McDonald's Career Day Puts Him Out In Front

By BassFan Staff

Bill McDonald carried some really bad momentum into this week's Lake Chickamauga FLW Tour in Tennessee. He'd fared no better than 117th in any of the three previous events and was buried at No. 125 in the Angler of the Year (AOY) race.

He had a great day on Thursday, though. In fact, it was the best day of the 55-year-old Indianan's career.

McDonald weighed a 29-12 sack to take the early lead at the circuit's fifth stop on the six-tournament schedule. He plied both deep and shallow water and his massive stringer included an 8-pounder and two 7s.

"It's my biggest five-fish limit ever," he said. "My best before was 25-02 in Detroit, and those were all brown fish (smallmouths)."

He has a lead of a little more than 3 1/2 pounds over Michael Wooley, who boxed the day's biggest fish – an 8-11 bruiser. John Cox, who's right in the thick of the AOY chase, was next with 23-09.

Michael Neal, a Dayton, Tenn. resident who owns a tackle shop on the lake, grabbed the No. 4 slot with 23-09. Alex Davis, a guide just two lakes downstream on the Tennessee River at Lake Guntersville, completed the Top 5 with 22-11.

Here's how the initial Top 10 stacks up, with deficit margins from the leader indicated by red numbers in parentheses:

1. Bill McDonald: 29-12
2. Michael Wooley: 26-02 (3-10)
3. John Cox: 23-09 (6-03)
4. Michael Neal: 23-06 (6-06)
5. Alex Davis: 22-11 (7-01)
6. Jacob Wheeler: 22-10 (7-02)
7. Brad Knight: 22-09 (7-03)
8. Darrel Davis: 22-07 (7-05)
9. Cody Meyer: 22-04 (7-08)
10. Matt Arey: 21-00 (8-12)

The Top 15 in the standings weighed at least 20 pounds apiece on a calm day in which little current flowed through the impoundment. As expected, some of the best bags came from the ledges, while others were pulled from shallow water.

It was a disappointing day for AOY leader Wesley Strader, who lives in nearby Spring City, Tenn., as he caught just 15-04 and sits in 65th place. The same was true for two-time defending AOY Andy Morgan of Dayton, who's in 92nd after bringing just 13 pounds to the scale.

A weather change is on tap for day 2 as scattered thunderstorms will move into the area and bring southwesterly winds expected to blow at better than 10 mph. That could benefit the competitors fishing near the banks.

The field will be reduced to the Top 20 following the day-2 weigh-in, with only the Top 10 advancing to the final day. The winner will be determined Sunday based on highest cumulative weight.

McDonald Mixed it Up

> Day 1: 5, 29-12

McDonald said his official 3-day practice session was fair, but he derived a great deal of confidence from a scouting trip to Chickamauga before the lake went off-limits to the competitors.

"I came up and pre-fished and it was fantastic," he said. "In (official) practice I ran around and I could get bit here and there, and the big bites came today. I feel very blessed.

"I'm not looking for the giant schools and I'm not fishing in the crowds. I'm just looking for a few fish here and a few there and I've got more stuff to run tomorrow."

He fished both shallow and deep and caught quality fish from both. He culled throughout the day – he went through approximately 20 keepers and lost nothing that would've aided him – and didn't make his final upgrade until mid-afternoon.

Being so far down on the points list, he won't fish conservatively on day 2.

"I'm swinging for the fence and rolling the dice," he said. "I've got nothing to lose."

2nd: Big One Boosted Wooley

> Day 1: 5, 26-02

It took Wooley only about 90 minutes to compile his hefty sack, which was topped by the 8 3/4-pound bruiser.

All five of his weigh-in fish came from the same locale and he had it all to himself.

"I didn't fish much in practice – I just idled the whole time and marked schools," he said. "The school I caught them from today I did fish and I caught them good, and then I got off there before anybody could see me. I went straight to them this morning."

He's fishing offshore and said he won't stray from that program.

"I'm 100-percent committed to it," he said. "Anytime I'm on the Tennessee River I'm going to be ledge-fishing if I can. I'll live or die by it.

"I'm pretty confident I can catch them again tomorrow. I might not have that same weight, but I think I can get a good follow-up bag. I'd be happy with anything over 18 because those schools got beat on hard today and the weights will probably go down."

His sack would've rivaled McDonald's had he not lost a fish late in the day that he estimated at 8 pounds.

"That one hurt. It was the only fish I lost all day. It just came up jumping and the bait went one way and the fish went the other."

3rd: Cox Adjusted Nicely

> Day 1: 5, 23-09

Cox caught all of his fish from water 3 feet deep or less. The five he took to the stage were all approximately the same size – his biggest was a 5-pounder.

