ESPN

COLUMBUS, Miss. — Thanks to Hurricane Ivan, the competitors on the CITGO Bassmaster Southern Open circuit presented by Busch Beer will finally see action in the season opener on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Oct. 14-16.

The Southern Open anglers were scheduled to begin their three-tournament season last month on Alabama's Lake Eufaula, but Ivan caused BASS officials to postpone that event until Oct. 28-30. That forced anglers to await the three-day competition on the Tenn-Tom.

BASS made its first visit to the Tenn-Tom in August of 2003 when a Central Open was held out of Columbus. It was won by Arkansas' Kevin Short with 39 pounds, 4 ounces. His winning pattern involved mixing up three crankbaits while making repeated casts from various angles to flooded cypress trees in 2 to 8 feet of water in Lake Aliceville.

In May, the Bassmaster Elite 50 series headed to Columbus and Arkansas' Mark Davis was the big winner with a four-day total of 62-4. The 1995 CITGO Bassmaster Classic champ scored by cranking and worming schools of fish holding adjacent to submerged vegetation.

Now that two BASS events have been staged on the Tenn-Tom, have the pros learned all of the finny secrets of this waterway?

"No, I don't think so," said Pete Ponds, a Madison, Miss. resident. "Columbus has a lot of little hidden secrets.

"There are two or thee jet boats that are going to be in the tournament this year and those guys will probably be running up the Buttahatchee (River). And there are some places up there where you can catch a good limit of (spotted bass). But the problem is that if there are more than two or three boats that do it the fish will leave the area. If you were going up there by yourself, you could catch a big sack."

Ponds was asked to predict how good the fishing will be this time around.

"It's going to be pretty good, but not quite as strong as it was last spring," he replied. "It will probably take 37 to 39 pounds to win it. They just had a two-day tournament up there this weekend and it took 28 pounds to win.

"We're catching smaller fish. A 6-pounder right now is a big bass. A 4-pounder will turn heads. Catching a small limit — 7 pounds — is not going to be real hard. But catching the larger fish is going to be a challenge. Some of the guys will go for the gusto, me being one of them. I'm going to try to catch big fish."

Other anglers had different expectations.

"I think it will be about like the Elite 50 where 12 to 14 pounds a day will be real good," said 1982 Classic champion Paul Elias from Pachuta, Miss.

The Tenn-Tom weaves a serpentine 234-mile path along the borders of Mississippi and Alabama, offering 44,000 acres of fishable waters along the way.

It begins with Bay Springs Lake (located near Tishomingo, Miss.), a 6,700-acre reservoir that doesn't receive much fishing attention when compared to its counterparts to the south. Continuing south, the Tenn.-Tom features five unnamed locks and 46 miles of water. Aberdeen Lake, a 4,600-acre pool, is the beginning of the waterway in the opinion of Alabama and Mississippi anglers who rarely make the long run north to Bay Springs. Next is the 23-mile long Columbus Lake (8,900 acres in size), which may be the most heavily pressured pool on the Tenn.-Tom. Continuing south, Aliceville Lake is the favorite of most local trophy hunters. With 8,300 surface acres, this 28-mile-long pool has produced an impressive number of 10-pound-plus bass over the years, along with documented catches of a 14- and 16-pound fish.

Gainesville Lake is the oldest of the waterway's pools. The 6,400-acre lake was opened to the public in 1978.

The make-up of this waterway provides anglers with a variety of ways to catch bass. This tournament could be won with one of several methods.

"Kevin caught them in that slough on a crankbait, but I don't know if it's too late for that or not," Ponds said. "A lot of times that's better during the heat of the summer when the sweat's dripping off your elbows.

"I think as the shad start moving back into the pockets, the bass are going to follow them. After this first cold snap we're supposed to have this week, I think that will happen. They're already starting to move back into the pockets and it will just get stronger from there."

"You'll be able to catch some out on the river if we don't get any rain," Elias added. "And there will be three or four jet boats go up the one river and catch spots. But most of the good fish will come out of the backwaters on spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and frogs, or pitching jigs.

"Jeff Magee was able to finish in the top five (in the Open) because he was the only one up that river with a jet boat, but I've heard there are going to be six or seven jet boats in this tournament. So that will mess that up. You get much boat traffic up there and those spots will not bite."

Daily weigh-ins will begin at 3 p.m. and the launch will be at 6:45 a.m. at Columbus Marina. Both are free to the public.

