Posted February 18th, 2007  2:31am CST

Aaron Hastings Brings 9 Pounds to the Stage.....Takes the Lead

Story by Dru Smith

Lake Travis hosted the third day of Wal-Mart FLW Tour series on Saturday. The 10 remaining pros had survived a the first two grueling days of competition and were now in a position to win $125,000.00

The cold temperatures that plagued the first half of the tournament gave way to milder conditions, but along with the warm weather came gusting winds. Reaching as high as 30 mph, the wind was a major factor on day three.

Aaron Hastings, from Middletown, MD., brought the best weight to the scales on Saturday. His five-fish, 9 pound, 15 ounce limit gave him a two pound lead.

Clark Wendlandt continued to live up to the pre-tournament prognostications. The home town favorite brought in 7-12 to finish the day in second. Right behind Wendlandt was North Carolina angler Bryan Thrift. Thrift’s best five fish tallied 7 pounds, 6 ounces and left him more than 2.5 pounds behind the leader.

Leading the way headed into the finals, Dave Lefebre struggled on Saturday. Missed opportunities and lost fish put the Yamaha pro in fourth with 6 pounds, 8 ounces. “I lost a big fish on my first cast and it just tougher from there,” he said.

Paired with day-three leader Aaron Hastings, Frank Divis, Jr., took home the co-angler title with five fish that weighed 8-11. For his efforts, Frank won a prize package worth $25,000.00. This was Frank’s second Tour victory and fourth overall win as a co-angler.

Aaron on Top
Aaron Hastings, a second year pro from Maryland, is making his top ten debut on the Wal-Mart FLW Tour. With a two day total of 21-1, Hastings squeaked into the finals in 9th place. On Saturday however, he posted a weight of 9-15 and now leads the field by 2 pounds, 4 ounces. “I’m fishing one specific area,” Aaron revealed. “Fishing slow and remaining steady has been the key.” 

He is fishing in the back of a creek and targeting break lines. Using a jig, most of Aaron’s fish came from water that was between 8 and 12 foot deep. However, on Saturday the fished moved a little deeper. “I caught only one fish on that first break,” he said. “Later in the day I found the fish out in 18 to 24 feet.” Relying on his Lowrance LCX-111, Aaron not moved deeper he also picked up a drop-shot rig. “The water got warmer and the fish moved out. I don’t understand it, but that’s fishing.”

Clark Doing the Texas-Two Step
“I zigged when I should have zagged,” Clark said about his day on the water today. “I broke a big fish off and missed a couple other bites so it could have been a better day for me.” The Kellogg’s pro is sitting in second place with one day left to fish. 

Relying on two patterns, throwing a crankbait and dragging a jig, Clark isn’t planning on changing his strategy. “I know it is a well used cliché, but I’m just going fishing tomorrow. It has worked for me all week and I’m going to stick with it.”

In a related note, when asked about the friendly game of ping pong he had with fellow top-ten qualifier Dave Lefebre, Clark responded, “I thrashed him. It was no contest.”

Day Three Top 10