Tournament Result

FLW EAST/WEST FISHOFF

30 Eastern anglers vs. 30 Western anglers, Nov. 20-22, Falcon Lake, Zapata, Texas

The Wal-Mart FLW Series East-West Fish-Off was designed around head-to-head matchups for Forrest Wood Cup berths to offer a multitude of competitions between FLW Series Eastern and Western pros for added excitement.

And while a few matchups did offer some close finishes, in the end it was a three-man race for the tournament's winner-take-all purse of $25,000 that became the most exciting matchup of all.

That's because for two days David Fritts, Terry Bolton and Greg Hackney each brought in 30-pound-plus limits to grapple for the overall lead. And with 6-pound bass being "a dime a dozen on Falcon," as Fritts said, none of the three pros had any intention of slacking off going into the third day. All three felt pretty confidence that their respective fishing areas could produce a 40-pound limit.

And when the pros' feet hit the bank for the final weigh-in, whispers of possible 40-pound bags filtered through the weigh-in line.

What's more, when three giant tails are protruding from a weigh-in bag because the first two bass in the bag took up all the room, it's kind of hard to disguise what kind of catch a pro has.

The real excitement began with Bolton, whose third-day limit topped the scales at 38 pounds, 15 ounces to give him a three-day total of 105-8.

That left Hackney needing 33 pounds, 14 ounces to take the overall lead.

Hackney burst into fist-pumping elation when Chris Jones belted out Hackney's weight: 37 pounds, 11 ounces.

Hack's limit was anchored by an 11-7 bass and gave him a three-day total of 109-6.

Finally, it was Fritts' turn, but the Chevy pro's wheels ran off on the final day - well, if you can consider 19-6 as wheels running off. That's the harsh reality of Falcon Lake. So in the end, it was Hackney's week to shine.

"What a week!" Hackney said after the win. "This is just unbelievable. To end my 2008 season this way makes it all worth it. I'm so pumped right now I can't even explain it."

Hackney's success came from two specific areas located near the dam on Falcon.

The first was a submerged pond dam and the other was big flat, which was crowned with a fence row and gravel road bed before falling off into the main channel. Greg Hackney's primary weapons: 10-inch Strike King Rage Tail Anacondas.

"The main thing that both areas had in common was a hard clean bottom that dropped off vertically into deep water," Hackney explained. "All those big fish were sitting up on top of the hard bottom in 10 to 20 feet of water right where it fell off into deeper water."

RESULTS: Complete matchups at www.flwoutdoors.com

INFORMATION: FLW 270-252-1000, www.flwoutdoors.com