First back-to-back FLW Tour winner in 20-year history
FLIPPIN, Ark. (Feb. 22, 2017) – Ranger Pro Mark Rose won the 2017 FLW Tour event on Lake Travis, Feb. 19, to become the first ever angler to win back-to-back FLW Tour events in its 20-year history. The angler won the $100,000 first-place prize and added $25,000 in Ranger Cup money. Rose won the season opener for the FLW Tour two weeks prior on Lake Guntersville.
By participating in the Ranger Cup program, Rose has brought home an additional $50,000 during the last two FLW Tour events.
“The Ranger Cup bonus is nice,” said Rose. “You get to run a really great boat and win money too if you have a good tournament. I have benefited from both of those and all I had to do was run a great boat.”
In each of the last two victories, Rose has either been chasing, or been chased by fellow Ranger pro Bryan Thrift. Rose charged from behind to catch Thrift by 12 ounces on Lake Travis. On Guntersville, Rose held off a final-day rush from Thrift to win the season-opening event.
“I’m just really overwhelmed with thanksgiving,” said Rose. “It’s a true blessing to come out on top on who I consider to be the best fisherman twice. I’m kind of in awe right now.”
During pre-fishing, Rose did find fish on his go-to offshore ledges but could not hook up with any large fish. Rose spent day one up the Colorado River and brought in 11 pounds, nine ounces, putting the angler in 40th place.
“I did find three spots that held fish but I was catching a lot of little ones,” said Rose. “I really thought my bigger fish were up the river. I was using the deeper fish as my back up plan.”
Rose opted to fish the deeper waters of the lake on day two and reaped the benefits by finding quality fish late in the day.
“I found out that my deeper fish were getting bigger and I started fishing them differently,” said Rose. “I basically started fishing deeper. It seemed the bigger fish were out deeper than during practice.”
The angler divided his remaining days between deep, offshore locations in the mornings and shallow docks in the afternoons. Rose’s main baits were a Strike King football-head jig with a Strike King Rage Crawler in green-pumpkin, Strike King Rage Bug and a six-inch shad-colored swimbait.
Rose rebounded with 17 pounds, three ounces on day two and weighed 15 pounds, 13 ounces on day three, bringing him within a pound of final-day leader Bryan Thrift.
“I knew that I had one area where the boat ramp was on the lower end of the lake that if I could ever get three or four of those fish to fire, they were the right ones,” said Rose. “One the final day, I got two of them and caught a third one in a nearby shallow area, which gave me three good ones. I knew if I could get two keepers to go with them, I would have a shot.”
Rose’s final-day weight of 14 pounds, nine ounces was enough to overtake Thrift’s final-day 12 pounds, 13 ounces. Rose’s victory paid him $125,000, which included $25,000 in Ranger Cup money, and became the first back-to-back FLW Tour winner in the process.
The next stop for Rose is the Harris Chain in Florida, March 9-12.
|
About Ranger Boats
Headquartered in Flippin, Ark., Ranger Boats is the nation’s premier manufacturer of legendary fiberglass and aluminum fishing boats, with acclaimed models and series in the bass, multi-species, fish ‘n play, saltwater, waterfowl utility and pontoon boat segments. Founded in 1968 by Forrest L. Wood, Ranger Boats continues its commitment to building the highest-quality, strongest-performing boats on the water. For more information, go to RangerBoats.com, RangerAluminum.com or RangerPontoons.com.
|
____________________________________________________________________________________________________ |
|