B. Lane Boxes 20-08 For Early Lead At Eufaula

By MLF Communications Staff

Bobby Lane weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20-08 to grab the lead on day 1 of the MLF Pro Circuit event at Lake Eufaula in Alabama. Jason Abram ended the day in 2nd place, just 5 ounces behind Lane with 20-03.

Eufaula was a bit stingy on day 1, with only 90 pros catching a limit and less than half the field bringing more than 10 pounds to the stage. However, that didn’t seem to affect Lane or the other anglers atop the leaderboard.

John Cox (19-02), Evan Barnes (18-06) and Justin Lucas (18-03) round out the initial Top 5. The bottom half of the Top 10 consists of Skeet Reese (17-04), John Voyles (16-13), Ryan Davidson (16-06), Brad Knight (16-04) and Mitch Crane (16-00).

Although he finished the day leading the pack, Lane said the morning did not start as he had anticipated.

“My initial plan was to catch them on a swim jig up on the shad spawn, but with the high winds and lower water levels this morning, it was hard to even keep the bait in the grass,” said Lane. “I thought I’d catch 12 to 15 pounds there easily – that’s what happened every morning during practice – but today it was super muddy and tough.

“Once I realized I wasn’t having any luck, I decided to switch to my back-up plan and run up north. I caught a 4-pound, 8-ounce bass first, followed by a 5-pounder and before I knew it, I had a limit.”

Feeling a little more secure, Lane said he started running waypoints, and to his surprise was able to upgrade at each one.

“At the end of the day, I pulled up in the creek [close to the ramp] and caught a real nice 4-pounder that culled a 2-pound fish to get me over 20 pounds,” said Lane.

When it comes to his game plan for tomorrow, Lane said he’ll just have to see what Lake Eufaula has to offer and where he needs to adjust.

“I have no idea what tomorrow brings – I went almost three hours today without even a bite, fishing stuff that I should have been getting bit on,” said Lane. “I think they're feeding early so I’m hoping they're moving in and out of the same areas and I can be there to catch them early each day.

“This is the time of year I love to be on the water and I’m doing what I love to do – throwing a swim jig, a frog and flipping. It’s Lake Eufaula, so the fish live shallow year-round. I’m just hoping I can fish clean tomorrow and go out there and have fun. If I catch them tomorrow, I catch them, and if not, I caught enough today to probably survive and get a decent finish no matter what.”

Abram won the day's $500 Berkley Big Bass award with a 6-06 largemouth.

Anglers take off at 6:30 a.m. CT each day from Lakepoint Resort State Park, located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula. Weigh-ins are held at the park daily at 3 p.m. Fans are encouraged to follow the action online through the MLF NOW! livestream.

