West Memphis’ Rose is a full-fledged fishing star
In a couple of days, you’ll have a chance to chat online with one of the hottest sports figures from the Mid-South today.
It’s not former University of Memphis running back DeAngelo Williams. We all know Williams is great, but he hasn’t run for more than 69 yards in a game for the Carolina Panthers this year.
It’s not former East High School football star Brian Kimbrow. That young man has a sparkling career ahead, but he’s still a true freshman on what is arguably the worst football team in the SEC.
The man I’m talking about — the one who is sizzling hot in his field — is professional bass fisherman Mark Rose of West Memphis.
Rose is basking in the glow of a $125,000 FLW Tour victory on Wheeler Lake last week, and he’ll be answering questions during an FLW Live Reel Chat (flwoutdoors.com) at 2 p.m. Tuesday.
Considering his recent success, it should be a crowded chat room.
“I’ve been flattered by all of the attention,” Rose said after the final weighin at Wheeler. “When people use terms like ‘Ledgemaster’ and ‘TVA Titan’ to describe me, it embarrasses me a little bit. But it’s certainly flattering, too.”
When Rose won his first FLW event on Pickwick Lake back in 2007, it was big news because the perennial nice guy was still trying to establish himself as a legitimate contender on the pro fishing circuit.
Today, Rose has officially arrived — and if he arrives the same time as you for a tournament on the Tennessee River, you should just cut out the middle man and make your check out directly to him.
Rose has 32 top-10 finishes since joining the FLW pros on tour more than 16 years ago. Ten of those finishes were during the past four seasons.
He has six major victories with FLW Outdoors, and all but one — his 2010 FLW Series win on Lake Chickamauga — have come on Tennessee River fisheries.
Since his 2007 FLW Series win on Pickwick, Rose has won the following tournaments: the 2009 EverStart Series Championship on Pickwick, the 2010 FLW Series event on Chickamauga, the 2011 FLW Tour event on Pickwick, a 2012 BFL event on Kentucky and Barkley Lakes and then last week’s FLW Tour event on Wheeler.
“I just feel comfortable out there,” Rose said of the Tennessee River fisheries. “I just feel like I’m in tune with them. I really have a passion for these lakes. I even like it when I’m not catching anything because I’m learning something.”
In addition to his wins on Pickwick, Kentucky Lake and Wheeler, Rose just missed a victory on another famous Tennessee River fishery in 2010 when he finished second in an FLW Tour event on Lake Guntersville. He also placed sixth in an FLW tournament on Kentucky Lake in 2011.
“I’ve had a second and a third at Guntersville in my career and two seconds at Kentucky Lake,” said Rose, a longtime pro-staffer for Collierville-based Strike King Lure Company. “I really want wins on those two lakes.”
With more than $1.6 million in career earnings, Rose might just be the hottest angler on the professional circuit today.
He’s a hometown hero who’s made a habit of dominating his hometown waters — and at 2 p.m. Tuesday, his time will be yours. To reach reporter Bryan Brasher, call 901-529-2343; email: brasher@commercialappeal. com. His blog can be found at MidsouthOutdoorsBlog.com or follow him at twitter.com/ Bryan_Brasher