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Water levels will dictate tournament

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (March 24, 2011) – The EverStart Series is headed to Kentucky/Barkley lakes March 31- April 2 for the second of four stops in the Central Division. Presented by Mercury, the tournament will feature as many as 300 pros and co-anglers competing for top awards up to $35,000 plus a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard for the pro and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard plus $5,000 for the co-angler.

“Right now this tournament is a whole lot of wait and see what happens,” said OFF! pro Terry Bolton of Jonesboro, Ark. “Water levels are high and continuing to rise, however, the Ohio River crested yesterday and the Mississippi River is expected to crest today so the water should really start to fall soon. Conditions will change before next weekend’s tournament. And of course you never know what the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is going to do.

“Currently the water is up in the bushes and if it stays high anglers should target trees and bushes flipping and using a spinnerbait,” Bolton went on to say. “The fishing should be really good.

“If the water starts to drop drastically it will be a story of haves and have not’s. Once the water starts to fall the fish will start to gang-up and be pushed into certain areas, could be points, ledges and/or creek channels. They key then is going to be finding those locations. I would use a Rat-L-Trap, crankbait or Carolina Rig in lower water level conditions. It’s just too early to tell because conditions will continue to change on a daily basis. I’m watching water levels very closely and won’t make any decisions before next week.”

Anglers will take off from Moors Resort & Marina located at 570 Moors Road in Gilbertsville, Ky., at 6:30 each morning. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. daily. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Walmart, located at 310 West Main Street in Benton at 3:30 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

Pros will fish for a top award of $35,000 plus a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard if Ranger Cup guidelines are met. Co-anglers will cast for a top award consisting of a Ranger 177TR with 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $5,000 if Ranger Cup guidelines are met.

The EverStart Series consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western. Each division consists of four tournaments and competitors will be vying for valuable points in each division that could earn them the Strike King Angler of the Year title along with $5,000 for the pro and $2,000 for the co-angler. The top 40 pros and co-anglers from each respective division will qualify for the EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30.

The EverStart Series tournament on Kentucky/Barkley lakes is being hosted by the Marshall County Tourist Commission.

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