Rose Sacks 17 1/2, Leads Nick By 4-Plus At Halfway Point

By BassFan Staff

Death, taxes and Mark Rose filling his livewell on the Tennessee River.

Okay, so that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s almost come to that as Rose is starting to put on a clinic at the Wheeler Lake FLW Tour Open.

His 17-08 catch today pushed his 2-day weight to 38-14, a total very few thought was attainable just a couple days ago.

While his day-2 effort was nearly 4 pounds lighter than his superb 21-06 day-1 stringer, his lead over 2nd-place Blake Nick swelled to nearly 4 1/2 pounds. Nick totaled 16-09 today and has 34-08 while Luke Clausen maintained his spot in 3rd with a solid 15-14 basket, but he’s more than 7 pounds behind Rose with 31-13.

“I thought coming into this thing 13 to 14 pounds a day would win it, but it’s fishing a little bit better than that right now,” Rose said.

Michael Williamson and Shane Long each made big moves into the Top 5 with 17-plus pounds bags today. Williamson caught 17-10 to give himself 30-04 in 4th place while Long boxed 17-04 and sits in 5th with 29-06.

Marty Stone (6th to 26th) and Justin Lucas (8th to 40th) relinquished their spots in the Top 10 from day 1 and missed the weekend cut. With 23-05, Detroit River Open winner Larry Nixon is in 20th and was the last man in for the weekend.

Here's a look at the Top 10 following the first 2 days of competition, with deficit margin from Rose indicated by red numbers in parentheses:

1. Mark Rose: 38-14
2. Blake Nick: 34-08 (4-06)
3. Luke Clausen: 31-13 (7-01)
4. Michael Williamson: 30-04 (8-04)
5. Shane Long: 29-06 (9-08)
6. Brett Hite: 28-07 (10-07)
7. Corey Saint: 28-01 (10-13)
8. Russ Lane: 27-02 (11-12)
9. Chad Grigsby: 27-01 (11-13)
10. Jerry Lawler: 26-14 (12-00)

Conditions are starting to stabilize as the water dropped some from yesterday, drawing some fish farther off bank-related cover in select areas. The weather was similar to day 1 and the high pressure is expected to stick around through the weekend, with overnight lows dropping into the 40s. It’s certainly not a numbers game for many of the leaders as 10 keepers seems to be a decent day.

As usual at Wheeler, though, it’s the 4-pound and better fish that are making the difference. Still, the key element to a lot of pros’ programs remains the presence of shad, either in shallow pockets or farther offshore. The Top 20 will fish tomorrow and following day 3, the Top 10 will advance to Sunday’s final round, when the winner will be determined by highest cumulative weight.

Rose In His Comfort Zone

> Day 2: 5, 17-08 (10, 38-14)

Rose’s confidence continues to swell halfway through the event as he spent more time today targeting ledge-oriented fish than on day 1. That was partly due to the shallow bite not firing like it did yesterday.

He said he missed a big fish that blew up on his topwater plug this morning and another sizeable bite out deep, which combined would’ve allowed him to probably match his day-1 take. He estimates he caught eight keepers today.

“Everything happened just right yesterday and I didn’t expect it to keep going that way,” he said. “Today was a little better than I thought it would be and I still feel very blessed to be where I’m at as I was able to get three fish that were in the 3-pound or better range.

“I’m still just riding a lot of confidence and fishing the way I like to fish on the Tennessee River. Tomorrow, I’m going to mix it up and do a little bit more shallow fishing like I did the first day.”

He’s been able to focus his efforts in two small areas so far and has had be creative with his strategies.

“They’re not loaded by any means,” he noted. “I’ve had to show them some different presentations.”

The lack of cloud cover today, he thinks, may have contributed to the slowdown in shallow-water action and the current wasn’t as brisk as it was on day 1, which might impact his deeper spot.

“I need them to pull a little bit more water than they did and I thought they were going to pull more water, but they ran it all night last night, which is not good because they feed all night and then slow down during the day,” he said. “That’s a big deal for my deep bite and it didn’t happen as good today.”

2nd: Day-1 Spot Held Up For Nick

> Day 2: 5, 16-09 (10, 34-08)

Nick returned to the area that produced a flurry of action on day 1, but he had to wait them out a little longer today. He had his limit by 10 a.m., then he went scouting new water in the event his prime area peters out.

