FLW Tour Angler of the Year Bryan Thrift caught a massive 27 1/2-pound stringer on Thursday to build a huge lead on day 1 of the FLW Series Championship at Kentucky Lake out of Paris, Tenn. The veteran pro will take an advantage of more than 7 pounds into day 2.
Thrift's sack was particularly impressive considering that only 30 competitors in the 192-angler field even managed to weigh a limit.
“It went a whole lot better than I thought it was going to go – 20 pounds better,” Thrift said. “I finally started getting a few bites mid-morning. My catches were scattered – one here, one there. I feel like I may have figured a little something out. I’m not totally convinced yet, but I feel like I’m close.”
Thrift fished on the southern end of the lake from Paris to New Johnsonville, and said that he caught his keepers on two different baits.
“The fish I caught today were from stuff I hadn’t fished in practice. I caught one keeper from a place I’d fished in practice, and after that it was a grind. I was legitimately worried about catching keepers – it was that tough.”
Here are the totals for the initial top 10:
1. Bryan Thrift: 27-08
2. Cameron Gautney: 20-07
3. Chad Foster: 19-13
4. Sheldon Collings: 18-04
5. Bradford Beavers: 15-13
6. Kurt Mitchell: 15-08
7. Ron Nelson: 15-07
8. Dustin Smith: 15-03
9. Todd Hollowell: 15-02
10. Jason Abram: 14-15
