Entry 224-5

Mark Rose Wins the FLW Pickwick Lake Tournament

Part 5: The Last Day of the Tournament

Question: Mark, what happened on the last day of the tournament?

Rose: We had the same kind of weather we’d had the previous day. The sun was out, and we had no wind and no current. I’d had so much success throwing the spoon early in the morning on the other days that I had to try it. I didn’t get a strike for the first 15 minutes. I was about to put the spoon down when I got a hit and set the hook. I had a mushy feeling on the end of the hook. The fish had missed the spoon the first time, and I’ve learned over the years, that many times if a fish missed the spoon on the first strike, you could let it fall back, and the bass would take the spoon again. So, I let the spoon fall back, and when I felt the fish, I set the hook. But I had a really-spongy feeling like I was dragging a water-soaked sponge. The fish wasn’t moving, and when it did move, it moved really sluggishly. I said to myself, “Mark, you’ve got yourself a Friday-night, fish-fry catfish.” But when I got the fish to the surface, it was a 4-pound largemouth. The spoon had hooked the fish on the side of the gill. I put it in the boat. I was feeling really good because that was the kicker fish I knew I needed. I hadn’t caught a fish that big the previous day. I really felt I could catch a limit with my Strike King Football Jig.

On my first two casts with the Football Jig, using the Rage Tail Craw with the Spike-It dye, I caught two bass that weighed about 2-1/2-pounds each, which gave me about 9 pounds for three bass. I was beginning to think I might have a chance to win. Two more half-way good fish and I might be able to pull this tournament out of the fire. I finally caught four or five more keepers, which gave me 13 pounds, 11 ounces going to the weigh-in stand. Riding back to the weigh-in stand, I didn’t know whether I’d won or not, but I thought I’d given myself a chance to win, if the second and third place contestants had had bad days. I didn’t really think I’d won it, although I felt I’d fished as good as I could possibly fish, taken advantage of every opportunity I had and put myself in a position to have a chance to win. I knew the second-place contestant had to have 14-1/2-pounds to beat me.

Since I was the leader, I was on the hot seat. They weighed-in in descending order with the 10th place guy weighing-in first. I still had a good lead on the 10th, the ninth and the eighth place, but I didn’t know how much weight the rest of the contestants had. I was going to be the last person to weigh-in.

The third-place contestant, Jim Moynagh, weighed-in and I had a 2-pound lead over him before he weighed. I knew he had to have more than 15 pounds to beat me. When he weighed in, he had 14 pounds and some change. So I thought to myself, “Well, I got second place for sure.”

I was guessing I had about 12 pounds. But Terry Bolton from Kentucky, who was in second place, had caught 17 pounds the previous day. He grew up guiding on the Tennessee River and was an excellent Tennessee River fisherman. I felt he’d win it. But just before he weighed in, Tom Mann, Jr. came over, leaned in close to me, and whispered, “It looks like you’re going to win this thing, Mark.” I said, “No, Terry’s probably going to win. He weighs-in next.” Tom Mann said, “No, he’s only got two fish.” Then my heart skipped a beat, because I knew I’d beaten the guy who had just weighed-in, and if the only man who could beat me only had two fish, I could really win this tournament. I was really hoping that Tom Mann, Jr. wasn’t playing a joke on me. When Terry Bolton only weighed-in two fish, I couldn’t believe it. I felt I pretty much had won.

Question: So, how much did you win?

Rose: I won $100,000 from the tournament and another $25,000 because I was fishing out of a Ranger Boat.

Question: What did you think when you won?

Rose: I felt relieved. I told the press I really didn’t have to win. I’d been really fortunate to be able to make a living for my family as a tournament fisherman, and that’s all I’d asked the Good Lord for when I started tournament fishing 9-years ago. I felt blessed. The win really wasn’t for me. It was for my family, my sponsors and all the people who supported me and stood behind me my entire tournament-fishing career. Whether I was winning or losing, they were with me. So, this win was for them. I didn’t need the limelight or the publicity for myself.

Question: What’s that $125,000 going to do for your fishing career?

Rose: It’s going to give me a little peace of mind and some breathing room. Tournament fishermen spend a lot of money trying to make a little, and finances are pretty tight for most of us. But this win will help pay some bills and make fishing tournaments a little easier for the next year or two. It will take some of the pressure off my fishing. I feel really grateful and want to say thank you to my family and my sponsors for sticking with me through the hard times. This win was for y’all.

Contents:

• Part 1: Having Good Feelings
• Part 2: The First Day of the Tournament
• Part 3: The Second Day of the Tournament
• Part 4: The Third Day of the Tournament
• Part 5: The Last Day of the Tournament