"I thought there was potential for what I was doing, but things changed a lot from practice," he said. "I made some adjustments and it just worked out.

"I hit one spot and loaded the boat. Then I hit a bunch more spots and didn't catch anything."

His big flurry occurred at about 10 o'clock and it took him only 20 minutes to compile all of his weight.

"After I caught what I had, I left and checked a lot of other stuff and I think I've got an idea where the fish I was catching in practice are going. I'll run that tomorrow and I'll also run some new stuff.

"I rigged up 10 rods last night, and the last one was with a bait I didn't think I was going to throw. That's what I ended up catching them all on today, so there's no telling what it's going to be like tomorrow."

He'll be stoked if the weather change boosts the shallow-water bite.

"It was pretty good there for awhile today. If it gets any better than that, it'll be incredible."

5th: Davis Hopped Around

> Day 1: 5, 22-11

Davis was another guy who adapted to altered conditions.

"I came and pre-practiced before the off-limits and I saw what this place was capable of," he said. "I saw some things that were almost unbelievable. In (official) practice I didn't try to go back to those places – I went and looked for out-of-the-way stuff.

"I thought I'd catch them today doing that, but it didn't really work out, so I just started spot-hopping from place to place. I caught three big ones in five casts (one close to 8 pounds, one near 6 and a 4 3/4) and lost two other good ones."

He's fishing the drop-offs, but isn't battling for position in the crowds.

"I keep a lookout and if I see a place open up, I'll make that my next stop. I'll wait a little while if somebody's been pounding it, though, because those places need to rest a little bit."

He thought he'd catch more keepers than the 10 he boated.

"Some places that had schools in practice, I rode over them today and they had one fish or none. I don't know where they went or what the deal was."

92nd: Morgan Disappointed

> Day 1: 5, 13-00

Morgan caught all of his weight during a 10-cast span and then never boated another fish that helped him. He broke off the only quality bite he had.

"It's pretty disappointing," he said. "I learned a stern lesson about not wanting to fish in a crowd when the crowd is catching them. Community holes are the rule on the Tennessee River and if you're not part of the community, you're probably going to be part of the bunch that's not getting a check.

"I did find quite a bit of stuff in practice that was out of the way and that nobody else was bothering, but it dried up today. That's not a big surprise – I've seen that kind of thing go away before – but I didn't think it would happen that rapidly."

He's unsure about what he'll do on day 2.

"Maybe I should've been more aggressive on the stuff I fished at daylight. My first two places I didn't catch anything."

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 147 anglers, 123 limits, 8 fours, 7 threes, 2 twos, 3 ones, 4 zeroes.

> Zack Birge, who's had a superb rookie campaign to this point with two Top-10s and no finishes lower than 36th, is mired in 116th place after catching just 11 pounds on day 1. "I just didn't get any good bites," he said. "My co-angler caught some good ones, so I know they're around. I've got to do something different tomorrow; I have to swing big to try to get back into check range. I can't do that doing what I did today."

Weather Forecast

> Fri., June 12 – Scattered T-Storms - 87°/69°
- Wind: From the S/SW at 10 mph

> Sat., June 13 – Partly Cloudy - 90°/69°
- Wind: From the WSW at 6 mph

> Sun., June 14 – Sunny - 94°/71°
- Wind: From the SW at 7 mph

Day 1 Standings

1. Bill McDonald -- Greenwood, In -- 29-12 (5)

2. Michael Wooley -- Collierville, Tn -- 26-2 (5)

3. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 23-9 (5)

4. Michael Neal -- Dayton, Tn -- 23-6 (5)

5. Alex Davis -- Albertville, Al -- 22-11 (5)

6. Jacob Wheeler -- Indianapolis, In -- 22-10 (5)

7. Brad Knight -- Lancing, Tn -- 22-9 (5)

8. Darrell Davis -- Dover, Fl -- 22-7 (5)

9. Cody Meyer -- Auburn, Ca -- 22-4 (5)

10. Matt Arey -- Shelby, Nc -- 21-0 (5)

11. Terry Bolton -- Paducah, Ky -- 20-9 (5)

11. Brandon Hunter -- Benton, Ky -- 20-9 (5)

13. Tom Redington -- Royse City, Tx -- 20-4 (5)

14. Spencer Shuffield -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 20-3 (5)

15. Charlie Ingram -- Centerville, Tn -- 20-2 (5)

16. Jeff Sprague -- Point, Tx -- 19-15 (5)

17. Dave Lefebre -- Erie, Pa -- 19-11 (5)

18. Ramie Colson Jr -- Cadiz, Ky -- 19-9 (5)

18. Mark Goines -- Shady Point, Ok -- 19-9 (5)

20. Jason Lambert -- Pickwick Dam, Tn -- 18-15 (5)

20. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 18-15 (5)

