Afternoon Rally Pushes Combs To Top Spot

By BassFan Staff

The chorus coming from the pros all through practice was that West Point Lake was fishing waaaaaay tougher than it had back in 2011. The head-scratching intensified through day 1 of competition as conditions continued to change.

Keith Combs figured it out just fine, only not until late in the day. The Texan, who claimed his first Elite Series win earlier this year at Falcon Lake, caught 15-14 to set the early pace. Greg Vinson, the leader after days 1 and 2 at Bull Shoals Lake 2 weeks ago, is 4 ounces back in second with 15-10.

Bassmaster Classic champion Cliff Pace holds down third with 14-02 while Aaron Martens weighed 13-05 in 4th and Skeet Reese caught 13-00 to round out the Top 5.

Steve Kennedy, the resident West Point guru among Elite Series pros and winner of the 2011 event there, struggled like the majority of the field. His 7-06 sack has him in 48th place. Edwin Evers, the leader in Toyota Tundra B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year points heading into the week, is tied for 40th with 7-12. Jason Christie, riding high after consecutive tour-level wins, is mired in 91st after a humbling day with two fish for 4-00.

Here's a look at the Top 12 following the first day of competition, with the deficit margin from Combs indicated by red numbers in parentheses:

1. Keith Combs: 15-14
2. Greg Vinson: 15-10 (00-04)
3. Cliff Pace: 14-02 (1-12)
4. Aaron Martens: 13-05 (2-09)
5. Skeet Reese: 13-00 (2-14)
6. Marty Robinson: 12-10 (3-04)
7. Tommy Biffle: 12-10 (3-04)
8. Hank Cherry: 12-04 (3-10)
9. Brandon Palaniuk: 11-05 (4-09)
10. Cliff Crochet: 10-13 (5-01)
11. Andy Montgomery: 10-07 (5-07)
12. John Crews: 10-06 (5-08)

Only 13 pros were able to crack the 10-pound mark today as it seems like a bevy of factors are conspiring against the field this week. By comparison, 55 anglers caught 10-plus pounds on the first day of the 2011 Elite Series at West Point, including four sacks over 20.

In addition to most of the fish being in their post-spawn funk, the water has come up and made it difficult to identify any late spawners that may still be holding tight to nests. Today, the water was gradually falling and that has some concerned that some of their shallow-water targets won't be fishable before long.

There's a good amount of current moving through the system and some fish were caught off current-oriented locations, but West Point's bass are much like a hockey team – they change on the fly without much notice. If today was any indication, this will be a run-and-gun affair as very few spots will produce for more than a day, let alone 3 or 4.

According to the NOAA forecast for La Grange, Ga., there's a 40-percent chance of rain tomorrow and some morning fog is likely. Overall, it'll be cloudy with a high near 67 and east winds in the 10- to 15-mph range with gusts to 25 mph. Up to a half-inch of rain is possible.

The Top 50 after day 2 will advance to Saturday before the field is cut to the Top 12 on Sunday, when the winner will be determined by highest cumulative weight.

Late Rally by Combs

> Day 1: 5, 15-14

Combs could've kept his boat on the trailer all morning, enjoyed a relaxing lunch and then started fishing around 1:30. That's about when he swung his first fish into the boat. From there, good things kept happening to the Texan.

"I feel like I just made something out of nothing," he said. "It was one of those days where everything that could wrong in the morning did go wrong, but everything went perfectly in the afternoon.

"I thought I was having a pretty bad practice this week, but looking at the weights today, I guess I had a good practice. Most of my bites were coming in the afternoon. The fact that I was out there at 1:30 without a fish, I thought I was pretty well screwed."

It wasn't until his second and third pass through the same areas he'd fished in the morning that the bites started to come.

"Tomorrow, I have to check in at 3 so I'm going to have to do something different in the morning and try to get it to work," he said. "I think I might try for a limit of spots right away because you fish a lot more relaxed with a limit in the livewell.

"To catch the better largemouth, you have to fish slow and that's not something I like to do. What I'm throwing, where I'm throwing it, you feel like you're never going to catch one. It's like pulling teeth."

The largemouths he caught today were not current-related, but the spotted bass were.

"One largemouth I caught was spawning and the other two weren't far from where they spawned, but they certainly weren't on beds," he said. "I tried to make this a sight-fishing tournament, but it's not going to be one."

