By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor
Frank Talley came to Lake Guntersville on a nice roll, having finished no lower than 38th in any of the past four Bassmaster Elite Series events. On Friday, the massive Texan known as "Frank the Tank" secured the first Top-10 finish of his 2-year pro career.
Not content with that milestone, he returned to the famed Alabama impoundment on Saturday and caught an 18-02 stringer that was more than 4 pounds heavier than any that the other nine competitors brought to the scale. It was easily enough to give him his first tour-level triumph with a 4-day total of 64-03.
"Amazing," he said. "You watch this for so long and then it happens to you? Unbelievable!
"I was 45 years old when I pursued this, after my kids were raised. Now it's time for the Tank to shine."
Randy Sullivan, another Lone Star State resident, finished 2nd with 61-15 (14-02 on day 4). Luke Palmer was 3rd with 61-02 (13-14), followed by day-3 leader Wes Logan with 60-14 (11-14) and day-1 pacesetter Kyle Welcher with 59-15 (13-01).
Bob Downey headed up the second half of the Top 10 with 58-14 (14-00). Stetson Blaylock was 7th with 57-01 (10-13), Brandon Cobb 8th with 56-13 (12-01), Scott Canterbury 9th with 53-10 (four fish for 9-15) and Chad Morgenthaler 10th with 50-01 (two fish for 4-09).
Clark Wendlandt, who finished 21st in the event, widened his lead in the Angler of the Year race to 25 points over Takumi Ito, the Japanese rookie phenom. The tour now moves to Santee Cooper Lakes in South Carolina for the second stop of the four-tournament closing stretch.
Talley, who was cheered on at the weigh-in by his wife and three children who drove 14 hours through the night from their home in Temple, Texas, laid the foundation for his career-changing day just after it started. He caught a 5-pounder and a 4 from some eelgrass that was on the route to his starting spot up the Tennessee River.
He eventually garnered a limit from that locale, which he'd never fished previously.
“It just looked right,” he said in a B.A.S.S. press release. “On the first cast, I caught a 10-incher. Then about six casts later, I caught that 5-pounder. I boat-flipped that fish – I didn’t realize it was that big."
His primary bait throughout the event was a 1/2-ounce Strike King Thunder Cricket blade jig. Full details of his winning pattern, as well as those of the other top finishers, will be published in the coming days.
Talley's success at his first stop laid the foundation for his big day.
Sullivan was also competing on the final day of an Elite Series event for the first time. He caught seven keepers, but none heavier than 3 1/2 pounds.
"I feel good about it," he said. "It was an interesting tournament. The fish were real finicky – just super-pressured."
Palmer is an Oklahoman who's unaccustomed to fishing grass lakes, so his high finish was a surprise to many – including himself. His placement moved him up to No. 35 in the Angler of the Year race, which is 5 spots inside the cutoff for next year's Bassmaster Classic.
"It wasn't expected, that's for sure," he said. "I would've liked to have won, but I'll take what we got. I know how to mow grass, but I don't fish it very often."
"It was Frank's time to win. He caught his biggest sack all week and we all knew that's what it was going to come down to. I'm happy for him, he's a good dude. I just want to keep climbing the ladder and one time maybe I'll be successful and get a trophy."
Logan had a 3-pounder in his livewell at 8:30 and thought he was on track for another good day (he boxed 16-12 on day 3), but it wasn't to be.
"I thought I was right on schedule, but after that bite, I went until 11:30 without another one," he said. "I normally had a limit by 12, so I knew I was in trouble.
"Me and Frank are really good friends and I'm extremely happy for him."
Final Standings
1. Frank Talley -- Temple, TX -- 20, 64-03 -- 100 $100,000
Day 1: 5, 14-03 -- Day 2: 5, 16-05 -- Day 3: 5, 15-09 -- Day 4: 5, 18-02
2. Randy Sullivan -- Breckenridge, TX -- 19, 61-15 -- 99 -- $25,000
Day 1: 5, 18-08 -- Day 2: 4, 11-07 -- Day 3: 5, 17-15 -- Day 4: 5, 14-01
3. Luke Palmer -- Coalgate, OK -- 20, 61-02 -- 98 -- $20,000
Day 1: 5, 15-11 -- Day 2: 5, 15-11 -- Day 3: 5, 15-14 -- Day 4: 5, 13-14
4. Wes Logan -- Springville, AL -- 20, 60-14 -- 97 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 14-04 -- Day 2: 5, 18-10 -- Day 3: 5, 16-02 -- Day 4: 5, 11-14
5. Kyle Welcher -- Opelika, AL -- 20, 59-15 -- 96 -- $16,000
Day 1: 5, 19-05 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04 -- Day 3: 5, 15-05 -- Day 4: 5, 13-01
6. Bob Downey -- Hudson, WI -- 20, 58-14 -- 95 -- $16,000
Day 1: 5, 15-04 -- Day 2: 5, 13-15 -- Day 3: 5, 15-11 -- Day 4: 5, 14-00
7. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 20, 57-01 -- 94 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 14-00 -- Day 2: 5, 17-03 -- Day 3: 5, 15-01 -- Day 4: 5, 10-13
8. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 20, 56-13 -- 93 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 17-00 -- Day 2: 5, 17-11 -- Day 3: 5, 10-01 -- Day 4: 5, 12-01
9. Scott Canterbury -- Odenville, AL -- 19, 53-10 -- 92 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 16-00 -- Day 2: 5, 15-10 -- Day 3: 5, 12-01 -- Day 4: 4, 09-15
10. Chad Morgenthaler -- Reeds Spring, MO -- 17, 50-01 -- 91 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 17-10 -- Day 2: 5, 11-13 -- Day 3: 5, 16-01 -- Day 4: 2, 04-09
