EUFAULA, Ala. (May 16, 2015) – Pro Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, caught a five-bass limit Saturday weighing 15 pounds, 4 ounce to retain the lead on day three of the FLW Tournament at Lake Eufaula. Morrow’s three-day total of 15 bass weighing 54 pounds, 13 ounces gives him a slim 4-ounce lead over second-place pro Bryan Thrift of Shelby, North Carolina, heading into the fourth and final day of competition. The field is now cut to the final 10 anglers in the event that featured 149 of the best bass-fishing anglers in the world competing for a top cash award of up to $125,000.
“Today was a pretty tough, slow day for me,” said Morrow, a five-year veteran who has six previous top-10 finishes but is still seeking his first win on the FLW Tour. “I used four baits today to catch my fish, and that was really out of desperation. I’ve been adding as I go – one bait the first day, two baits on the second day and then four today. I’m having to do something different in order to get the right bites.”
Morrow said that he caught 15 keepers throughout the day and estimated that he fished around 30 different brush piles.
“Tomorrow I’m going to have to do the same thing,” Morrow continued. “Maybe I’ll change up the order, or which ones I choose to fish first, but I’m going to keep doing what got me here.”
When asked if he felt any pressure leading a Walmart FLW Tour event into the final day for the first time in his career, Morrow said that he was focused on only one thing.
“Where I’m at in my career right now, that is what I need next – a big win. At the end of the day, I’m not going to change anything tomorrow. I’ve got one more day of fishing. It’s just me against the bass.”
The top 10 pros advancing to the final day of competition on Lake Eufaula are:
1st: Troy Morrow, Eastanollee, Ga., 15 bass, 54-13
2nd: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 15 bass, 54-9
3rd: Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., 15 bass, 52-12
4th: Jeff Gustafson, Keewatin, Ontario, Canada, 15 bass, 49-11
5th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 15 bass, 49-8
6th: Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 15 bass, 47-12
7th: John Cox, Debary, Fla., 15 bass, 47-10
8th: Adrian Avena, Vineland, N.J., 15 bass, 45-14
9th: Randy Haynes, Counce, Tenn., 15 bass, 44-11
10th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 15 bass, 44-11
Finishing in 11th through 20th are:
11th: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 15 bass, 43-15, $11,909
12th: Dave Lefebre, Erie, Pa., 15 bass, 42-13, $11,909
13th: Darrell Davis, Dover, Fla., 15 bass, 41-8, $11,909
14th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 15 bass, 40-13, $11,909
15th: David Fritts, Lexington, N.C., 14 bass, 38-2, $11,909
16th: Peter Thliveros, Saint Augustine, Fla., 14 bass, 36-2, $11,909
17th: Terry Bolton, Paducah, Ky., 14 bass, 36-0, $11,909
18th: Ramie Colson, Jr., Cadiz, Ky., 14 bass, 35-9, $11,909
19th: Derrick Snavely, Rogersville, Tenn., 12 bass, 35-6, $11,909
20th: Cody Kelley, Conway, Ark., 14 bass, 35-6, $11,909
Overall there were 92 bass weighing 235 pounds, 2 ounces caught by pros Saturday. Fourteen of the final 20 pros weighed in five-bass limits. Keith Honeycutt of Temple, Texas, won the co-angler division and $25,000 Friday with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 22 pounds, 12 ounces, followed by Hiroyuki Watanabe of Shizuoka, Honshu, Japan, who finished in second place with 10 bass weighing 22 pounds, 12 ounces worth $7,448.
Anglers will take off for the fourth and final day of competition from the Lakepoint Resort State Park Marina located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula at 6:30 a.m. Sunday. Sunday’s final weigh-ins will be held at Walmart, located at 3176 S. Eufaula Ave., in Eufaula beginning at 4 p.m.