Larry Nixon on the FLW Cup the tournament is the most prestigious bass tournament of the year for the FLW Anglers. This year it was held on Lake Ouachita in Arkansas on August 20-24. Professional angler Larry Nixon finished in 7th place in this year’s cup, and 10th overall in the Angler of The Year points standings for the 2015 season. Larry, a highly competitive angler in the FLW Series, cashed six checks in the seven-event season; of those six checks four were top twenty finishes.
As with any tournament, Larry was hoping to win the Cup this year but said “I’ll take 7th place. It was a dog-gone hard tournament to fish.” When asked what he would have done differently, Larry said, “Nothing really, the practice was tough for me. Not being on fish, made me very nervous, especially on a lake I know fairly well.”
Larry Nixon on the FLW Cup
Larry describes his events of the 2015 FLW CUP. “The first day I lost two fish around 2.5 pounds each. It was a really cloudy morning; I was fishing top water and at 11:45 I had no bites. So I picked up my 705 Dobyns Rod and attached a Yamamoto Chucker and started flipping grass and had a limit in two hours.” Larry started the second day flipping, “On day two, I started out with my Dobyns 736 Champion Extreme flipping grass. I put two nice fish totaling 11 pounds in the boat by 10:30. However, not another bite until 2:25 when I picked up my 704 Dobyns spinning rod and threw a shakey head. I immediately caught a 13 incher, and soon had my limit.” Going back to his big fish pattern for day three, Larry continued, “Now on day three, I went straight for my grass tip, started flipping and had my limit in an hour.” Making the final day cut in the FLW Cup is a huge accomplishment in its self. Larry describes day four for us, “Day four, I was in panic mode. I threw my Dobyns spinning rod, Seagar line, and a Yamamoto red bug worm. There was a local coming in to watch me; I finally got him flagged down to ask for more room because I was not getting any bites. We had some pretty bad storms rolling in. I had only one keeper when the lightning got scary, so I found a dock and rode out the storm. After the storm, I started throwing top water. [Because of the final day boat swap] I almost didn’t take my top water stuff, but boy I am glad I did and had my limit by noon. I was happy weighing in about 12 pounds and tickled with the 7th place finish”.
I asked Larry how physically demanding these multiple day events are, “When you throw in the top 10 meeting the night before the last day, then switching everything out of my boat into FLW’s boat, I was up later than I wanted. I was starting to get warn out; it is hard on a 65-year-old man.”
There is no secret The General (Larry Nixon) has had one heck of a good year fishing. I was curious what kept him so competitive through the years, especially this year. Larry credits his co-angler, Joey Cifuentes, for keeping him on his toes and fired up. Larry said, “I still catch fish the way I always have, the new stuff doesn’t overwhelm me because I stick to what I know. On my bad days, Joey has fired me up with all of his positive energy.” Everyone who knows The General knows Toledo Bend Lake is one of his favorites. I was curious which lake was the worst one this year on the FLW tour. “Smith Lake was my weakest lake this year; it kicked my butt. The fish moved between practice and the tournament, and I never could get back on them”.
Larry Nixon always sings the praises of his sponsors; Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits, Dobyns Rod Company, Lowrance, Seaguar Line, Clay Maxey Ford, Power Pole, T-H Marine Supplies, Ranger, and Evinrude. Speaking of Evinrude, we talked about the new Evinrude Gen 2 Larry is running on his 21 foot Ranger. Larry explained, “There have been lots of changes in my 38 years in fishing, this new Evinrude Gen 2 is the real deal. It is the best motor I have ever had on my boat; it burns 25% less gas, shoots out of the hole, very quiet, smooth, and fast. With my Ranger fully loaded I am getting between 69-71 mph; this engine is amazing. I urge everyone who has not been on the water in a boat powered by an Evinrude Gen 2, please go to a dealer and arrange a test drive soon, you will not be disappointed.”
When Larry and I spoke, he was preparing for his first hunt of the year where he and George Cochran chase squirrels through the woods. I had to ask Larry, what’s the best way to cook squirrel? Larry excitedly replied, “If they are young squirrels, cook them in the crockpot all day, and they will melt in your mouth.” Larry will tell you once he parks the boat; he puts up the rods and gets out the guns and spends the rest of the year hunting. With the FLW Season ended, it’s time for Larry to hit the woods. “Right now I will hunt squirrels and start dove hunting soon. October first, I pick up a bow, and I will be looking for the 11 point buck I have on my land. I will deer hunt until the end of November, and then start duck hunting with George (Cochran)”.
At 65 years young, The General is still giving the FLW “young guns” a run for their money. Good luck in the woods and duck blinds, we look forward to seeing what Larry Nixon has in store for fans in 2016!
Betsy Steele
Ultimate Bass