22. David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va -- 18-14 (5)

22. Rob Kilby -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 18-14 (5)

24. Greg Bohannan -- Bentonville, Ar -- 18-13 (5)

24. Austin Terry -- San Angelo, Tx -- 18-13 (5)

26. Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Mn -- 18-11 (5)

27. John Voyles -- Petersburg, In -- 18-9 (5)

28. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, Ar -- 18-7 (5)

28. Mark Daniels Jr -- Tuskegee, Al -- 18-7 (5)

30. Todd Hollowell -- Fishers, In -- 18-0 (5)

31. Michael Murphy -- Lexington, Sc -- 17-14 (5)

32. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fl -- 17-7 (5)

33. Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ar -- 17-5 (5)

34. Marshall Deakins -- Dunlap, Tn -- 17-1 (5)

35. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 17-0 (5)

36. Richard Peek -- Centre, Al -- 16-15 (5)

37. Clent Davis -- Montevallo, Al -- 16-14 (5)

38. Tracy Adams -- Wilkesboro, Nc -- 16-12 (5)

38. Clark Reehm -- Huntington, Tx -- 16-12 (5)

40. Casey Martin -- New Hope, Al -- 16-11 (5)

41. James Biggs -- Euless, Tx -- 16-9 (5)

41. Derrick Snavely -- Rogersville, Tn -- 16-9 (5)

43. JT Kenney -- Palm Bay, Fl -- 16-8 (5)

43. Kerry Milner -- Bono, Ar -- 16-8 (5)

45. John Devere -- Berea, Ky -- 16-7 (5)

45. Jason Meninger -- Gainesville, Ga -- 16-7 (5)

47. Todd Auten -- Lake Wylie, Sc -- 16-6 (5)

47. Jonathan Newton -- Rogersville, Al -- 16-6 (5)

47. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, Nc -- 16-6 (5)

50. William(Billy) Shelton III -- La Crosse, Va -- 16-5 (5)

51. Nick Hensley -- Cumming, Ga -- 16-4 (5)

52. Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fl -- 16-3 (5)

53. Clark Wendlandt -- Leander, Tx -- 16-1 (5)

54. Andrew Young -- Mound, Mn -- 15-15 (5)

55. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, Sc -- 15-14 (4)

55. James Watson -- Springfield, Mo -- 15-14 (5)

57. Pete Ponds -- Madison, Ms -- 15-13 (5)

57. Andrew Upshaw -- Sapulpa, Ok -- 15-13 (5)

57. Barry Wilson -- Birmingham, Al -- 15-13 (5)

60. Jason Johnson -- Gainesville, Ga -- 15-9 (5)

61. Travis Fox -- Rogers, Ar -- 15-7 (5)

62. Troy Broussard -- Beaumont, Tx -- 15-6 (5)

62. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, Md -- 15-6 (5)

64. Jay Yelas -- Corvallis, Or -- 15-5 (5)

65. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, Tn -- 15-4 (5)

66. David Fritts -- Lexington, Nc -- 15-2 (5)

67. Robbie Dodson -- Harrison, Ar -- 15-0 (5)

68. Rich Dalbey -- Greenville, Tx -- 14-13 (5)

69. Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Tx -- 14-11 (5)

69. Shad Schenck -- Waynetown, In -- 14-11 (5)

71. Stacey King -- Reeds Spring, Mo -- 14-10 (5)

71. Robert Pearson -- Herndon, Va -- 14-10 (5)

73. Stephen Patek -- Dallas, Tx -- 14-9 (5)

74. Chad Grigsby -- Maple Grove, Mn -- 14-8 (5)

74. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 14-8 (5)

76. Shane Lehew -- Mooresville, Nc -- 14-7 (5)

76. Matthew Stefan -- Junction City, Wi -- 14-7 (5)

78. Tony Davis -- Williston, Fl -- 14-3 (5)

79. Jeff Gustafson -- Keewatin, On -- 14-0 (5)

80. Luke Clausen -- Spokane, Wa -- 13-14 (5)

81. Ryan Davidson -- Huntington, Wv -- 13-12 (5)

82. Mike Boyles -- Kimberling City, Mo -- 13-11 (5)

82. Ishama Monroe -- Hughson, Ca -- 13-11 (5)

84. Vic Vatalaro -- Kent, Oh -- 13-9 (5)

85. Shawn Murphy -- Nicholasville, Ky -- 13-8 (5)

86. Jeff Barth -- Marshfield, Wi -- 13-6 (5)

86. Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, Sc -- 13-6 (5)

