GROVE, Okla., March 30, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The FLW Tour at Grand Lake presented by Mercury Marine is setting up for a dramatic final day on Sunday \u2013 the top 10 is stacked with a two-time FLW Tour Angler of the Year, an FLW Cup champion, a Costa FLW Series Champion, a Bass Fishing League (BFL) All-American Champion and a local angling prodigy that are all in striking distance to win the tournament, and the top prize of $125,000.<\/p>\n
Link to photo of pro leader Bryan Thrift<\/p>\n
Tour stalwart Bryan Thrift of Shelby, North Carolina, who started the day in fifth place, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 19 pounds, 3 ounces to take the lead with a three-day total of 52-1.<\/p>\n
Pro Jeremy Lawyer of Sarcoxie, Missouri, (48-14) jumped into second after bringing in a limit weighing 17-9. Billy McCaghren of Mayflower, Arkansas, (46-12), South Africa\u2019s Michael Matthee (44-15) and reigning Costa FLW Series Champion Bradford Beavers of Summerville, South Carolina (44-6) round out the top five. Local angler, 21-year-old Sheldon Collings of Grove (39-9) moved into the top-10 cut Saturday with a five-bass limit weighing 14 pounds, 13 ounces.<\/p>\n
With just a 3-pound, 3-ounce cushion heading into the final day, tournament-leader Thrift is excited to see how it all shakes on Championship Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love it \u2013 this is where I want to be,\u201d said Thrift, who has six career victories in FLW Tour competition \u2013 tied for No. 3 all-time. \u201cIf you\u2019re ever leading going into the final day and it doesn\u2019t make you excited, it\u2019s time to quit. It\u2019s an awesome feeling and I\u2019m excited to get back out there tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thrift said that he had seven bites on Saturday, catching, \u201ca couple on a jig and a couple on a crankbait.\u201d He first keeper came around 9:30 a.m., and he said he caught, \u201cone here, one there\u201d every 45 minutes or so.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s tough because I can\u2019t look at something and say \u2018that\u2019s where I\u2019m going to get a bite,\u2019 Thrift said. \u201cI\u2019ve got to go into places and fish everything there \u2013 docks, rocks, wood, sand, gravel \u2013 I have to fish all of it because I have no idea where I\u2019m going to get bit from. I caught two today on a bare bank. I caught one on a dock, one out of a tree and one on a rock.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe plan for tomorrow is to do the same as I did today,\u201d Thrift went on to say. \u201cI\u2019m going to fish everywhere that I\u2019ve gotten a bite \u2013 that\u2019ll take me about an hour. And then I\u2019m going to run all new water. We\u2019ll see what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n
The top 10 pros advancing to the final day of competition Sunday on Grand Lake are:<\/p>\n
1st: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 15 bass, 52-1<\/p>\n