Sponsors of the CITGO Bassmaster Northern Open include CITGO Petroleum Corp., Busch Beer, Purolator, Triton Boats, Mercury Marine, Toyota, Berkley, Abu Garcia, Lowrance Electronics, Flowmaster Exhaust Systems, MotorGuide, Bass Pro Shops, and BankOne.

Local Sponsors include Columbus Convention & Visitors Bureau.

ENTRY LIST
BOATERS
AL
RYAN ANAYA, WARRIOR
TODD ARY, BIRMINGHAM
A B BATTLES, SOUTHSIDE
FRED BLAND, BIRMINGHAM
JAMES BLANTON, EIGHT MILE
CODY BRANSTETTER, HAYNEVILLE
HOBSON BRYAN, TUSCALOOSA
COBY CARDEN, SHELBY
KENNETH CHAMBERS, VINEMONT
MIKE COX, HUNTSVILLE
KEN DODSON, ASHVILLE
BOYD DUCKETT, DEMOPOLIS
TERRY GOGGANS, FORT PAYNE
EDWARD GUICE, DECATUR
CHAD HALL, PINSON
RICKIE HARP, COTTONDALE
MATTHEW HERREN, TRUSSVILLE
LARRY HOPSON, HAMILTON
JAMES HORTON, CENTREVILLE
TIM HORTON, TUSCUMBIA
RANDY HOWELL, SPRINGVILLE
GARY HOWINGTON, GADSDEN
TOMMY JACQUES, WETUMPKA
TROY JENS, BROWNSBORO
BRANNON JONES, MONTGOMERY
STEPHEN KENNEDY, AUBURN
HIROSHI KOJIMA, ATHENS
RUSSELL LANE, PRATTVILLE
FELTON LANGLEY, LAFAYETTE
RICHARD LEIGEBER, CULLMAN
KYLE MABREY, BIRMINGHAM
JEROMEY MASON, COLUMBIANA
JIMMY MASON, ROGERSVILLE
TIM MCCORMICK, FAIRHOPE
DERRICK MILLIRONS, SEALE
HARRY MOORE, VALLEY
DON OSWALT, MC CALLA
DAVID PARSONS, DOTHAN
BART PAYNE, DORA
GREG PUGH, CULLMAN
RONNIE RAY, PHENIX CITY
MARK RIZK, ARAB
ROGER SCHOFIELD, KILLEN
GERALD SWINDLE, HAYDEN
RANDY WEATHERFORD, MILLBROOK
AR
STEPHEN BROWNING, HOT SPRINGS
LUCY MIZE, BEN LOMOND
RICK PIERCE, MOUNTAIN HOME
MARK ROSE, MARION
KEVIN SHORT, MAYFLOWER
SCOTT SUGGS, ALEXANDER
FL
LEE CEPERO, THONOTOSASSA
PRESTON CLARK, PALATKA
STEPHEN DANIEL, CLEWISTON
ROBERT DECKER, CLERMONT
CECIL DOUBERLY, LAKELAND
CHUCK ECONOMOU, REDINGTON SHORES
DANIEL FLETCHER, GREEN COVE SPRINGS
MATT FRIER, LIVE OAK
MICHAEL GOUGH, GAINESVILLE
V A HODGES, MOORE HAVEN
TONY HOGAN, PENSACOLA
CHRIS LANE, WINTER HAVEN
ROBERT MILEY, MIAMI
GENE MORTON, JENSEN BEACH
STEVE NAAS, INVERNESS
RICH PATTERSON, ORLANDO
PATRICK PIERCE, JACKSONVILLE
CHARLES PIPPIN, ORLANDO
MICHAEL PRINDLE, TALLAHASSEE
WALT REYNOLDS, CLEWISTON
STEPHEN ROBY, PENSACOLA
MARK ROGERS, NAPLES
TERRY SCROGGINS, PALATKA
TERRY SEGRAVES, KISSIMMEE
MARK SHEPARD, LABELLE
WALTER SWAFFORD, WINTER GARDEN
SUMIYUKI TAKANO, ORLANDO
CRAIG TAYLOR, TALLAHASSEE
JESUS VILLEGAS, MIAMI
A J WILLEQUER, EUSTIS
JOHN WINDHAM, LAKE WORTH
CHARLIE YOUNGERS, OVIEDO