“It was a good morning and then it was tough as nails,” he said. “The biggest difference was yesterday it took me about 30 minutes to catch my fish and today I had to work on them for a while. They’re still there. They haven’t gone anywhere. The baitfish are still in there. It was just something different today. They were in the same area. They just weren’t piled on top of each other like they were yesterday.”

His main concern is not having a solid Plan B to go to in case his top spot stops producing.

“The only bad thing is I have one area that’s loaded, so I’m not confident about that,” he said. “I’m confident in that area, but it’s not ever good to just have one area. It’s a real good spot, but if I have to go up and fish in the river, I’m not near as confident.”

Despite taking an 8-ounce penalty for a dead fish, the Adger, Ala., resident is thrilled to be in contention at one of his favorite lakes.

“It’s huge,” he said. “I always told everybody that if I was ever going to win a tournament, this lake would be my best chance. It’s just because certain lakes fish to your strengths. It’s not because of the weights you catch, but it’s the way you have to catch them here. I like it and it fits me and I feel like if things are going wrong, then I’ll know what to do without panicking. That said, you can still go out on this lake and not catch crap.”

3rd: Clausen Still Junking

> Day 2: 5, 15-14 (10, 31-13)

Six keepers was all Clausen could muster today, but considering one was a 5-11, another was a 4 1/2 and a third weighed 3 1/2, he’ll take it with the hopes he can uncover five similar fish tomorrow.

He continued to roam around and junk-fish and caught his three best fish in three different areas, although one came from a spot that produced a weigh fish on day 1.

“I wish I could tell you I have it figured out,” he said.

He said the water had receded a little and the current had slowed, which put a damper on his bite today, especially in the morning, as that’s when he caught his better fish on day 1. While he is focusing on mainly shallow water, he feels like the fish he’s catching are more bait-oriented as opposed to cover.

“Today, it didn’t seem to pick up until the end of the day and that’s when I got a couple key bites later on in the afternoon,” he said. “Other than that, I think the conditions made it a little better and I happened to collide with a few.”

While he’s more than 7 pounds behind Rose, he’ll continue with his run-and-junk approach tomorrow.

“I’m going to go swing around and fish what looks good and check where I’ve caught them before and look at some new places,” he added. “I need to keep moving and keep trying and hope I can get five of those big bites. It seems like I’m fishing the right kind of area.”

4th: Williamson Helped By 5-11 Brute

> Day 2: 5, 17-10 (10, 30-04)

Williamson found his fish today had pulled back away from the shallow grass they were holding around on day 1 and once he figured that out, he had a limit by 9 a.m.

He then made a move to some nearby deeper water where the current was prevalent and boated a 5-11 beast that was among the best fish caught today.

“I was expecting things to improve today,” he said. “I went back to the same place as yesterday and found the bite had changed, so I made some adjustments and went to some different water in the same area and found them on top.”

He handled just six keepers today, but isn’t quite ready to abandon the spot he’s been at.

“I’m going back to the same place tomorrow,” he said. “I had it all to myself today.”

5th: Long Caught A Giant

> Day 2: 5, 17-04 (10, 29-06)

Coming into the tournament, Long was keyed in on a morning shallow bite and then had some deeper-water areas that held some kicker-quality fish. Based on what he caught out deep today, he may want to scrap the skinny water altogether.

After catching two dinks out of some shallow grass this morning, he headed to his second spot and fooled a 7-04 behemoth with a dropshot, which accounted for a good portion of his catch today. He said he lost another fish in the 4-pound class that would’ve allowed him to cull a 12-inch spotted bass.

“The last day of practice I killed them in 6 inches to 2 feet of water, just in the river grass swimming a jig,” he said. “It was easy and it was the kind of bite where you’d get three or four bites in one little area, but the shallow bite has gone away on me completely. I’ve been catching my fish pretty deep, so I spent more time doing it today. I know I was around the right quality yesterday because my co-angler caught a couple decent fish.”

He’d had some success in practice on this deeper locale and today he swept a jig and a Carolina rig through the spot, but couldn’t get any takers, so he resorted to the dropshot and caught the biggest fish of the event so far.

‘There are some really big ones that live in that area,” he added. “I caught a couple of good ones up there in practice, but I didn’t know if I could catch five so I was wanting to take a limit with me when I went there. It was a good day and you just take what you can get here.”

13th: Hackney Missed Prime Time Today

> Day 2: 5, 11-06 (10, 26-03)

Greg Hackney dropped eight spots in the standings today, but he did enough to earn another day on the water and finds himself just 11 ounces out of 10th place.

Today, he had to head back to the ramp right about the time he got some quality upgrades on day 1 so he wasn’t able to stick around and see if he could duplicate them.

