TRENTON, Mich. (Sept. 23, 2005) - Pro Thomas Moleski of Elkhart, Ind., caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 4 ounces to lead day three of the EverStart Series Northern Division event on the Detroit River. The winning pro will take home a Ranger 519 VX powered by a Yamaha or Evinrude outboard, Minn Kota trolling motor, Garmin electronics and EverStart Batteries plus $8,400 cash.
Temperatures dropped somewhat on the third day, with highs only reaching the low 70s. Partly cloudy skies and more windy weather greeted anglers on day three, though the chop wasn't as turbulent as it was on Thursday.
Moleski had a 30-mile run to make to his hotspot, an area of isolated rock piles that he found during practice. "I caught a 7-pounder in there during practice so after that, I really started 'shopping around' in that area," Moleski said. "I found what I thought was the sweet spot, so I actually took a few days off from practice. Luckily for me, they were still there when the tournament began.
"So far as catching them, I've had to alternate my pattern a little each day. Big fish are often finicky, so I've been throwing both a drop-shot rig and snapping a tube up and down off the bottom." Moleski has been fishing slightly stained waters, so he's chosen darker colors for his plastics, such as green pumpkin.
Rounding out the top-five pros are Patrick Goodman of White Pigeon (five bass, 20 pounds); David Reault of Livonia (five bass, 18 pounds, 13 ounces); Kevin Vida of Clare (five bass, 18 pounds, 5 ounces); and Mark Dowd of Westland (five bass, 17 pounds, 2 ounces).
James Richardson Sr. of Harrison, Ohio, caught five bass weighing 21 pounds, 15 ounces to lead the Co-angler Division. Richardson fished with Moleski on day three. "I've been tubing," Richardson said. "It's an amazingly simple pattern, but it works. I've been throwing green-pumpkin tubes on leadhead jigs in 24 to 26 feet of water to catch them."
Rounding out the top-five co-anglers are Nick Neves of Jerome (five bass, 20 pounds, 11 ounces); Mark Myers of Minneapolis, Minn. (five bass, 18 pounds, 5 ounces); Neil Heiden of Blissfield (five bass, 16 pounds, 1 ounce); and Jeff Harris of Grand Blanc (five bass, 15 pounds, 12 ounces).
A narrowed field of 20 anglers caught 73 bass weighing 259 pounds, 9 ounces, giving each bass an impressive average weight of more than 3 1/2 pounds. Twelve of the anglers brought in a limit.
EverStart Series tournaments are four-day events consisting of two rounds. The entire field competes Wednesday and Thursday, and the top 10 pros and co-anglers - based on two-day accumulated weights - advance to the final round. Anglers start at zero Friday, and pro and co-angler winners are determined Saturday based on two-day accumulated weights.
For more information on the EverStart Series or any of FLW Outdoors' eight tournament trails, visit http://www.FLWOutdoors.com.
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