GA
RICK BARHAM, RICHMOND HILL
DANNY BISHOP, BUCHANAN
EVAN BOUTWELL, ASHBURN
JODY CORDELL, NORCROSS
MICHAEL ECHOLS, ATHENS
TOM HAMLIN, LIZELLA
PAUL HANLEY, HULL
KENNY HOLLOWAY, EATONTON
TIM HOSKINS, GAINESVILLE
MICHAEL JOHNSON, TALKING ROCK
LARRY JONES, ACWORTH
DANNY KIRK, BARTOW
JOHN KITCHENS, ATLANTA
TIMOTHY LITTLE, AWORTH
DUKE MCCARDLE, MARIETTA
SHANE MEERS, ROME
BRAD MORLEY, NEWNAN
SKIP MUNDY, CUSSETA
JIM MURRAY, ARABI
ERIC NETHERY, ACWORTH
DAVID POLLARD, CARROLLTON
CURTIS REEVES, RIVERDALE
ROBERT RICHARDSON, PALMETTO
BRENDAN SMITH, KENNESAW
J T TUCKER, MOULTRIE
IL
CHAD MORGENTHALER, COULTERVILLE
JOHN MORRIS, ROBINSON
IN
GEORGE BROWN, MARTINSVILLE
JOHN GRAY, NOBLESVILLE
T W LORING, LAWRENCEBURG
DOUGLAS LUBS, INDIANAPOLIS
MIKE RENFRO, GREENFIELD
JOHN VALLES, EDINBURGH
KY
MARK MENENDEZ, PADUCAH
LA
ROGER BOLER, SLIDELL
JIM DILLARD, WEST MONROE
GREG HACKNEY, GONZALES
GENE PIZZ0LATO, BAKER
MO
RICK CLUNN, AVA
SHANE VOYLES, BLUE SPRINGS
MS
JASON CORDELL, PELAHATCHIE
SHANNON DENSON, BRANDON
DAVID DOVE, STEENS
PAUL ELIAS, PACHUTA
DARRELL HUNTER, JACKSON
JEFF MAGEE, MENDENHALL
SCOTT MCGEHEE, MADISON
TOMMY MCKNIGHT, KOSCIUSKO
KEN MURPHY, MERIDIAN
KEITH OTT, WAVELAND
JAMES PHILLIPS, GREENWOOD
PETE PONDS, MADISON
DANNY WALDEN, COLUMBUS
LANCE WALKER, COLDWATER
NC
CHRIS BAUMGARDNER, GASTONIA
GERALD BECK, LEXINGTON
SCOTT BROWNING, FRANKLIN
DAVID COOKE, MOORESVILLE
GUY EAKER, CHERRYVILLE
MICHAEL GOODMAN, NEBO
ALEX ORMAND, KINGS MOUNTAIN
MARTY STONE, LINDEN
JEFFREY THOMAS, BROADWAY
MARTY WALKER, MORAVIAN FALLS
OH
BRENT BRODERICK, OREGONIA
CHARLIE HARTLEY, GROVE CITY
DENNIS MAGOTO, WAYNESVILLE
BILL SMITH, POWELL
BRAD WALL, CLARKSVILLE
OK
DAVID SMITH, DEL CITY
SC
KEITH ASHLEY, GREENVILLE
TODD AUTEN, LAKE WYLIE
RYAN BOWMAN, SENECA
MICHAEL DELVISCO, GREER
DAVY HITE, PROSPERITY
WAYNE JEFFCOAT, CHAPIN
MICKEY PHIPPS, COLUMBIA
JASON QUINN, LAKE WYLIE
VINCENT RENEW, NORTH AUGUSTA
RAY SEDGWICK, CROSS
MARK SMITH, GREENVILLE
JOHNNY URBON, CLINTON
TN
BRIAN BEATTY, MOUNT JULIET
JAMES BUTLER, CLARKSVILLE
JEFF HAINES, BARTLETT
DWAYNE HORTON, KNOXVILLE
PAUL KELTNER, COLUMBIA
JAY KENDRICK, OOLTEWAH
EDMUND LILLY, BLUFF CITY
PRESTON MORRIS, SOMERVILLE
THOMAS O'BRYANT, CEDAR GROVE
BOBBY SCHARBER, PULASKI
ASHLEY STANFORD, LAWRENCEBURG
TOMMY STILES, MC MINNVILLE
JIMMY WATSON, SPRINGFIELD
TX
ROBERT BYRD, DALLAS
TAKAHIRO OMORI, EMORY
