By MLF Communications Staff
CULLMAN, Ala. – Day 1 of the MLF Invitational at Lewis Smith Lake went about to plan. Plenty of fish were caught, but top-end size was tough to come by. With most of the field packed tight, ounces will decide who gets checks, points and a chance at a win.
Still, Jasper, Ala. angler David Kilgore separated himself in a big way on Day 1, sacking up 18 pounds, 11 ounces for the lead – which is a lot of weight most times of the year at Smith, and especially now with so many postspawn fish in the mix.
In second, Lane Olson of Forest Grove, Ore. scrapped up 15-12, and Joseph Webster and Emil Wagner are tied for third with 15-2. It remains to be seen what happens on Day 2, but it already looks like a tough road for some of the anglers who caught their fish mostly with forward-facing sonar on Day 1 – Killgore and Webster were not reliant on the tech early and figure to have a great chance to stay steady the rest of the way.
Competitors will conclude the two-day opening round on Wednesday, with only the Top 30 pros based on their two-day cumulative weight advancing to the final round on Thursday. The three-day tournament features anglers competing for a top prize of up to $115,000.
A longtime local on Smith, Kilgore’s start with such a strong weight could set him up very well, though he knows as well as anyone that Smith is a tough place to be consistent. On Day 1, after a slow start, he packed on the pounds in the latter half of the morning.
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“I'm a little disappointed in myself,” Kilgore said. “I thought I had a spot that was a lot better than it was. Then I wasted a couple of hours this morning. Eventually, I said, ‘I gotta move.’
“I moved and it wasn't fast and furious; I could catch little keepers no problem, but every now and then, I would catch a decent fish. It was just a numbers game, pretty much, so I'll try to do it again tomorrow.”
Weighing all largemouth on Day 1, Kilgore plans to run the same program on Day 2, but he’s got an intriguing herring-spawn game plan for the final day.
“I’ve got a couple more areas I didn’t need to go to today,” he said. “And I've got a spot, way up – as in, get gas on the water – that's a herring spot that’s loaded. So, hopefully if I can get through tomorrow in good position, I'll abandon ship and go fish for the herring fish the last day.”
“The last few years here, we've done very good this time of year,” he said. “I've kind of got the herring gig figured out, and then I've kind of got the largemouth coming off bed gig figured out. So, it's a perfect time of year for me. I’m excited.”
Keith Poche earned Tuesday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass award with a bass that weighed 5-6.
Anglers will launch at 6:30 a.m. CT each day from Smith Lake Park, located at 403 County Road 386 in Cullman. Weigh-ins are held at the park and begin at 2:30 p.m.
Day 1 Standings
1. David Kilgore -- 18-11 (5)
2. Lane Olson -- 15-12 (5)
3. Joseph Webster -- 15-02 (5)
3. Emil Wagner -- 15-02 (5)
5. Britt Myers Jr -- 14-15 (5)
6. Jacob Walker -- 14-10 (5)
7. Colby Miller -- 14-05 (5)
8. Ryan Armstrong -- 14-03 (5)
8. Austin Swindle -- 14-03 (5)
