Posted April 28h, 2007  9:07pm CST

Suggs in second, Bennett third........

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Team Chevy pro Larry Nixon of Bee Branch, Ark., caught a five-bass limit weighing 12 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to capture the lead in a top-10 field that includes some of the greatest anglers in the world. Nixon now holds a slight 1-pound, 5-ounce edge over his closest competitor, Folgers pro Scott Suggs of Bryant, Ark., heading into the final day of competition in the FLW Tour’s $1.5 million National Guard Open on Lake Norman. If he holds on for the win, Nixon will pocket $200,000.

“It’s going to be a shoot-out tomorrow,” said Nixon, who has been fishing the FLW Tour for 10 years and has amassed more than $700,000 in tour earnings. “I am around the fish that could definitely win this. I have lost a few key fish everyday, and that has held my weight down. I’m not going back to the spots I fished today. I have a few more places that I found in practice that seem to be holding quality fish. I just have to slow down, be patient and catch them.”

Nixon was keying on cuts in gravel banks and laydowns, throwing an array of Texas-rigged soft plastics and finesse gear.

Suggs, who is fishing in his second FLW Tour top-10, caught five fish weighing 11 pounds, 4 ounces to advance to the final round as the No. 2 seed.

“The bite seemed to be a little bit down today,” said Suggs, who has been throwing finesse gear around docks and stumps all week. “With the tremendous catches in the opening round it has made it harder to find five keepers. My kicker all week has come down to finding a few large schools of bigger spotted bass and then going back to them everyday and picking up a few. I’m trying not to even think about the leaderboard and just go fishing.”

Rounding out the top 10 pros are Duracell pro Michael Bennett of Roseville, Calif. (five bass, 11-0); Gain pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio (five bass, 10-13); Tylenol pro Gabe Bolivar of Ramona, Calif. (five bass, 10-2); BP pro Jim Moynagh of Carver, Minn. (five bass, 9-13); Pedigree pro Greg Pugh of Cullman, Ala. (five bass, 9-4); Bryan Thrift of Shelby, N.C. (five bass, 8-5); Yamaha pro Jay Yelas of Tyler, Texas (four bass, 7-1) and Hank Cherry of Maiden, N.C. (four bass, 6-12).

“I was blessed yesterday,” said Cherry, who led the tournament Friday. “Instead of catching them today, I put on a bloopers video. I just couldn’t connect. It seemed like they were biting it with their mouths closed. It just feels wonderful to make the cut and even be competing against this caliber of fishermen.”

Overall there were 48 bass weighing 96 pounds, 15 ounces caught in the Pro Division Saturday. The catch included eight five-bass limits.

Wal-Mart angler Trevor Jancasz of White Pigeon, Mich., won the Co-angler Division and $40,000 Saturday with a five bass limit weighing 8 pounds, 9 ounces followed by Alessandro Debbi of Italy, in second place with four bass weighing 6-6 worth $10,000.

Jancasz opened the tournament in 13th place Thursday with five bass weighing 9-12 while fishing with pro Chad Cook of Summerville, S.C. On Friday he jumped into first place on the strength of a five-bass catch weighing 10-3 while fishing with Suggs. He wrapped up his win while fishing with Cherry.

“It was a tough week,” said Jancasz, who is a former Wal-Mart FLW Tour Champion on the co-angler side. “I never caught a single fish until late in the day, everyday. I did fish clean and only had maybe three or four short fish this entire tournament. I usually struggle on the second or third days, but this time I figured it out and everything went great. Hank Cherry was a great partner, and he gave me all the opportunity I needed to catch these fish. I really needed this win to boost my confidence and help me mentally.”

Jancasz was throwing finesse gear around stumps and docks to catch his fish all week.

Day Three Standings