VA
JOHN CREWS, JETERSVILLE
MICHAEL HALL, ANNANDALE
JOE LEONARD, BRISTOL
WV
GREG JARRETT, SISSONVILLE
JEREMY STARKS, CHARLESTON
DANIEL WELCH, NEW MARTINSVILLE
NON-BOATER
AL
JONATHAN BARNETTE, JASPER
BRIAN BELL, ETHELSVILLE
RONNIE BELL, ETHELSVILLE
MIKE BIRGE, FLORALA
MORGAN BROWN, MOBILE
TOMMY BRYANT, OPELIKA
DON CARPENTER, OHATCHEE
JOHN DAVIS, ATMORE
GLENN DEAL, HEADLAND
MICHAEL DENNIS, CUBA
DONNIE DODD, GUNTERSVILLE
BRADLEY DORTCH, ATMORE
DAVE ELDER, TUSCALOOSA
JEFF EMENS, CULLMAN
T R FULLER, AUBURN
ROGER GEAN, HUNTSVILLE
RANDAL HARRIS, HUNTSVILLE
MICHAEL HAYSLETTE, ANDALUSIA
DAVID HERNANDEZ, BIRMINGHAM
DARRELL HIGH, OPELIKA
JAMES HILL, OZARK
DENNIS HORNE, PELHAM
MIKE JOHNSON, MADISON
DAVID KILGORE, JASPER
THOMAS KING, AUBURN
BILL LOGSDON, OZARK
CHAD MCCOOL, MILLPORT
JACKSON MCCOOL, MILLPORT
JASON NIXON, WETUMPKA
JEROME OBRYANT, CARROLLTON
JON OLIVER, HODGES
JOHN PATE, GRANT
KEITH PHILIPS, CALERA
JOHN POLLARD, ECLECTIC
HARRY POTTS, OZARK
JOE POWELL, HUNTSVILLE
JONATHAN REAMES, STERRETT
RUSS RITTER, LEXINGTON
STEVE STINSON, HUNTSVILLE
KIMBERLEE STRIKER, CULLMAN
WALTER STRINGER, TALLASSEE
TOMMY SWINDLE, CLEVELAND
JOHN THORNTON, RUSSELLVILLE
CHUCK THURLOW, AUBURN
JAMES WALKER, ANDALUSIA
ROBB WILLIAMS, CALERA
TIMOTHY WINDHAM, JACKSON
AR
ARNOLD COONS, SHERWOOD
FL
JASON BAYES, LAKELAND
STEPHEN BOYD, CLERMONT
JEFFREY BROOKS, BOCA RATON
JOHN COX, DEBARY
GENE CROSSWAY, CALLAHAN
KENNETH CRUMPLER, MARIANNA
TIM EZELL, KEY WEST
JAMES GLOVER, CRESTVIEW
JOSH GUESS, DELAND
DAVID HAGENS, BRADENTON
ROBERT KIMBROUGH, VERO BEACH
PHILLIP LEE, DELTONA
RAY LEWIS, SUMMERFIELD
CRAIG MATHEWS, NORTH FORT MYERS
CRAIG PARKER, TALLAHASSEE
DAVID PERRON, MULBERRY
WAYNE POMEROY, WEST PALM BEACH
DON RICE, LAUDERHILL
FRED RIGDON, BELLEVIEW
BRIAN RODRIGUEZ, ORLANDO
EMRE SARIHAN, DEERFIELD BEACH
WALTER STANKIEWICZ, GENEVA
CLINT STERLING, OAKLAND
TODD WAGMAN, WINTER GARDEN
RON WARREN, OCKLAWAHA
DENNIS WOOD, PORT SAINT LUCIE
F W WOODLEY, KISSIMMEE
KENNETH YOUNG, MAITLAND
GA
ED AMOS, CHATSWORTH
PETER BABBINI, KENNESAW
ROB BOSWELL, WINDER
JOHN BRYAN, CARROLLTON
LYLE BURNS, BOSTWICK
KEITH CARPENTER, CAVE SPRING
JAMES DAVIS, STATHAM
W T DAVIS, SNELLVILLE
JIMMY DUDLEY, LAKE CITY
JEFFREY ELLIS, ACWORTH
JEFFREY GRAHAM, AUGUSTA
TIMOTHY GREGORY, DALTON
MARK GRIZZLE, BLAIRSVILLE
SCOTT JENKINS, FRANKLIN
BILLY JOYCE, FAYETTEVILLE
DAVID KENT, LUMPKIN