“The biggest thing for me was the afternoon was a lot better for me yesterday,” he said. “I really caught the majority of my fish between 2 and 3. Today, I was due in at 3 so I had to leave at 2, so I really left during the time of the day when I caught them yesterday.

“Today, I just didn’t get bit. I lost one big opportunity that would’ve helped me. Other than that, I just didn’t get the bites like I did yesterday.”

He has a couple patterns working – a shallow topwater bite and he’s also targeting fish that are chasing bait schools on a big flat.

“On the shad, when the fish come up, I can’t get them to bite – when I see them visibly chasing the bait. I catch them better when they’re down,” he noted. “They’re just so keyed in on those shad that it’s hard to get them to look at anything else.”

He’s planning to move around more tomorrow and intends to fish an area he hasn’t been to since practice after the heavy rains “messed it up.”

64th: Thliveros Got Locked In

> Day 2: 5, 7-01 (8, 14-06)

Peter Thliveros thinks the combination of the heavy rains earlier this week, combined with the first real cold snap of the season conspired to put the fish in a negative mood this week. Day 1 was a struggle for him with just five bites, three of which he landed. And today wasn’t a whole lot better even though he brought a limit to the scale.

“I think the water coming up and the cold front just messed everything up,” he said.

He had a dynamite practice shallow-cranking around shell beds and stumps in 5 to 7 feet and was thinking he could have 15 to 17 pounds a day if the fish were still there.

“It seemed like either the fish left or they just quit biting,” he added. “Today, they didn’t bite at all. I think the water staying up moved them around. I don’t know what happened.

“I generally do pretty well here. I’ve had a lot of success here and it’s one of those lakes I always feel good coming to. It suits my style of fishing, but I kind of got hung up on one thing today and this week and never really explored anything else because of the quality of fish I was catching. I handcuffed myself a little bit from that respect.”

Notable

> Day 2 stats – 89 anglers, 68 limits (11 more than yesterday), 6 fours, 3 threes, 5 twos, 5 ones, 2 zeroes (same as yesterday).

Weather Forecast

> Sat., Sept. 22 – Mix Of Sun, Clouds - 82°/46°
- Wind: From the NW at 7 to 4 mph

> Sun., Sept. 23 – Mostly Sunny - 75°/46°
- Wind: From the NNW at 6 to 11 mph

Day 2 Standings

1. Mark Rose -- West Memphis, Ar -- 21-06 (5) -- 17-08 (5) -- 38-14 (10)

2. Blake Nick -- Adger, Al -- 17-15 (5) -- 16-09 (5) -- 34-08 (10)

3. Luke Clausen -- Spokane, Wa -- 15-15 (5) -- 15-14 (5) -- 31-13 (10)

4. Michael Williamson -- Fort Smith, Ar -- 12-10 (5) -- 17-10 (5) -- 30-04 (10)

5. Shane Long -- Willard, Mo -- 12-02 (5) -- 17-04 (5) -- 29-06 (10)

6. Brett Hite -- Phoenix, Az -- 13-08 (5) -- 14-15 (5) -- 28-07 (10)

7. Corey Saint -- Lexington, Al -- 12-05 (5) -- 15-12 (5) -- 28-01 (10)

8. Russell Lane -- Prattville, Al -- 15-14 (5) -- 11-04 (5) -- 27-02 (10)

9. Chad Grigsby -- Maple Grove, Mn -- 13-11 (5) -- 13-06 (5) -- 27-01 (10)

10. Jerry Lawler -- Athens, Al -- 11-03 (5) -- 15-11 (5) -- 26-14 (10)

11. Randall Tharp -- Gardendale, Al -- 11-11 (5) -- 14-15 (5) -- 26-10 (10)

12. Brent Ehrler -- Redlands, Ca -- 11-08 (5) -- 14-14 (5) -- 26-06 (10)

13. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, La -- 14-13 (5) -- 11-06 (5) -- 26-03 (10)

14. Scott Suggs -- Bryant, Ar -- 13-10 (5) -- 12-02 (5) -- 25-12 (10)

15. Art Ferguson Iii -- St. Clair Shores, Mi -- 13-08 (5) -- 11-15 (5) -- 25-07 (10)

16. Tommy Martin -- Hemphill, Tx -- 10-13 (5) -- 14-00 (5) -- 24-13 (10)

17. David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va -- 11-11 (5) -- 12-14 (5) -- 24-09 (10)

18. Jonathan Newton -- Rogersville, Al -- 11-10 (5) -- 12-13 (5) -- 24-07 (10)

19. Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fl -- 10-00 (5) -- 13-11 (5) -- 23-11 (10)

20. Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ar -- 11-14 (5) -- 11-07 (5) -- 23-05 (10)

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on day 3.

