Wendlandt's 19-09 Pushes Him To The Top

By BassFan Staff

When Clark Wendlandt won last year's event at the Potomac River, it marked his first FLW Tour victory in 14 years. He might not have to wait nearly so long for his next triumph.

The veteran from Texas caught a 19-09 sack on Saturday to take over the lead at Lake Hartwell with a 3-day total of 52-09. Only day-2 leader John Cox will be within 5 1/2 pounds of him when the final day gets under way.

Cox boxed 14-03 for a 51-04 aggregate – just 1-05 off the pace. Then it's a fairly steep drop down to day-1 leader Darrel Robertson, who's 3rd with 12-04 after sacking 47-01 on day 3.

Larry Nixon, who was 3rd after each of the first 2 days, dropped to 4th with a 12-10 bag that gave him a 46-07 total. Bryan Thrift regained the No. 5 position he'd held after day 1 as he caught 15-02 to push his total to 46-04.

Here are the totals for the 10 anglers who'll compete on the final day (red numbers in parentheses indicate their deficit margin from the leader):

1. Clark Wendlandt: 52-09
2. John Cox: 51-04 (1-05)
3. Darrel Robertson: 47-01 (5-08)
4. Larry Nixon: 46-07 (6-02)
5. Bryan Thrift: 46-04 (6-05)
6. (tie) Powell Kemp: 45-05 (7-04)
6. (tie) Cory Johnston: 45-05 (7-04)
8. Jeff Gustafson: 45-03 (7-06)
9. Peter Thliveros: 44-14 (7-11)
10. Jamie Horton: 44-13 (7-12)

The rain that was forecast for the Anderson, S.C. area never really materialized. The dominant conditions were mostly gray skies and a relatively stiff, swirling wind – neither of which are beneficial for sight-fishing. Nonetheless, quite a few active spawners came to the scale once again as all 20 competitors weighed limits.

Kemp (15-13 on day 2), Johnston (15-02) and Gustafson (15-12) moved into the Top 10. Twenty percent of the final-day field will consist of Canadians, as Johnston and Gustafson both reside north of the U.S. border.

That trio supplanted Blake Smith (4th to 16th with 9-10 today), Anthony Gagliardi (7th to 14th, 12-00) and reigning Angler of the Year (AOY) Scott Martin.

Wendlandt Winging It

> Day 3: 5, 19-09 (15, 52-09)

Wendlandt's stringer was the best of the day by more than 3 1/2 pounds – a margin that would be even greater had he not lost a 6-pounder.

"I'm just kind of flying by the seat of my pants, which is what I've been doing all week," the three-time AOY said. "I'm trying not to repeat water very much and I'm just going fishing. It's a huge lake and I just pulled into the right areas today."

He went through seven or eight keepers, some of which he caught off beds and others on conventional casts. His biggest was a 4 1/2-pound largemouth and he had a spotted bass that was nearly that size.

He doesn't plan any major changes to his routine for the final day.

"Anybody could catch 20 pounds pretty easy, but you've got to have a good day to do it. I'd be pretty content if I could catch 16 or 17, but I could weigh 14 real easy, too.

"It's all about bumping into the right fish, making the right cast and getting the right bite. It's not like I'm catching 25 3-pounders every day."

2nd: Cox will Switch Gears

> Day 3: 5, 14-03 (15, 51-04)

Cox launched with the idea that he had 17 or 18 pounds worth of bed-fish to exploit on day 2, but he managed to catch only one of them.

"Today sucked," he said. "It was just hell. All those fish I found yesterday, the wind blew right in on them, and they were deeper beds – about 20 feet off the bank. I had one on the calmer side, and that was the one I caught.

"Of the others I caught, two were swimming around like crazy, maybe 10 feet off the bed. I had to spend 40 minutes to an hour to catch them."

He may end up scrapping that program and fishing memories on the final day.

"I think we're going to have cooler weather tomorrow, so I might hit some stuff where I jacked them last time (in 2014). I caught one 4-pound and as I was reeling in, I could see five more with it.

"If the weather gets right and it does feel like it's warming up, maybe I'll go look. But I think it's just going to feel cold all day."

He has a target weight in mind.

