ANDERSON, S.C. (March 25) – GEICO bass fisherman Robert Pearson displayed consistency in this week’s Walmart FLW Tour stop on Lake Hartwell, a characteristic that should bode well in his quest to fish in the Forrest Wood Cup world championship later this year.
Pearson hauled in his five-bass limit on Friday, weighing 10 pounds, 10 ounces. That was slightly better than his 10-pound, 8-ounce weight on Thursday and put him tied for 78th out of 152 fisherman entered in the tournament.
His two-day total was 22-4, a little more than a pound out of earning prize money. But his eyes are on a bigger prize.
Points are awarded based on finishing position in each of the FLW tournaments, with the top 58 fishing in the Forrest Wood Cup in August. Pearson knows that posting consistent finishes each weekend would give him a shot at making FLW’s main event.
"Consistency is going to pay a big dividend at the end of the year," Pearson said. "As long as I stay consistent, things will work out for us. Even in this tournament – it didn’t go the way we planned, but you have to make good decisions. The decisions I made today were really good ones. I stayed on the fish, and I got one big one – I just couldn’t get the three or four big ones you need to be up front."
He reached his limit, even though four of his five fish were not record-setters.
"Still, that’s consistent," Pearson said. "You can’t complain about catching fish because some guys didn’t catch their limit today. I mean, I can complain because I’m a professional, and I’m supposed to catch fish. I can’t make excuses, and I have to fish as hard as I can all day.
"But it was a great tournament for me."
Pearson was hit with cool weather when he launched his GEICO boat early Friday morning as temperatures dropped 20 degrees overnight. Early-morning fog also hampered Pearson’s efforts.
"I didn’t get a bite until 10:30," Pearson said. "I started figuring them out because they pulled out of the pockets. They weren’t on the docks like they were yesterday. And it was foggy, too. When we got back in some of the pockets, the steam and the cold air created the fog. More than likely, that’s what hurt some guys because they didn’t adjust."
Pearson honed in on his craft Friday, catching fish on six different rods after using 18 on Thursday.
"Every day I eliminate some things that shouldn’t be working, and I use some things I know should be working," Pearson said. "I’m very pleased right now, because it could’ve been a lot worse."
Pearson fishes again April 14-17 when the FLW Tour heads to Lake Chickamauga near Chattanooga, Tenn.