TONY KING, MACON
SCOTT MASSEY, DALLAS
TIM MCTYRE, POWDER SPRINGS
ROGER MORROW, GRIFFIN
MATTHEW PARKER, WHITESBURG
JOHN PETTIT, CALHOUN
WINSTON PINKNEY, ATLANTA
TREVOR PRINCE, MORGANTOWN
MIKE ROBINSON, ACWORTH
ROBERT SLATON, MARIETTA
JIM SMITH, BOWERSVILLE
IL
STEVE HERRINGTON, INGLESIDE
JOHN HUDZINSKI, ROCKFORD
STEVEN LINDHORST, GLEN CARBON
JAMES MADSEN, BATAVIA
BOB MAREK, CHICAGO
ALLEN RIX, MARION
IN
RICK COLEMAN, DEMOTTE
JAMES LAMB, GREENWOOD
DAVID PHELPS, NEW SALISBURY
KS
MARTY KLEIN, LANSING
KY
RICHARD BOSTON, MOUNT STERLING
DONALD BRAY, BEAVER DAM
ED BURNETT, LOUISVILLE
DALLAS CARTER, BOWLING GREEN
LARRY CUNDIFF, DUNNVILLE
TIM LANHAM, LOUISVILLE
MIKE PICKETT, BRANDENBURG
LES UNDERWOOD, LOUISVILLE
JEFF WALKER, GAMALIEL
DAVID WALLACE, BROOKS
LA
RONALD GREEN, KEITHVILLE
BRADLEY RODRIGUE, PIERRE PART
BILLY YELVERTON, BATON ROUGE
MI
JEFFREY PRISZA, WYANDOTTE
MN
MICHAEL TATE, OSAGE
MO
BERNARD GRAM, KANSAS CITY
MS
CHRISTOPHER BARRITT, TUPELO
BILL BOWEN, CALEDONIA
JIMMY BRUMFIELD, MADISON
CHRIS CALDWELL, AMORY
SCOTT CHILTON, SALTILLO
STEVEN DUTY, COLLINS
FRANK FERGUSON, COLUMBUS
DAVID FLIPPO, AMORY
HEATH GILMORE, MERIDIAN
JERRY GORDON, WIGGINS
SUSAN GREGORY, LONG BEACH
LYVON KENNARD, STARKVILLE
RICKY KILLIAN, COLUMBUS
MATTHEW LEAVELL, VICKSBURG
LOUIS MANATA, COLUMBIA
WAYNE PARISH, AMORY
CHUCK PERKINS, COLUMBUS
DAVID PINKERTON, STARKVILLE
ALBERT SANDERS, ELLISVILLE
JERRY SAVAGE, COLUMBUS
JOE SHACKELFORD, AMORY
NC
TERRY CHAPMAN, CORNELIUS
ALEX DANIEL, FUQUAY VARINA
FELTON JACKSON, CLINTON
GEORGE LAMBETH, THOMASVILLE
RODNEY MICHAEL, EAGLE SPRINGS
D MILLER, HIGH POINT
MIKE WINCHESTER, BRYSON CITY
OH
TODD DAVIDSON, CARLISLE
GARY GARREN, LEBANON
PA
ALAN WEISS, GREENSBURG
SC
BOB FRAVEL, LEESVILLE
WADE GROOMS, BONNEAU
CARLTON LEMMOND, BARNWELL
CLINT PACK, GABLE
ALBERT PIEPER, SUMMERVILLE
BILLY SCHWACH, CHARLESTON
JOEL WARWICK, BEAUFORT
TN
BRIAN ANDERSON, SPRINGFIELD
CHRIS BRASWELL, SPRINGFIELD
LARRY BRYANT, GOODLETTSVILLE
DOW COX, JONESBOROUGH
MATTHEW CRABILL, MURFREESBORO
JOSH DEES, CLEVELAND
JAMES DYKES, ATOKA
DAVID EDEN, ADAMS
HERMAN GARNER,  MARYVILLE
DARRELL HILLE, SPRINGFIELD
ALAN PATTERSON, KINGSPORT
CLAUDE ROBISON, LOUDON
R G ROSE, KNOXVILLE
BILL TERRELL, MEMPHIS
JOHN WELLS, NASHVILLE
TX
SCOTT DARRAGH, DALLAS
VA
FRANK MCPHERSON, GLOUCESTER

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