was the biggest of the tournament so far. Second year pros, Danny Pierce and Brandon Coulter will join Tour rookies Jason Christie and Scott Canterbury as they fish their first top ten final.

Glenn Browne Goes to School
Using the tried and true technique of flipping as his mainstay this week, Glenn was in the right spot as the fish began schooling. “They started busting the water and it got stupid for a while. I was throwing a topwater and they would annihilate it.”

Putting one spotted bass and four largemouths in the boat by 9:15, Glenn waded through 10 keepers to post his day two weight of 15-02. “When I found this spot, I knew it was perfect. It is at the mouth of a creek and right on a channel swing. I am going to stay in this area no matter what.”

If the top water action doesn’t materialize on Saturday, Glenn will revert back to the Berkley Power Tube and flip trees. “These fish aren’t ready to spawn. There spot is a transition area and the fish are moving through. Hopefully, this rain won’t muddy the water up too much.”

Canterbury Tales for Rookie
In just his second Tour event, Scott Canterbury covered a lot of water to makes his first top ten. “I never took my foot off the trolling motor. I have fished new water both days.” Scott cut his teeth and the BFL circuit and is hoping to make a living doing this full time. “I love it here,” he said referring to the FLW Tour. “I hope I can do this for a long time.

Scott calls Logan Martin his home lake and feels comfortable chasing spotted bass up and down the Catoosa River. “I love catching spots, but I have yet to catch one here. I caught all my fish yesterday off beds and today just two came off of beds and the rest were on reaction baits.”

Pugh Going Back to Move Up
Greg Pugh was basically the only home town angler in the 200 man field. He lost a quality fish on day one and settled for 69th place with just 8-10. “I had a lot of people give me a hard time about coming in with that weight. It is just fishing; sometimes you catch them and some times you don’t.” Greg is staying on the Cullman County side of the lake and is proud to be one of the Alabama representatives in the top ten. “I live up here in Simpson’s creek and know this water. It is an area I like to fish.”

Greg is doing almost nothing besides sight fishing. He culled one bed fish with a deep water spot late in the day, but the lion share of his fish have been plucked from the beds. I’m using a PJ’s Finesse jig. It a small profile jig in 5/16th weight. It looks like a bream running across the bed. I’ll switch to a shaky-head or tube if the fish are finicky.”

Not planning to change his tactics, Greg will continue to look for the winning bass. “I am getting way back in the creeks, probably farther back than most want to go. I’m tearing up my boat wrap, but I have to make a living and I can get a new wrap. I’m all-terrain, four wheel drive fishing.” 

Robertson Dead in the Water
Darrel Robertson switched from looking at the bass to throwing a Berkley Sinker worm to catch his 13-12 on Friday. “The water is a little off-colored and I think the fish are bedding a little deeper.” He is throwing the sinker worm to likely bedding areas and “dead sticking” the bait in anticipation of a bite. “It is real slow fishing. The rain could help me because of the way I’m fishing.”

Having run through the bass he could see, Darrel plans to stay I the same area with hopes of more fish moving in. “I ran all over this lake in practice and could get bit. I will stay in these areas and just go fishing.” 

Known for his shallow water prowess, Darrel will continue to dance with the girls he brought to the dance. “I don’t have enough line on my reels to fish deep,” he laughed when asked about changing areas. “The fish are there and I will stay with them.”

Coulter Counting on the Pollen
Brandon Coulter had just one small fish at noon, but came to the scales with 11-08 to enter in the finals in fifth. “I finally figured out how to catch these fish in the pollen covered water. I don’t think a lot of guys a doing what I’m doing.”

The pollen can help or hinder an angler depending on how he approaches it. Brandon, now that he has made the adjustments, looks forward to working over the green stuff. “It is a thin coat on top of the water and kind of sticks to everything. I had a four pound fish hit my bait three times today. That wouldn’t have happened if the pollen wasn’t there.”

Bennett Hoping For an Early Bite
Michael Bennett caught nine keepers on Friday to move into the top ten. His second day weight of 12-04 put him in 6th. “I caught a couple of fish early off beds and then went to my pre-spawn pattern. I had my weight by 1:00 and just went practicing.” 

Michael is concerned about his chances in the finals and says it will come down to a specific bite. “If the pre-spawn fish bite, then I have and chance. If they don’t, then I’m in trouble.” Michael is targeting depths from 15 to 45 feet for his preemies and says the fish are just scattered. “It just comes down to specific spots. It could be a point or a dock in 80 feet of water. I’m just fishing.”

THE TOP 100 DAY 2 STANDINGS