Mike Cork Takes First Place at Cross Lake

From Division 48 in North Louisiana, 24 October 2009.  Mike Cork from Benton Louisiana is one step closer to the ABA National Championship with his 1st Place win and $635.00 in the American Fishing Tour bass tournament held on Cross Lake this past weekend.  Mike’s 5 fish limit weighed in at 8.00 lbs even. Second place went to Richard Godwin with a weight of 7.71 lbs, and third place was Andy Yerger with a weight of 5.91 lbs.  Big bass was also awarded to Andy Yerger for catching a 3.50 pound largemouth.  These anglers are acquiring valuable points to insure their birth in division’s two-day champion and the American Fishing Tour National Championship that will be held this fall.  Their points are also being used to determine the divisional angler of the year. The top angler by points earned in this division will represent the division in the Angler of the Year final round.

The top five anglers were:
1.) Mike Cork               8.00 lbs.
2.) Richard Godwin    7.71 lbs.
3.) Andy Yerger         5.91 lbs.
4.) Kyle Kennington    5.44 lbs.
5.) Brent Glover          4.59 lbs.

Conditions: Post front conditions, cooler temperatures, blue bird skies, and virtually no breeze made it extremely tough on the field of 33 anglers for the first event in division 48.  The water temp had dropped over 10 degrees in just one week with all the recent rains.  The lake level was just below flood stage so most of the docks were right at the water line and the water was very stained depending on where you were on the lake.  We arrived to 47* temps at registration that morning and weighed in under a bright sunny sky and 74* weather.

Winning Strategy:  “All of my fish were caught on a spinnerbait” Says Mike Cork.  “They key for me was to slow roll it maintaining contact with the bottom to get the bites.  The slot limit hurt a lot of folks today and the weights would have been much different.  Throwing back solid 2-3 lb fish breaks your heart but that’s fishing.  I saw a lot of guys do that today and did not bring anything to the scales.”  (Cross Lake has a slot limit of 14-17 inches) Another pattern that worked well for others was a crankbait.

Next Divisional Tournament: This division’s next tournament will be November 22nd on the Red River at Clark’s Marina.  For more information on this or any future event in this division contact Chris Wayand at (318) 349-3363 or by email at: cwbass09@yahoo.com

The American Fishing Tour offers low cost, close to home bass tournaments that are designed for the weekend angler. All ABA anglers fish for money and points. The points advance the angler to their divisional championship and the top 500 anglers in the US are invited to the American Fishing Tour National Championship.

About American Bass Anglers
American Bass Anglers is the largest tournament organization for the weekend angler.  American Bass Anglers operates the American Fishing Tour, The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series and the American Couples Series.  Each tour is design specifically for the weekend angler offering low cost and close to home events so the anglers can qualify for larger championship.  For more information on American Bass Anglers visit www.americanbassanglers.com