Three-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year Mark Davis is fishing this week's California Delta Western FLW Series as a co-angler, ostensibly as a primer for next spring's Bassmaster Elite Series event there. As luck would have it, the pro who drew him for day 1 was fellow Elite competitor Ish Monroe.
Monroe, who lives in nearby Hughson, likely knows the Delta as well as anybody on either major tour. He's the defending champion in this event and also won a Western Stren there in May.
The draw sets up an interesting dilemma for Monroe. Does he "sandbag" on day 1 and stay away from his best stuff to avoid showing Davis (pictured) something that could come back to haunt him next March? Or does he go all out for his second straight triumph in the event and pay no heed to whatever Davis might learn?
The tournament is the third of four on the Western Series. The finale will take place next month at Clear Lake, the other California venue on the 2010 Elite schedule. No word yet on whether Davis plans to be a back-seater for that one too.
Davis finished 29th when the Bassmaster circuit visited the Delta in 2003, and he was 35th at Clear Lake the following week. He was an FLW-only pro when the Elite Series returned to those bodies in 2007.