88. Tommy Martin -- Hemphill, Tx -- 13-4 (5)

89. Marc Evans -- Angola, In -- 13-3 (5)

90. Troy Morrow -- Eastanollee, Ga -- 13-1 (5)

90. Scott Suggs -- Alexander, Ar -- 13-1 (5)

92. Brent Long -- Iron Station, Nc -- 13-0 (5)

92. Andy Morgan -- Dayton, Tn -- 13-0 (5)

94. Joe Gerard -- Concordia, Ks -- 12-15 (5)

95. Dustin Grice -- Robinson, Tx -- 12-14 (5)

95. Dan Morehead -- Paducah, Ky -- 12-14 (5)

95. Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga -- 12-14 (5)

98. Chris Baumgardner -- Gastonia, Nc -- 12-13 (5)

98. Richard Lowitzki -- Hampshire, Il -- 12-13 (5)

100. Peter Thliveros -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 12-12 (5)

101. Shinichi Fukae -- Palestine, Tx -- 12-10 (5)

101. Tom Monsoor -- La Crosse, Wi -- 12-10 (5)

101. Jayme Rampey -- Liberty, Sc -- 12-10 (5)

104. Glenn Chappelear -- Acworth, Ga -- 12-9 (5)

104. Cody Kelley -- Conway, Ar -- 12-9 (5)

104. Jimmy Reese -- Witter Springs, Ca -- 12-9 (5)

107. Scott Canterbury -- Springville, Al -- 12-8 (5)

108. Adrian Avena -- Vineland, Nj -- 12-7 (5)

108. Randy Haynes -- Counce, Tn -- 12-7 (5)

110. Mark Rose -- West Memphis, Ar -- 12-1 (5)

111. Scott Wiley -- Bay Minette, Al -- 11-14 (5)

112. Alvin Shaw -- Roaring Gap, Nc -- 11-13 (5)

113. Capt Blake Smith -- Lakeland, Fl -- 11-11 (4)

114. Rex Huff -- Corbin, Ky -- 11-6 (5)

115. Dion Hibdon -- Sunrise Beach, Mo -- 11-4 (5)

116. Zack Birge -- Blanchard, Ok -- 11-0 (5)

117. Jimmy Brewer -- Marshall, Tx -- 10-13 (5)

118. Blake Nick -- Adger, Al -- 10-8 (3)

119. Clay Elliott -- Ozark, Al -- 10-0 (5)

120. Clayton Batts -- Macon, Ga -- 9-10 (5)

121. Colby Schrumpf -- Highland, Il -- 9-9 (5)

122. Troy Hollowell -- Paducah, Ky -- 9-6 (4)

123. Powell Kemp -- Scotland Neck, Nc -- 9-5 (5)

124. Drew Benton -- Panama City, Fl -- 9-2 (5)

124. Randy Blaukat -- Joplin, Mo -- 9-2 (4)

126. Terry Segraves -- Kissimmee, Fl -- 9-1 (4)

127. Kyle White -- Clinton, Mo -- 8-10 (3)

128. David Smith -- Del City, Ok -- 8-9 (5)

129. Dalton Cooksey -- New Concord, Ky -- 8-4 (3)

130. Bill Terrell -- Memphis, Tn -- 7-11 (4)

131. Michael Williamson -- Fort Smith, Ar -- 7-7 (4)

132. Lionel Botha -- Fort Pierce, Fl -- 7-5 (3)

133. Craig Livesay -- Johnson City, Tn -- 6-11 (3)

134. Lendell Martin Jr -- Nacogdoches, Tx -- 6-8 (4)

135. Jim Dillard -- West Monroe, La -- 6-4 (3)

135. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, Fl -- 6-4 (3)

135. Michael Hall -- Annandale, Va -- 6-4 (3)

138. Drew Montgomery -- Maiden, Nc -- 4-7 (3)

139. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 4-0 (2)

140. Bob Morin -- Seymour, Tn -- 3-8 (2)

141. Tim Malone -- Gatlinburg, Tn -- 2-10 (1)

142. Shirley Crain -- Fort Smith, Ar -- 2-4 (1)

143. Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Ok -- 1-5 (1)

144. Charlie Evans -- Berea, Ky -- 0-0 (0)

144. Rodney Thomason -- Maumelle, Ar -- 0-0 (0)

144. Stephen McKinnie -- Umatila, Fl -- 0-0 (0)

144. Chris Neau -- New Orleans, La -- 0-0 (0)