"I think 18 pounds would get it done for sure, but I'm shooting for about 17. I need to catch some 3-pounders and maybe get lucky and get a big one.

"The stuff I'm fishing tomorrow, if they get in it, I should be able to stroke them. I'll just have to be patient with them."

3rd: Robertson Missed a Couple

> Day 3: 5, 12-04

Roberstson's weight was down 2 pounds from day 2 and more than 8 pounds from day 1.

"The fishing really wasn't any worse than yesterday, but I had a couple bites I didn't catch," he said. "I should've had 14 or 15 pounds again. Now it's to the point where I have to catch a big stringer tomorrow.

"I kind of messed up and spent most of the day on places I've been fishing. Most of the ones I caught were while I was traveling, looking for new stuff."

He spent about half the day sight-fishing and the other half casting.

"I found just lots and lots of little fish. They might've helped me by 2, 3 or 4 ounces, but I wasn't jacking with them. I needed ones that would help me by a pound or 2.

"What I need to do tomorrow is find some new places that have 4-pounders. I'll have to catch a 20-pound bag to win it because I'm sure Clark will catch at least 14. But I'm just as good-looking as I was the first day and I did it then, so maybe I can do it again."

4th: Nixon's Quality Down

> Day 3: 5, 12-10 (15, 46-07)

Nixon got plenty of bites, but their quality was lacking.

"I caught more fish today than I had on any other day in practice or the tournament, but the size has gone downhill," he said. "Those bigger spots (pre-spawners that he'd been catching from points) are all going to the beds and I'm not going to look for them – that's just not me."

His bag contained four spots – one of which was a 3 1/2-pounder – and a largemouth. He lost one that stopped a spinnerbait cold, but he thinks it might've been a catfish.

"Tomorrow I'll spend some time in the pockets, pitching to dock corners and places where they spawn. I culled two doing that this afternoon.

"I'll tie on a Senko and a shaky-head and see what I can catch. Another big sack (such as the 19-04 he caught on day 1) is possible, but it's going to be hard. I'll switch areas and go somewhere I haven't fished, and that'll give me a little more confidence and help me slow down."

5th: Solid Day for Thrift

> Day 3: 5, 15-02 (15, 46-04)

Thrift regained the four places in the standings he'd lost the previous day.

"I did the same think I've done all week – throw that 4-inch (Damiki) stinger around and hope something bites it," he said.

He went through about 10 keepers, including a 3 3/4-pounder. He farmed one bite, but thinks he later caught that fish (a 3-pounder).

Two of his weigh-in fish came via the sight-fishing route.

"I'll try some more of that tomorrow, or at least stay real shallow," he said. "Catching enough to win will be really hard. Clark's got about a 6-pound lead on me, so I probably wouldn't be comfortable with anything less than 25."

6th: Kemp Looking Hard

> Day 3: 5, 15-13 (15, 45-05)

Kemp, a resident of neighboring North Carolina, is on his maiden visit to Hartwell. He'll leave with the best finish of his 2-year pro career (his previous high was a 32nd last year at Lewis Smith Lake).

"Everything I've actually weighed in has come from sight-fishing except for one," he said. "It's something I love to do."

He boated about 15 keepers, the best of which weighed 5 pounds.

"I think some new fish are moving up in certain areas of the lake. I also might gamble a little tomorrow and maybe try some topwater stuff. I really don't know what I'm going to do."

18th: Martin Gambled and Lost

> Day 3: 5, 10-13 (15, 41-10)

Martin bowed out of the event with his seventh straight finish of 23rd or better in regular-season events.

"I found enough fish in practice to make the Top 20, but I knew I had to do something else today because I literally had none left to catch this morning," he said. "I made some adjustments and started fishing some docks and windy points and just experimented a lot and I caught a few on a LiveTarget crankbait and a worm on a shaky-head. Then at 11 o'clock I went sight-fishing in the same general area I'd been in, but I didn't find any.

"It didn't matter to me whether I finished 11th or 18th. To win, I knew I had to develop something else to put myself in that position. I caught fish, but I didn't quite get it dialed in."

He got a quality bite each day on a prototype LiveTarget swimbait that doesn't have a name yet.