Day 1 Standings

1. Bobby Lane -- 20-08 (5)

2. Jason Abram -- 20-03 (5)

3. John Cox -- 19-02 (5)

4. Evan Barnes -- 18-06 (5)

5. Justin Lucas -- 18-03 (5)

6. Skeet Reese -- 17-04 (5)

7. John Voyles -- 16-13 (5)

8. Ryan Davidson -- 16-06 (5)

9. Brad Knight -- 16-04 (5)

10. Mitch Crane -- 16-00 (5)

11. Jon Canada -- 15-14 (5)

12. Trevor Fitzgerald -- 15-11 (5)

13. Dylan Hays -- 15-09 (5)

14. Jared McMillan -- 15-05 (5)

15. Ron Nelson -- 14-10 (5)

15. Jimmy Washam -- 14-10 (5)

17. Danny Kirk -- 14-09 (5)

18. Casey Ashley -- 14-06 (5)

18. Jeremy Lawyer -- 14-06 (5)

20. Barron Adams -- 14-05 (5)

21. Troy Morrow -- 14-04 (5)

22. Ramie Colson Jr -- 14-01 (5)

22. Terry Bolton -- 14-01 (5)

22. Corey Neece -- 14-01 (5)

25. Clayton Batts -- 13-14 (5)

26. Clabion Johns -- 13-13 (5)

27. Shin Fukae -- 13-11 (5)

28. Joshua Weaver -- 13-08 (5)

29. Dave Parsons -- 13-07 (5)

29. Kyle Gelles -- 13-07 (5)

31. Darrel Robertson -- 13-06 (5)

31. Dicky Newberry -- 13-06 (5)

31. Lawson Hibdon -- 13-06 (5)

34. Larry Nixon -- 13-04 (5)

34. Kyle Hall -- 13-04 (5)

36. Robert Nakatomi -- 13-03 (4)

37. Dion Hibdon -- 12-15 (5)

38. Cody Meyer -- 12-11 (5)

38. Cody Huff -- 12-11 (5)

38. Brandon Mosley -- 12-11 (5)

41. Spencer Shuffield -- 12-10 (5)

42. John Hunter -- 12-08 (5)

42. Chad Warren -- 12-08 (5)

44. Scott Dobson -- 12-06 (5)

45. David Walker -- 12-04 (5)

45. Jason Reyes -- 12-04 (5)

47. Ron Farrow -- 12-02 (5)

48. Jamie Horton -- 12-01 (5)

48. J Todd Tucker -- 12-01 (5)

50. Jake Ormond -- 12-00 (5)

51. Miles Burghoff -- 11-10 (5)

52. Alex Davis -- 11-09 (5)

52. Jason Vance -- 11-09 (5)

54. Cole Floyd -- 11-08 (5)

54. Dakota Ebare -- 11-08 (5)

56. Casey Scanlon -- 11-05 (5)

57. Takayuki Koike -- 11-04 (5)

58. Clark Reehm -- 11-03 (5)

59. Cody Pike -- 11-02 (5)

59. Scott Towry -- 11-02 (5)

61. Bradley Dortch -- 11-01 (4)

61. Kyle Weisenburger -- 11-01 (5)

61. Matt Becker -- 11-01 (5)

64. Rusty Salewske -- 10-15 (5)

65. Tommy Dickerson -- 10-14 (5)

65. Jim Tutt -- 10-14 (5)

67. Ryan Salzman -- 10-13 (5)

68. Mike McClelland -- 10-12 (5)

68. Cal Lane -- 10-12 (5)

70. Mark Blevins -- 10-11 (5)

71. Randy Despino -- 10-08 (5)

71. Kerry Milner -- 10-08 (5)

71. Zack Birge -- 10-08 (5)

71. Miles Howe -- 10-08 (5)

75. James Niggemeyer -- 10-06 (5)

76. Tai Au -- 10-03 (5)

77. Tyler Woolcott -- 10-01 (2)

78. Matthew Stefan -- 9-15 (5)

78. Laramy Strickland -- 9-15 (5)

80. Josh Butler -- 9-13 (5)

81. Colby Schrumpf -- 9-09 (4)

81. Jesse Wiggins -- 9-09 (5)

83. Michael Neal -- 9-08 (5)

83. Bradford Beavers -- 9-08 (4)

83. Kyle Cortiana -- 9-08 (5)

86. Brandon McMillan -- 9-07 (5)

87. Billy Hines -- 9-06 (3)

87. Adrian Avena -- 9-06 (5)

89. Jon Englund -- 9-05 (5)

90. Braxton Setzer -- 9-03 (4)

91. Nick Lebrun -- 9-01 (3)

92. Josh Bragg -- 8-15 (4)

93. Joseph Webster -- 8-14 (5)

94. Brian Latimer -- 8-12 (3)

94. Keith Poche -- 8-12 (3)

96. Erik Luzak -- 8-11 (4)

97. Gary Yamamoto -- 8-10 (5)

97. Brett Hite -- 8-10 (3)

99. Anthony Gagliardi -- 8-09 (5)

99. Kevin Martin -- 8-09 (4)

101. Jimmy Reese -- 8-08 (5)

102. Matt Reed -- 8-07 (3)

102. Justin O'Brian Cooper -- 8-07 (5)

104. Tim Frederick -- 8-04 (4)

105. Darrell Davis -- 8-02 (5)

106. Chase Serafin -- 7-15 (3)

107. Ricky Robinson -- 7-11 (3)

108. Jim Neece Jr -- 7-09 (4)

109. Colby Miller -- 7-07 (5)

110. Wesley Strader -- 7-03 (3)

110. Chris Lane -- 7-03 (4)

112. Mark Fisher -- 6-14 (3)

112. Aaron Britt -- 6-14 (4)

114. Steve York -- 6-12 (4)

114. Jacob Wall -- 6-12 (4)

116. Derrick Snavely -- 6-10 (4)

117. Josh Douglas -- 6-07 (3)

118. Todd Walters -- 6-05 (3)

118. Blake Smith -- 6-05 (4)

118. Daryl Biron -- 6-05 (3)

121. Chad Grigsby -- 6-03 (3)

122. Lendell Martin Jr -- 6-02 (3)

123. Bill McDonald -- 6-01 (4)

124. Pete Ponds -- 6-00 (4)

125. Mike Surman -- 5-13 (4)

126. David G Williams -- 5-09 (3)

127. Tom Redington -- 5-07 (3)

127. Joey Cifuentes -- 5-07 (2)

129. Tom Monsoor -- 5-03 (3)

130. Dean Rojas -- 4-14 (1)

131. Jim Moynagh -- 4-13 (3)

131. Scott Ashmore -- 4-13 (3)

133. Nick Gainey -- 4-12 (3)

134. Jason Blair -- 4-07 (2)

135. Kurt Dove -- 4-04 (2)

136. Lance Crawford -- 4-03 (2)

137. Jason Lambert -- 4-02 (3)

138. Charlie Evans -- 4-01 (3)

138. Matt Greenblatt -- 4-01 (2)

140. Tyler Stewart -- 4-00 (2)

140. Jacopo Gallelli -- 4-00 (2)

142. Troy Stokes -- 3-15 (2)

143. Cody Nichols -- 3-13 (2)

144. Scott Wiley -- 3-11 (2)

144. Jordan Osborne -- 3-11 (2)

146. Lane Olson -- 3-10 (2)

147. Richard Lowitzki -- 3-09 (2)

148. Jason Wilson -- 3-01 (2)

149. Randy Ramsey -- 2-14 (1)

150. Grant Galloway -- 2-13 (2)

151. Chris Neau -- 2-11 (2)

152. Shannon Abbott -- 2-09 (1)

153. Grae Buck -- 2-06 (1)

153. Joe Wieberg -- 2-06 (1)

155. Rusty Trancygier -- 1-13 (1)

156. Kurt Mitchell -- 1-11 (1)

157. Greg Bohannan -- 1-06 (1)

Terry Luedtke -- 0-00 (0)

Kevin Meeks -- 0-00 (0)