21. Chris McCall -- Brookeland, Tx -- 11-12 (5) -- 10-15 (5) -- 22-11 (10) -- $6,127

22. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, Al -- 13-06 (5) -- 8-15 (5) -- 22-05 (10) -- $6,127

23. Scott Canterbury -- Springville, Al -- 10-11 (5) -- 11-09 (5) -- 22-04 (10) -- $6,127

24. Tony Harvey -- Killen, Al -- 5-00 (2) -- 17-01 (5) -- 22-01 (7) -- $6,127

25. Koby Kreiger -- Okeechobee, Fl -- 12-10 (5) -- 9-05 (5) -- 21-15 (10) -- $6,127

26. Marty Stone -- Fayetteville, NC -- 14-04 (5) -- 7-10 (5) -- 21-14 (10) -- $5,830

27. Greg Bohannan -- Rogers, Ar -- 8-01 (5) -- 13-07 (5) -- 21-08 (10) -- $5,830

28. Kevin Snider -- Elizabethtown, Ky -- 11-03 (5) -- 10-05 (5) -- 21-08 (10) -- $5,830

29. Jason Christie -- Park Hill, Ok -- 10-15 (5) -- 10-08 (5) -- 21-07 (10) -- $5,830

30. Tommy Robinson -- Westland, Mi -- 10-05 (5) -- 10-10 (5) -- 20-15 (10) -- $5,830

31. Dave Lefebre -- Erie, Pa -- 5-06 (4) -- 15-06 (5) -- 20-12 (9) -- $5,534

32. Rick Williams -- Decatur, Al -- 7-01 (4) -- 13-10 (5) -- 20-11 (9) -- $5,534

33. Jeff Gustafson -- Keewatin, On -- 10-09 (5) -- 10-01 (5) -- 20-10 (10) -- $5,534

34. Michael Brewer -- Leoma, Tn -- 11-12 (5) -- 8-12 (4) -- 20-08 (9) -- $5,534

35. Shinichi Fukae -- Palestine, Tx -- 7-14 (5) -- 12-09 (5) -- 20-07 (10) -- $5,534

36. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, NC -- 9-09 (5) -- 10-09 (5) -- 20-02 (10) -- $5,534

37. J.T. Kenney -- Palm Bay, Fl -- 12-00 (5) -- 7-15 (5) -- 19-15 (10) -- $5,534

38. Edward Guice -- Decatur, Al -- 12-12 (5) -- 7-02 (4) -- 19-14 (9) -- $5,534

39. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 10-14 (5) -- 8-14 (5) -- 19-12 (10) -- $5,534

40. Justin Lucas -- Guntersville, Al -- 13-10 (5) -- 6-00 (3) -- 19-10 (8) -- $5,534

41. Boyd Duckett -- Demopolis, Al -- 10-15 (4) -- 8-10 (5) -- 19-09 (9) -- $5,237

42. Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Mn -- 9-08 (5) -- 10-00 (5) -- 19-08 (10) -- $5,237

43. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 8-05 (5) -- 11-00 (5) -- 19-05 (10) -- $5,237

44. Bill McDonald -- Greenwood, In -- 11-00 (5) -- 8-04 (5) -- 19-04 (10) -- $5,237

45. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, Tx -- 5-07 (3) -- 13-09 (5) -- 19-00 (8) -- $5,237