"I'd see fish blow up on shad and I'd cast that thing over and catch one. I had a good one on today, but it pulled off."

Notable

> Day 3 stats – 20 anglers, 20 limits.

Weather Forecast

> Sun., March 20 – P.M. Showers - 58°/36°
- Wind: From the NNE at 8 mph

Day 3 Standings

1. Clark Wendlandt -- Leander, Tx -- 17 - 9 (5) -- 15 - 7 (5) -- 33 - 0 (10) -- 19 - 9 (5) -- 52 - 9 (15)

2. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 16 - 12 (5) -- 20 - 5 (5) -- 37 - 1 (10) -- 14 - 3 (5) -- 51 - 4 (15)

3. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 20 - 6 (5) -- 14 - 7 (5) -- 34 - 13 (10) -- 12 - 4 (5) -- 47 - 1 (15)

4. Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ar -- 19 - 4 (5) -- 14 - 9 (5) -- 33 - 13 (10) -- 12 - 10 (5) -- 46 - 7 (15)

5. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, NC -- 18 - 3 (5) -- 12 - 15 (5) -- 31 - 2 (10) -- 15 - 2 (5) -- 46 - 4 (15)

6. Cory Johnston -- Cavan, On -- 13 - 4 (5) -- 16 - 15 (5) -- 30 - 3 (10) -- 15 - 2 (5) -- 45 - 5 (15)

7. Powell Kemp -- Scotland Neck, NC -- 14 - 0 (5) -- 15 - 8 (5) -- 29 - 8 (10) -- 15 - 13 (5) -- 45 - 5 (15)

8. Jeff Gustafson -- Keewatin, On -- 16 - 9 (5) -- 12 - 14 (5) -- 29 - 7 (10) -- 15 - 12 (5) -- 45 - 3 (15)

9. Peter Thliveros -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 15 - 5 (5) -- 16 - 13 (5) -- 32 - 2 (10) -- 12 - 12 (5) -- 44 - 14 (15)

10. Jamie Horton -- Centerville, Al -- 19 - 12 (5) -- 11 - 8 (5) -- 31 - 4 (10) -- 13 - 9 (5) -- 44 - 13 (15)

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on day 4.

11. Matt Arey -- Shelby, Nc -- 14 - 14 (5) -- 14 - 8 (5) -- 29 - 6 (10) -- 15 - 6 (5) -- 44 - 12 (15) -- $12,000

12. Chris Johnston -- Peterborough, On -- 14 - 3 (5) -- 16 - 10 (5) -- 30 - 13 (10) -- 13 - 2 (5) -- 43 - 15 (15) -- $12,000

13. Jeff Sprague -- Point, Tx -- 17 - 1 (5) -- 12 - 9 (5) -- 29 - 10 (10) -- 14 - 4 (5) -- 43 - 14 (15) -- $12,000

14. Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, SC -- 12 - 2 (5) -- 19 - 8 (5) -- 31 - 10 (10) -- 12 - 0 (5) -- 43 - 10 (15) -- $12,000

15. Scott Suggs -- Alexander, Ar -- 12 - 8 (5) -- 17 - 3 (5) -- 29 - 11 (10) -- 13 - 8 (5) -- 43 - 3 (15) -- $12,000

16. Capt Blake Smith -- Lakeland, Fl -- 18 - 2 (5) -- 15 - 4 (5) -- 33 - 6 (10) -- 9 - 10 (5) -- 43 - 0 (15) -- $12,000

17. Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga -- 14 - 15 (5) -- 15 - 9 (5) -- 30 - 8 (10) -- 12 - 0 (5) -- 42 - 8 (15) -- $12,000

18. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fl -- 17 - 4 (5) -- 13 - 9 (5) -- 30 - 13 (10) -- 10 - 13 (5) -- 41 - 10 (15) -- $12,000

19. Tony Davis -- Williston, Fl -- 12 - 9 (5) -- 16 - 13 (5) -- 29 - 6 (10) -- 11 - 8 (5) -- 40 - 14 (15) -- $12,500

20. Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Tx -- 13 - 1 (5) -- 16 - 8 (5) -- 29 - 9 (10) -- 9 - 7 (5) -- 39 - 00 (15) -- $12,000