Cloudy Skies Not a Problem for Pat Anderson
By: Joseph Cannon
It must be nice going into the last day of competition with an 11.11 pound lead. Pat Anderson certainly thinks so after Thursday’s weigh in. Anderson, a member of the Army team, managed to add an astounding 19.25 pounds to his first day’s 13.37 pounds. Even before he weighed in, there was talk around the audience that Anderson had a big creel on the way. On a day when most were happy to catch five fish that made the length, Anderson caught 15 fish and was already culling them at eleven that morning. When asked if he could continue his success into the last day, Anderson had little if any doubt that he would. He even said that his Friday weight could rival the previous two days. Anderson has caught all his fish in deep water, making the overcast conditions irrelevant to his pattern. Anderson said that his only problem Thursday was the number of other boats trying to replicate his pattern. Obviously, this will be even more of a nuisance Friday. However, this doesn’t seem to bother the leader one bit. “They are trying to copy me, but it isn’t working out for them like it is for me. They can’t get close enough to see just exactly what lure I am using”, said a delightfully confident Anderson. |
| The rest of the field may be behind a bit, but there are some really good creels coming in this week. This national is breaking ABA records for fish caught along with the weight of fish caught. After day two, Kevin Iden is shown in second with 21.51 pounds followed by Don Leslie with 21.03 pounds.
Norman Ligon is in fourth place after the first two days, but he is more notable for winning big fish award on Thursday. Norman had a 7.05 lb largemouth that won him over five thousand dollars. He has and claims he will continue to fish for big fish and not quantity. Norman did admit to being a little bit skeptical about his chances of repeating his luck for another day.
The CAST field remains very close going into the final day. Tyler Tucker gained the front position after weighing in 6.01 pounds Thursday, giving him a total of 10.45 lbs going into Friday. Douglas M. Macchia is following close behind with 10. 28 lbs and Peter C. Wycokoff is in third with 8.08 lbs.
Friday’s Weigh in will begin at 2:00 pm followed immediately by an awards banquet taking place at Point Mallard in Decatur. The 2004 National Champion will be crowned along with the 2004 Angler of the Year. Finally, one of the most exciting events of the week, the draw boat giveaway, will take place and one lucky angler will be taking home a 2004 Triton TRX Series, with a 225 Mercury Optimax, loaded with Lowrance and Motor Guide products all for just showing up.
Day 2 Photos |
