Okie Goines Limps into the Lead
OutdoorHub 09.23.13
Local television celebrity Mark Goines put on a show Friday featuring a limit of bass and boat rescues by a couple of his competitors during the Bass Pro Shops Central Open on the Arkansas River.
After catching a 14-pound, 2-ounce limit on Thursday to move into third place in the pro division, Goines made another long run on Day 2 to the Kerr pool near his home in Shady Point, Okla. The “Hooked on Fishing” show host caught another limit weighing 12-10 and was headed back to the weigh-in site when his motor broke down. Fellow competitor JT Kenney towed Goines’ boat back to the lock. Then Goines had to hitch a ride with E.P. Fletcher to get his fish to the weigh-in on time.
“If it wasn’t for those guys, I would still be floating around somewhere,” said Goines, who moved into first place with 26-12.
Goines said he followed a similar routine to that of his first competition day. Today, his second stop was an area he fished yesterday where he found plenty of shad.
“I spent a little more time in there and covered a little more of the area,” Goines said. “It worked out pretty well. I caught three real nice keepers in there.”
Goines caught two keepers before reaching the lock in the morning. “I had a little time to fish (before locking through) so I stopped on some laydowns and picked up a couple of fish there,” he said.
Completing his limit by 10:30 a.m., Goines decided to head back up river. “Then I started having problems,” he said.
Catching a 16-7 limit today helped Collinsville, Miss., angler Brock Mosley jump from 42nd place into the runner-up spot. Thursday, Mosley went to an area to catch five keepers and completed his limit in 2 1/2 hours but decided to leave the spot.
Today Mosley decided to stay in the area after finishing his limit. The move paid off as he caught bigger fish.
“I stayed with one rod today and never threw anything else,” said Mosley, who trails Goines by only 1 ounce with 26-11. “I am going to go back in there tomorrow and grind it out all day.”
Other pros in the Top 5 include Chris Jones, Bokoshe, Okla., third, 26-7; Trevor Romans, Plano, Texas, fourth, 24-14; and Terry Butcher, Talala, Okla., fifth, 24-5.
John Thomas of Hulbert, Okla., continues to lead the co-angler division with 17-9. He had only two keeper bites today, but one was a 5-14 largemouth. He caught several small fish by downsizing his lures early, but had to go back to flipping the wood to catch his keepers.
Goines won the Livingston Lures Leader award of $250 in cash for leading on Day 2. Thomas won the Livingston Lures Leader award of $250 in product for leading on Day 2.
Hosting the Central Open is the Greater Muskogee Area Chamber of Commerce. Saturday’s launch will be held at the Three Forks Harbor, 5201 Three Forks Rd., and the final-day weigh-in will be held at Bass Pro Shops, 101 Bass Pro Drive, in Broken Arrow, Okla., and will begin at 4 p.m. CT.
