Posted on 08/11/2004 6:08:17 PM PDT by SoloGlobalExplorer
When men learn the role that Greg Pugh's wife, Lisa, played in his professional fishing career, the Cullman resident always gets the same question.
Does your wife have a sister?
Pugh, 37, is one of five Alabama anglers who will compete in the $1.5 million Wal-Mart FLW Tour Championship that begins today and ends Saturday on Lake Logan Martin. The first-day weigh-in is set for 5 p.m. today at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex.
In 1994, Pugh was a line foreman for Cullman Electric Co-Op and had begun to fish a few weekend tournaments. He wanted to see what big-time fishing was like, so he came to Birmingham for the final-day weigh-in of the Bassmaster Classic that year. He brought his wife.
"My wife went to the weigh-in with me and she was amazed," he recalled. "She looked at me and told me, `This is where I want to see you one day. I want you to do whatever you need to do to get here.'"
Pugh wasn't about to pass up an offer like that.
Ten years later, he is retired from the job he held for 20 years and is now a professional fisherman. This week, he's fishing for bass fishing's biggest monetary prize. A $500,000 check will be awarded to the winner Saturday.
An FLW Tour Championship win and a half-million dollars can greatly change a fisherman's life. Pugh said he's handling the pressure well. But Lisa?
"She's already so nervous she can't stand it," he said with a laugh.
Pugh finished fifth in the 1994 Alabama B.A.S.S. Federation Championship and that's when he became hooked on professional fishing. He began branching out and fishing different professional tours and eventually captured angler of the year on the Everstart Trail. He has fished the Bassmaster and FLW Tours and this year landed a berth in the FLW Tour Championship for the first time.
"Fishing for a half-million dollars is pretty awesome," he said. "All I hear from friends and relatives is that I better win this thing. I don't think I'll find any more pressure in the tournament than I am already getting from them."
Insiders say Pugh has found fish big time. Pugh acknowledges he has been catching about 14 pounds of fish each day in practice in recent days, and he thinks he could contend on the final day.
He has practiced on Lake Logan Martin for three weeks and has seen the size of his catches increase in recent days. On Thursday, he caught a five-fish stringer that included 6-pound and 3-pound fish.
Pugh is also cautious, however. Most tournaments reward consistency over several days, but in the FLW Tour Championship an angler fishes in a bracket and must defeat the angler in his bracket. Pugh knows it is possible to have a really good day and still not advance. Pugh also knows he has a tough bracket.
Pugh, seeded 35th, will take on No. 14 seed Dave Lefebre. If he wins that matchup today, chances are he will fish against Bassmaster Classic winner Takahiro Omori on Thursday.
He hopes to advance to Saturday's final round of 12 anglers. He believes the tournament will really get interesting then.
In addition to Lake Logan Martin's usual weekend boat traffic, he also expects a large number of spectator boats on the water. On top of that, the Angler's Choice tournament trail had a tournament scheduled for the lake before the FLW Tour Championship was announced. The Angler's Choice Trail has decided to go ahead with its tournament.
About 50 to 60 boats are expected for that event in addition to the 48 boats participating in the FLW Tour Championship. The Angler's Choice tournament has decided to blast off before the FLW event.
"I'm sure a number of our guys are going to get to their spots and find other boats sitting on them," Pugh said.
"You'd hope they'd realize we're fishing for $500,000 and they are fishing for $1,500 and they'd give up the spot, but I doubt they will."
WOW, I wonder........honey, look at this!!!
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