The LaCrosse, Wis., angler advanced to the top 10 as the No. 1 seed with a five-bass limit Saturday of 21-10. With a three-day catch of 15 bass weighing 54-9, he now holds a miniscule 1-ounce lead in the tournament going into the final day of competition.
“I’m not real confident,” said Monsoor, who has 32 career top-10 finishes in FLW Outdoors competition. “Ehrler’s really a good fisherman, and it looks like he’s on some really good fish.
“I had a great day,” Monsoor said. “I might not do that tomorrow.”
Monsoor’s technique for success is no surprise to those who have followed his career – he’s throwing a swimming jig – and he said he will rely on the jig on the final day of competition.
“I’ll have five poles all with my swimming jig on them,” Monsoor said.
National Guard pro Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., advanced to the final round of 10 pros in the No. 2 spot with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 54-8.
Rounding out the top 10 pros and advancing to the final day of competition are:
3rd: Marty Stone, Fayetteville, N.C., 15 bass, 50-13
4th: Dan Morehead, Paducah, Ky., 15 bass, 50-9
5th: Todd Auten, Lake Wylie, S.C., 15 bass, 50-9
6th: Micah Frazier, Newnan, Ga., 15 bass, 49-13
7th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 15 bass, 48-10
8th: Brett Hite, Phoenix, Ariz., 15 bass, 48-0
9th: Jay Yelas, Corvallis, Ore., 15 bass, 46-14
10th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 15 bass, 45-10
Finishing in 11th through 20th are:
11th: Dave Lefebre, Erie, Pa., 15 bass, 45-8, $12,500
12th: Ron Shuffield, Bismarck, Ark., 15 bass, 42-10, $12,500
13th: Cody Meyer, Auburn, Calif., 15 bass, 42-9, $12,500
14th: Allen Boyd, Salem, Ind., 15 bass, 41-14, $12,500
15th: Jim Moynagh, Carver, Minn., 15 bass, 40-2, $12,500
16th: Adrian Avena, Vineland, N.J., 15 bass, 37-9, $12,000
17th: Travis Fox, Rogers, Ark., 13 bass, 37-7, $12,000
18th: Lancen Halbert, Enoree, S.C., 13 bass, 36-13, $12,000
19th: Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., 10 bass, 32-0, $12,000
20th: Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro, Kent, Ohio, 10 bass, 30-11, $12,000
Overall there were 86 bass weighing 238 pounds, 13 ounces caught by pros Saturday. The catch included 16 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup. The top 35 anglers in the point standings from the six FLW Tour Major tournaments will qualify.
Kevin Gordon of Aiken, S.C., won the co-angler division and $25,250 Saturday with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 43 pounds, 3 ounces followed by David Kuykendall of Fletcher, N.C., in second place with 15 bass weighing 35-12 worth $7,500.
“I did pretty good today,” Gordon said. “I’m super excited and got to fish with some great guys. This is a great organization and I really enjoyed my time here this week.”
Gordon fished his final day of competition with Ehrler and said they spent the day fishing a variety of presentations and depths.
“(Ehrler) was on them strong,” Gordon said. “Sitting in the back of the boat all I had to do was adapt to conditions whether it was deep or shallow. I fished with one of the best fishermen today you could ask for.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Richard Peek, Centre, Ala., 14 bass, 34-3, $5,000
4th: David Lauer, Loxahatchee, Fla., 14 bass, 32-9, $4,000
5th: Rich Dalbey, Greenville, Texas, 12 bass, 30-6, $3,000
6th: Bryan Partak, Marseilles, Ill., 12 bass, 29-12, $2,500
7th: J.R. Wright, Truckee, Calif., 15 bass, 29-9, $2,000
8th: Brant Grimm, Kingsport, Tenn., 14 bass, 29-6, $1,800
9th: James Dixon, Southfield, Mich., 15 bass, 28-9, $1,700
10th: Philip Jarabeck, Lynchburg, Va., 15 bass, 27-14, $1,600
Overall there were 57 bass weighing 114 pounds, 1 ounce caught by co-anglers Saturday. The catch included six five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $25,000 this week plus valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup. The top 35 co-anglers in the point standings from the six FLW Tour Major tournaments will qualify.
The top 10 pros will take off at 7:30 a.m. Sunday morning from Portman Shoals Marina. Sunday’s final weigh-in will be held at the TD Convention Center located at One Exposition Drive in Greenville beginning at 4 p.m.