2nd: Vinson Shifted Gears

> Day 1: 5, 15-10

Vinson swiftly erased any lingering effects of falling out of contention on day 3 at Bull Shoals. He knows, however, it'll be a stout challenge to stay where he's at on the leaderboard this week as well.

"My primary pattern didn't work out real well so I went to kind of a secondary pattern and it ended up being pretty good," he said. "Day to day on West Point, you don't know if you're going to get any key bites and I was fortunate to have two and that's what separated me from a lot of guys."

Rather than wrestle through a high volume of spotted bass trying to cobble together a 10-pound bag, he opted to target largemouth this week.

"I'm much more comfortable fishing for largemouth," he said. "I saw we had high water coming into the event and I figured I would try for them. Back home where we have some big spots, I might be okay fishing for them, but the biggest one here is like a 3-pounder."

The highlight of his day came around 11 a.m. when he "got one key bite that clued me in on the secondary pattern," he said. "From there, the bulk of my fish came that way. I stuck with the same general areas, but just changed (baits)."

He totaled about 10 keepers and saw a good bit of the lake today, a trend he expects to carry through the event.

"West Point is not the type of lake where you can win off one or two spots," he said. "Once you establish a pattern it can change from day to day, even hour to hour."

3rd: Pace Grinded it Out

> Day 1: 5, 14-02

When asked to break up his day into highlights and low points, Pace said, "a lot of my day was a low point."

Still, the Mississippian was able to scrounge up five quality bites that have him in the Top 5 after day 1 for the second straight event.

"It was definitely a grind," he said. "I just got fortunate and got five good bites. I scrambled around and caught them several different ways."

While he thinks there is potential for a decent pattern to develop out of what he's doing, he'd be fine junk-fishing the rest of the way.

"This lake is notorious for being that way," he added.

He caught six keepers and weighed in all largemouth.

"The lake fished somewhat different from practice," he said. "I thought the fish would be more aggressive with the conditions we had. Actually, they seemed more sluggish."

4th: Patience Pays Off for Martens

> Day 1: 5, 13-05

As Martens stalked a bass still hovering around a nest today, he had a front-row seat to see several others he had marked get picked off by fellow competitors.

"I had enough fish for 3 days lined up," he said, "and they're disappearing as fast as I found them. I watched Skeet catch a good one I had found, but I don't think he was looking at it. He was just casting and it bit."

The fish Martens was working on was a 4 1/2-pounder and it took him every bit of 90 minutes, but he got it in the boat.

"I was starting to second-guess myself, but from there I caught them pretty easy," he said. "I caught another one 10 minutes after that and then another 20 minutes later. It was torture for a while."

He's keen to the notion that chasing bed fish may not hold up all tournament, but he knows it's one of his best chances to catch a difference-maker.

"Tomorrow, I might go fishing in the morning and try to get some in the boat first and then check out more waypoints I had," he said. "It's definitely a lot harder now. The water temperature came down 4 or 5 degrees."

6th: Robinson Pleasantly Surprised

> Day 1: 5, 12-10

Marty Robinson thought his weight would've put him much further down the leaderboard, but much to his surprise he finds himself one decent bite out of the lead.

"I'm surprised to be where I'm at," he said. "I thought I'd be down around 40th or 50th."

He spent a good bit of practice searching the shallows for spawners and in turn didn't have the most productive tournament preparation.

"Practice was real tough," he said. "I had just a few bites each day. I was looking a good bit for bedders and cruisers. I found a couple on beds and when I went to them today, they'd packed up and left. I guess it was the dropping water and the fact that it's warmed up."

He targeted post-spawners in areas where he'd seen fish all week. He said he made between 15 and 20 stops throughout the day and caught 11 keepers. He weighed in all largemouth.

"The highlight for me was going down a stretch a catching a 4-pounder that helped me cull out a 1-pound spot," he said. "That was a big upgrade for me."

He noted the water temperature, which had been climbing into the upper 70s earlier in the week, only reached 72 in the locales he fished.

"I think everybody's going to struggle to repeat their weights. It's hard to go back and catch them again. There are only a few fish in those main areas. You're going to have to run into something new or different."

58th (tie): Changes In Store for Ashmore

> Day 1: 5, 6-07

Scott Ashmore had a good feeling about the first area he pulled into this morning. He left it without a fish. By 10:30, he'd managed to catch a limit, but got little else the rest of the day.