10. Mitchell Robinson -- 14-02 (5)
11. Hayden Marbut -- 14-00 (5)
12. Brody Campbell -- 13-15 (5)
13. Bobby Lane -- 13-13 (5)
13. Keith Poche -- 13-13 (5)
15. Flint Davis -- 13-12 (5)
16. Josh Butler -- 13-09 (5)
16. Drew Gill -- 13-09 (5)
18. Colby Schrumpf -- 13-06 (5)
19. Cody Petit -- 13-05 (5)
20. Mark Rose -- 13-04 (5)
20. Dustin Smith -- 13-04 (5)
20. Charles Abshire -- 13-04 (5)
23. Chad Mrazek -- 13-00 (5)
24. Robby Lefere -- 12-15 (5)
25. Matt Reed -- 12-14 (5)
25. Jesse Wiggins -- 12-14 (5)
27. Jordan Lee -- 12-09 (5)
28. Alex Bradley -- 12-08 (5)
29. Todd Walters -- 12-07 (5)
29. Taylor Parker -- 12-07 (5)
29. Miles Smith -- 12-07 (5)
32. Mark Fisher -- 12-05 (5)
32. Andrew Nordbye -- 12-05 (5)
34. Dennis Burdette -- 12-04 (5)
34. Christian Greico -- 12-04 (5)
36. Brett Carnright -- 12-02 (5)
37. John Levesque -- 12-01 (5)
37. Cal Lane -- 12-01 (5)
39. Ken Thompson -- 12-00 (5)
39. Steve Lopez -- 12-00 (5)
41. Matt Baty -- 11-14 (5)
41. Jack Daniel Williams -- 11-14 (5)
41. Matt Greenblatt -- 11-14 (5)
44. Banks Shaw -- 11-11 (5)
45. Jon Canada -- 11-10 (5)
46. Terry Olinger -- 11-09 (5)
46. Jordan Wiggins -- 11-09 (5)
48. Kelly Jordon -- 11-07 (5)
48. Alex Davis -- 11-07 (5)
48. Levi Thibodaux -- 11-07 (5)
51. Chris Lane -- 11-06 (5)
52. Lucas Black -- 11-04 (5)
53. Jimmy Washam -- 11-03 (5)
54. Clayton Batts -- 11-02 (5)
54. Ethan Greene -- 11-02 (5)
54. Spike Stoker -- 11-02 (5)
57. Gary Adkins -- 11-01 (5)
58. Jimmy Reese -- 11-00 (5)
59. Cole Breeden -- 10-15 (5)
59. Marshall Hughes -- 10-15 (5)
61. Jacob Heath -- 10-13 (5)
62. Derrick Roberts -- 10-10 (5)
63. Frank Kitchens III -- 10-08 (5)
63. Tyler Stewart -- 10-08 (5)
63. Blake Smith -- 10-08 (5)
66. Kennie Steverson -- 10-06 (5)
67. Terry Luedtke -- 10-05 (5)
67. Terry Fisher -- 10-05 (5)
67. Reece Tremaglio -- 10-05 (5)
70. Greg Pugh -- 10-04 (5)
70. Lee Black -- 10-04 (5)
72. Thomas Guthke -- 10-02 (5)
73. Thomas Wooten -- 10-00 (5)
73. Brian Latimer -- 10-00 (5)
73. Kyle Cortiana -- 10-00 (5)
76. Robert Grabow -- 9-15 (5)
76. James Maupin -- 9-15 (5)
76. Jason Tibbetts -- 9-15 (5)
79. John Murray -- 9-14 (5)
80. Griffin Phillips -- 9-13 (5)
80. Bobby Carver -- 9-13 (5)
82. Roman Ryan -- 9-11 (5)
83. Paul Elias -- 9-09 (5)
84. Darrell Ivey Jr. -- 9-08 (5)
85. Daniel Kweekul -- 9-06 (5)
85. Troy Stokes -- 9-06 (5)
85. Jeff Harper -- 9-06 (5)
88. Charlie Evans -- 9-04 (5)
88. Hunter Mills -- 9-04 (5)
88. Ben Cox -- 9-04 (5)
91. John Brown -- 9-03 (5)
92. Neal McWhorter -- 9-00 (5)
92. Mike Mayo -- 9-00 (5)
94. Jarret Wiggins -- 8-13 (5)
94. Dylan Mayo -- 8-13 (5)
96. Chris Kanute -- 8-12 (5)
97. Brian Merriman -- 8-11 (5)
97. Bill Hutchison -- 8-11 (5)
99. John Dial -- 8-08 (5)
99. Tony Dumitras -- 8-08 (5)
101. Samuel Fish -- 8-07 (5)
102. Blake Hall -- 8-03 (5)
103. Keith Carson -- 7-10 (5)
104. Lavoyd Lemmond -- 7-04 (4)
105. Byron Haseotes -- 7-03 (5)
106. Stephanie Hemphill-Pellerin -- 7-02 (5)
107. Shaw Grigsby -- 6-06 (4)
108. Kyle Goldstein -- 5-14 (5)
109. Boyd Duckett -- 5-12 (3)
110. Bobby Lanham -- 5-01 (5)
111. Dean Cox -- 2-03 (1)
112. Wade Ford -- 2-01 (5)
113. Charley Slaton -- 0-00 (0)
113. Adam Lynn -- 0-00 (0)
113. Curtis Shaw -- 0-00 (0)
