Summertime slam on Oklahoma’s Eufaula for Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Stop 5
EUFAULA, Okla. – Taking off with overcast conditions, the second-to-last Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by MillerTech event of the season is underway. Stop 5 Presented by K&N Filters puts the pros on Oklahoma’s Lake Eufaula, which is one of the more unusual fisheries that regularly hosts major tournaments. This week, in what should be a true summertime event, there are a lot of 7 Brew Angler of the Year points implications on the line, and the nature of the lake ought to make movement in the points very possible.
The lay of the lake
With water coming in from the south, west and north, Eufaula is a fairly volatile lake at the best of times – it can muddy up quickly. It also presents anglers with a lot of decisions – long runs can pay off, but there’s also a lot of history of tournament success right near takeoff, or in the creeks between takeoff and the dam that consistently have cleaner water. On Day 2 and Day 3, don’t be surprised to see the top contenders on MLFNOW! fishing 20 or 40 miles apart and doing completely opposite things. At the same time, most of the cameras could be in the same creek, and the anglers might be running similar programs.
Clean water could open things up
One of the keys to watch in this event will be if the clearer-than-usual water changes the fishery. Often, anglers are packed together in places with fish and cleaner water – that may not be the case this time.
“It’s an interesting situation compared to what I’ve seen,” said Connor Jacob, who finished third in a June event here a few years ago. “The first tournament I had out here was pretty stable. The last one I fished had a very volatile water level. The stability is a little concerning, and the whole lake is pretty clean. Honestly, below the trestles, about 100% of the lake is fishable water color. I feel like there are going to be some populations of fish that people have overlooked in the past because of water color that get to make an appearance in this one.”
As far as the state of the lake, despite the additional clear water, Jacob hasn’t seen a wholesale shift in available patterns.
“It’s definitely a postspawn, more summer event,” Jacob said. “I think the fish are about as offshore as they get here. They’re not really grouped up; nothing I would call a true school. But you can find brushpiles on a point, and there will be 13 milling around. I don’t think we’re going to have a TVA school event going on – isolated wood is going to get beat on. The community holes, the creeks, they’re good, they have fish, they’re getting a lot of pressure. The same old Eufaula story.”
Jacob plans on running a familiar pattern – isolated targets – and wants to hit it hard in his forward-facing sonar time.
“It hasn’t been a great practice for me; I’ve had decent results,” he said. “But as far as fitting the format, I don’t love what I’ve seen. If this was an all-day ‘Scope event, I would really like it. I feel like there are a lot of spread-out, isolated targets.”
However, that’s not the only pattern in play – the other staples are working, and there could be some surprises.
“I think the shad spawn could be a factor,” Jacob said. “I haven’t seen it everywhere, but it’s definitely occurring. When I was first getting out here, it was a valid concern to think about what was going to happen no-‘Scope, even when I had ‘Scope all day. It is a traditional fishing lake. I’m sure there are going to be good bags caught without ‘Scope.
“Offshore, groups of fish can definitely play, and people can make it work,” he added. “I thought docks were going to be big. I have a jerkbait pattern, and I think you’re going to see a lot of guys throwing a ChatterBait – you just can’t think too hard about it.”
What does it take to win?
As for the quality of fishing, pros and locals alike think the lake is going to fish pretty well. A local who is in the event, Kollin Crawford thinks that 58 pounds will get it done. Jacob isn’t quite that high, but he knows it is possible.
“I know it’s on the low end, but 17 or 18 a day could win it from my point of view,” Jacob said. “Twenty-pound bags come out of here, but that’s not the kind of fish I’ve been seeing. I think a check is around 12 pounds a day, maybe a little less, give or take. If I come in with 12 pounds on Day 1, I’ll probably be content.”
Other locals who are not in the event but do have solid June experience on the lake think it might be a little tougher. Eli Brumnett reckons that a 50- to 52-pound total might take it, and Chris Jones thinks that 15 pounds a day could win.
AOY race takes top priority
The race for 7 Brew Angler of the Year is hot right now, with Carter Nutt and Banks Shaw on top separated by 13 points. Below them, anglers are scrapping for points to make the championship at the Kissimmee Chain as well as points for Bass Pro Tour berths. Though the field in this event is the smallest of the year for the Pro Circuit, there are still more than 130 pros fishing, which gives anglers plenty of room to move up or mess up. Obviously, following the entire leaderboard and the fortunes of the contenders in the points will be big this weekend.
Here’s the Top 10 in points after four events:
1. Carter Nutt – 756 points
2. Banks Shaw – 743
3. Ryan Lachniet – 736
4. Dylan Nutt – 728
5. Drew Gill – 727
6. Connor Jacob – 707
7. Brody Campbell – 704
8. Will Harkins – 702
9. Clint Knight – 699
10. Marshall Hughes – 695
Follow along
Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public daily at Nichols Point at 6:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. CT. This event is presented by K&N Filters. You can follow along with daily coverage and watch MLFNOW! all three days on MajorLeagueFishing.com.
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