"After that first area, I made a move to another spot in the same general area and caught a 3-pounder," he said. "It was around where I'd caught a 6 1/2 yesterday so I went and did that pattern for a while. I'm going to swing big tomorrow and focus on that. I won't even chase the little guys unless I have to. It's not that I was fishing for them today. That's just what bit."

The way he sees it, the morning shad spawn has faded significantly and it's impacted the predictability of where the fish will be.

"I really think this place has a lot to do with the shad spawn," he said. "They're not on docks and they're not on the riprap. I'm not really confused. I just think that's the main situation. The last time we were here, they were going on just about every dock and some of the areas that were good last time are full of stripers now. The bass just don't want to be around those areas now."

He's hoping tomorrow's new round of weather could activate a bunch of fish.

"I want it to rain or do something different," he said. "Sooner or later, they have to eat."

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 100 anglers, 69 limits, 13 fours, 9 threes, 8 twos, 1 one.

Weather Forecast

> Fri., May 3 – Cloudly, Rain Likely - 67°/58°
- Wind: From the E at 10 to 15 mph

> Sat., May 4 – Showers - 63°/48°
- Wind: From the E at 10 to 20 mph

> Sun., May 5 – Morning Rain - 69°/49°
- Wind: From the ENE at 10 to 16 mph

Day 1 Standings

1. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 5, 15-14 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 15-14

2. Greg Vinson -- Wetumpka, AL -- 5, 15-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 15-10

3. Cliff Pace -- Petal, MS -- 5, 14-02 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 14-02

4. Aaron Martens -- Leeds, AL -- 5, 13-05 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 13-05

5. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 5, 13-00 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 13-00

6. Marty Robinson -- Lyman, SC -- 5, 12-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 12-10

7. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, OK -- 4, 12-10 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 12-10

8. Hank Cherry -- Maiden, NC -- 5, 12-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 12-04

9. Brandon Palaniuk -- Rathdrum, ID -- 5, 11-05 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 11-05

10. Cliff Crochet -- Pierre Part, LA -- 3, 10-13 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 10-13

11. Andy Montgomery -- Blacksburg, SC -- 5, 10-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 10-07

12. John Crews -- Salem, VA -- 4, 10-06 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 10-06

13. Dean Rojas -- Lake Havasu City, AZ -- 5, 10-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 10-04

14. Mark Davis -- Mount Ida, AR -- 5, 09-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-12

15. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, TX -- 5, 09-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-11

16. Davy Hite -- Ninety Six, SC -- 5, 09-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-09

17. David Walker -- Sevierville, TN -- 5, 09-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-07

18. Cliff Prince -- Palatka, FL -- 5, 09-05 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-05

19. Ish Monroe -- Hughson, CA -- 5, 09-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 09-04

20. Casey D Ashley -- Donalds, SC -- 5, 08-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-15

20. Boyd Duckett -- Demopolis, AL -- 5, 08-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-15

22. Jami Fralick -- Martin, SD -- 5, 08-14 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-14

23. Chris Zaldain -- San Jose, CA -- 5, 08-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-12

24. Pete Ponds -- Madison, MS -- 5, 08-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-11

24. Brian Snowden -- Reeds Spring, MO -- 5, 08-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-11

26. Derek Remitz -- Grant, AL -- 5, 08-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-10

26. Fred Roumbanis -- Bixby, OK -- 5, 08-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-10

28. Gary Klein -- Weatherford, TX -- 5, 08-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-07

29. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 5, 08-06 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-06

30. James Niggemeyer -- Van, TX -- 5, 08-05 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-05

31. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 5, 08-03 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-03

32. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 5, 08-01 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-01

33. Morizo Shimizu -- Osaka, Japan -- 5, 08-00 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-00

33. Nate Wellman -- Newaygo, MI -- 5, 08-00 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 08-00

35. Scott Rook -- Little Rock, AR -- 5, 07-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-15

35. Terry Scroggins -- San Mateo, FL -- 5, 07-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-15

37. Chris Lane -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 07-14 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-14

38. Kevin Hawk -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 07-13 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-13

38. Rick Morris -- Lake Gaston, VA -- 5, 07-13 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-13

40. Kurt Dove -- Del Rio, TX -- 5, 07-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-12

40. Edwin Evers -- Talala, OK -- 5, 07-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-12

40. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 5, 07-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-12