46. Justin Hamner -- Birmingham, Al -- 10-11 (5) -- 8-02 (5) -- 18-13 (10) -- $5,237

47. Nathan Davis -- Decatur, Al -- 9-07 (5) -- 9-03 (5) -- 18-10 (10) -- $5,237

48. George Cochran -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 4-10 (3) -- 13-04 (5) -- 17-14 (8) -- $5,237

49. Fred Roumbanis -- Bixby, Ok -- 8-00 (5) -- 9-08 (5) -- 17-08 (10) -- $5,237

50. Paul Elias -- Laurel, Ms -- 8-12 (5) -- 8-10 (4) -- 17-06 (9) -- $5,237

51. Wil Hardy -- Harlem, Ga -- 7-01 (5) -- 10-00 (5) -- 17-01 (10) -- $1,677

52. Keith Combs -- Huntington, Tx -- 6-12 (3) -- 9-08 (5) -- 16-04 (8) -- $1,677

53. Brandon Card -- Caryville, Tn -- 5-10 (4) -- 10-08 (5) -- 16-02 (9) -- $1,677

54. Chris Baumgardner -- Gastonia, NC -- 4-10 (4) -- 11-03 (5) -- 15-13 (9) -- $1,677

55. Brad Knight -- Wartburg, Tn -- 1-07 (1) -- 14-04 (5) -- 15-11 (6) -- $1,677

56. David Fritts -- Lexington, NC -- 6-09 (5) -- 9-02 (5) -- 15-11 (10) -- $1,677

57. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, Tn -- 6-11 (4) -- 8-14 (5) -- 15-09 (9) -- $1,677

58. Robert Behrle -- Hoover, Al -- 8-11 (5) -- 6-14 (5) -- 15-09 (10) -- $1,677

59. Chad Prough -- Chipley, Fl -- 9-06 (5) -- 5-14 (5) -- 15-04 (10) -- $1,677

60. Stacey King -- Reeds Spring, Mo -- 5-14 (4) -- 9-01 (5) -- 14-15 (9) -- $1,677

61. Gary Thacker -- Athens, Al -- 5-10 (5) -- 9-04 (5) -- 14-14 (10)

62. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 6-05 (5) -- 8-06 (5) -- 14-11 (10)

63. Jay Yelas -- Corvallis, Or -- 8-03 (5) -- 6-04 (5) -- 14-07 (10)

64. Pete Thliveros -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 7-05 (3) -- 7-01 (5) -- 14-06 (8)

65. Darrell Davis -- Dover, Fl -- 11-04 (5) -- 2-13 (1) -- 14-01 (6)

66. Dearal Rodgers -- Camden, SC -- 5-00 (3) -- 8-10 (5) -- 13-10 (8)

67. Nathan Brewer -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 0-00 (0) -- 13-08 (4) -- 13-08 (4)

68. Kerry Milner -- Bono, Ar -- 3-15 (2) -- 8-14 (3) -- 12-13 (5)

69. Derek Yamamoto -- Boulder City, Nv -- 8-05 (4) -- 3-13 (2) -- 12-02 (6)

70. Clent Davis -- Montevallo, Al -- 8-12 (4) -- 3-03 (1) -- 11-15 (5)

71. Robert Morin -- Seymour, Tn -- 5-15 (5) -- 6-00 (5) -- 11-15 (10)

72. J Todd Tucker -- Moultrie, Ga -- 6-05 (3) -- 5-05 (5) -- 11-10 (8)

73. Bill Day -- Frankfort, Ky -- 1-12 (2) -- 9-07 (5) -- 11-03 (7)

74. Dion Hibdon -- Sunrise Beach, Mo -- 3-12 (2) -- 7-07 (5) -- 11-03 (7)

75. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 4-02 (4) -- 6-15 (4) -- 11-01 (8)

76. Sam George -- Athens, Al -- 3-08 (3) -- 7-08 (2) -- 11-00 (5)

77. Ray Scheide -- Dover, Ar -- 4-08 (3) -- 6-08 (5) -- 11-00 (8)

78. Roland Martin -- Naples, Fl -- 9-07 (4) -- 1-03 (1) -- 10-10 (5)

79. Matt Pennington -- Springdale, Ar -- 3-05 (2) -- 7-03 (4) -- 10-08 (6)

80. Tony Dumitras -- Wnston, Ga -- 5-05 (5) -- 5-01 (5) -- 10-06 (10)

81. Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Ok -- 1-15 (2) -- 8-04 (5) -- 10-03 (7)

82. Jade Keeton -- Florence, Al -- 7-05 (5) -- 1-14 (2) -- 9-03 (7)

83. Bob Eagleston -- Newberry, Fl -- 3-12 (3) -- 4-01 (2) -- 7-13 (5)

84. Charlie Hartley -- Grove City, Oh -- 4-11 (4) -- 3-01 (3) -- 7-12 (7)

85. Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, SC -- 7-08 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-08 (5)

86. Craig Dowling -- Franklin, Tn -- 6-05 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-05 (5)

87. Daniel Welch -- New Martinsville, WV -- 2-00 (2) -- 3-06 (2) -- 5-06 (4)

88. Chris Neau -- New Orleans, La -- 3-13 (2) -- 1-05 (1) -- 5-02 (3)

89. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 0-00 (0) -- 1-10 (1) -- 1-10 (1)