Forrest L. Woods Cup - Left Coast Forecast
by Steve Reed

The Forest Wood Cup may not have the name recognition that the Bassmaster Classic does, but what it lacks in fame it makes up for with a million dollar winner's purse. This year the Forest Wood Cup heads to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania where 77 anglers will compete for a 1 million dollar prize. If you remember just 4 years ago the Bassmaster Classic was held on the same body of water with some of the lowest weights ever and many of the anglers struggling to catch limits of fish. While 10 inch fish are abundant, early indications are that finding keeper bites might be even tougher then the Bassmaster Classic of 2005 and any angler who catches a limit each day will be very tough to beat. What will be different than the Bassmaster Classic will be the number of anglers representing the leftcoast while fishing this tournament. The qualifying events of the FLW Western Series gave many more western anglers shot at winning a million dollars. The following is a breakdown of the westcoast anglers and why they could make a splash and keep the trophy here in California.

Cody Meyer
The 2009 Stren Series “Angler of the year” and a list of accomplishments that's hard to believe considering he is only 25 years old. Cody finished 2 nd in “Angler of the year” points in both the previous Stren seasons and has finally been able to capture the title. If that weren't enough Cody currently leads the National Guard Angler of the year race as well. If nothing else Cody is hot right now and when things are going well it's must easier to trust your decisions out on the water, there is something to be said for momentum.

Michael Bennett
In regards to any major sporting event a team with experience is tough to bet against and the same goes for Michael Bennett. Last years million dollar Forest Wood Cup champion is competing again for a chance at another million dollars and bass fishing immortality. Back to back wins would be tough, but a guy like Bennett has been known to find a bite that no one else is looking for and goes for the win almost every time out and the guy just won a million dollars a year ago and is playing with the house's money right now which makes him very dangerous.

Brent Ehrler
Mr. Consistent. Although Brent was unable to capture the 2009 FLW Tour angler of the year he had a great season and won a series event at Lake Havasu. Brent is well known for his ability to catch fish anywhere and is a great finesse fisherman. To count Brent out would be silly. The guy has won the championship before and knows what it takes to save fish for the final day and I'm not sure why but Brent seems to save his best for when it really counts; he has a knack for showing up for big tournaments.

Jason Borofka
Jason Borofka may be the ultimate dark horse in this event. He's fished well in big tournaments before, most notably finishing 8 th at the Stren Championship in 2006. He is one of those guys that understands how to catch the bigger fish even in a tournament of dinks. If he can find just one big fish this tournament he could have a chance at 1 million dollars.

Zack Thompson
Zack has been a consistent angler on the west coast for the past several years where he has finished no lower than 54th in any National Guard Western series event. Although he hasn't won an angler of the year he continues to cash checks at almost every event. Zack is versatile and with a little cooperation from the fish in Pittsburgh he could be crowned the 2009 Forrest Wood Cup champion.

Joe Uribe Jr.
Joe Uribe Jr. is as skilled with everything between a 3 inch worm and a 12 inch swimbait. He excels at fishing lakes with a ton of fishing pressure. Joe has had several great finishes in the U.S. Open, our biggest West Coast event. Joe has the ability to win any tournament he enters.

Mike Rooke
Mike Rooke can catch fish anywhere! He's one of the most dangerous angler's in the desert. He has proven that he travels well, by winning the FLW Series event on the Delta. Mike's won just about as much money as anyone on the Left Coast in team events to go with his FLW successes. Mike's homewater these days is the Colorado River and Lake Havasu making Mike dangerous in moving water coast to coast. It wouldn't be a surprise at all to see Mike Rooke on stage come the final day of the FLW Championship.

Chris Zaldain
Along with Uribe and Barofka probably the darkest horse in this race from the Left Coast. However, Zaldain fishes with extreme confidence and has the ability to load the boat quickly. Zaldain's having a tough 2009 after several good seasons with the FLW so he's due for a big event and why not make it a million dollar win!

Gabe Bolivar
Nobody is more ready for the big win than Gabe Bolivar. Gabe might get the title of the best Western Angler to not have an FLW win. Gabe's had a solid 2009 season and growing up in the San Diego and Las Vegas areas has helped him learn to fish pressured water and for finicky bass. Gabe is a quick study on new water and can adapt well to the changing conditions the Three Rivers might throw at the anglers. For Gabe its, not "if" he's going to win, its "when" he's going to win and when just might be as early as this week!

Rusty Salewski
Living in the San Diego area Rusty is used to fishing high pressured waters for finicky bass. This is Rusty's second trip to the FLW Championship in the past three years. In 2007, Rusty was able to take 22nd place at the event which gives him some experience to build on for 2009. His 5th place finish in the 2008 FLW Series Angler of the Year race tells us that Rusty is versatile and able to catch fish on any water.

Photos courtesy of FLW Outdoors