43. Rick Clunn -- Ava, MO -- 5, 07-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-11

43. Clark Reehm -- Shreveport, LA -- 5, 07-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-11

45. Billy McCaghren -- Mayflower, AR -- 5, 07-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-10

46. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, TX -- 5, 07-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-09

47. Timmy Horton -- Muscle Shoals, AL -- 5, 07-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-07

48. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 5, 07-06 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-06

49. Mike McClelland -- Bella Vista, AR -- 5, 07-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-04

50. Kevin Short -- Mayflower, AR -- 4, 07-04 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 07-04

51. Jared Lintner -- Arroyo Grande, CA -- 3, 07-04 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 07-04

52. John Murray -- Phoenix, AZ -- 5, 07-03 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-03

53. Kenyon Hill -- Norman, OK -- 5, 07-01 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-01

54. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 5, 07-00 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 07-00

55. Shaw E Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL -- 5, 06-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-15

56. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 5, 06-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-09

56. Chad Pipkens -- Holt, MI -- 5, 06-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-09

58. Scott Ashmore -- Broken Arrow, OK -- 5, 06-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-07

58. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 5, 06-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-07

60. Britt Myers -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 5, 06-06 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-06

61. Kotaro Kiriyama -- Moody, AL -- 5, 06-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-04

61. David Smith -- Del City, OK -- 5, 06-04 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-04

63. Michael Simonton -- Fremont, OH -- 2, 06-04 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 06-04

64. Jason Quinn -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 5, 06-03 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 06-03

65. Bobby Lane -- Lakeland, FL -- 4, 06-03 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 06-03

65. Gerald Swindle -- Warrior, AL -- 4, 06-03 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 06-03

67. Randy Howell -- Springville, AL -- 4, 06-00 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 06-00

68. Kelly Jordon -- Palestine, TX -- 4, 05-13 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 05-13

69. Brent Chapman -- Lake Quivira, KS -- 5, 05-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-12

69. Jonathon VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 5, 05-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-12

71. James Elam -- Tulsa, OK -- 5, 05-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-11

71. Casey Scanlon -- Lenexa, KS -- 5, 05-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-11

71. Jeremy Starks -- Scott Depot, WV -- 5, 05-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-11

74. Matt Herren -- Trussville, AL -- 5, 05-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-10

74. Keith Poche -- Pike Road, AL -- 5, 05-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-10

76. Jeff Kriet -- Ardmore, OK -- 5, 05-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-09

76. Dennis Tietje -- Roanoke, LA -- 5, 05-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-09

78. Fletcher Shryock -- Newcomerstown, OH -- 5, 05-08 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 05-08

79. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 4, 05-07 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 05-07

80. Jared Miller -- Norman, OK -- 3, 05-07 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 05-07

81. BJ Haseotes -- Centerville, MA -- 4, 05-06 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 05-06

81. Kelley Jaye -- Dadeville, AL -- 4, 05-06 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 05-06

83. J Todd Tucker -- Moultrie, GA -- 4, 05-03 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 05-03

84. Bradley Roy -- Lancaster, KY -- 3, 05-03 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 05-03

85. Stephen Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 5, 04-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 04-15

86. Chip Porche -- Bixby, OK -- 3, 04-14 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 04-14

87. Alton Jones -- Lorena, TX -- 4, 04-12 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 04-12

87. Russ Lane -- Prattville, AL -- 4, 04-12 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 04-12

89. Ott DeFoe -- Knoxville, TN -- 3, 04-06 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 04-06

90. Yusuke Miyazaki -- Forney, TX -- 2, 04-01 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 04-01

91. Jason Christie -- Park Hill, OK -- 2, 04-00 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 04-00

92. Jamie Horton -- Centerville, AL -- 3, 03-10 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 03-10

93. Zell Rowland -- Montgomery, TX -- 2, 03-03 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 03-03

94. Charlie Hartley -- Grove City, OH -- 3, 03-00 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 03-00

95. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, FL -- 2, 02-12 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 02-12

96. Brandon Card -- Caryville, TN -- 2, 02-08 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 02-08

97. Kevin Ledoux -- Choctaw, OK -- 3, 02-07 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 02-07

98. Grant Goldbeck -- Boerne, TX -- 2, 02-03 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 02-03

99. Paul Elias -- Laurel, MS -- 2, 02-01 -- 0
Day 1: 2, 02-01

100. Josh Bertrand -- Gilbert, AZ -- 1, 01-03 -- 0
Day 1: 1, 01-03