Kendrick Camped On Bridge, May Not Return

By BassFan Staff

After dropping his weigh-in bag containing one fish onto the scale today, a dejected FLW Tour pro Derrick Blake muttered something that pretty much summed up how many of his competitors were feeling after day 1 of the Lake Guntersville FLW Tour.

“You ever done one of those 1,000-piece puzzles,” Blake asked. “That’s what my brain looks like right now.”

To some like Blake, whose only fish weighed 3-06, Guntersville still looks like a jumbled mess. To others, like Jay Kendrick, the pieces fell perfectly into place on day 1 of the season opener.

Kendrick, who hails from nearby Grant, Ala., and has won at Guntersville before (2015 Southeastern FLW Series), was among the first boats to blast off today and he spent most of his day casting around a causeway. He came back with 25-12, which put him atop the leaderboard with a 3 1/2-pound cushion. Thinking he may have exhausted the spot today, he said he's unlikely to go back to it again as there were several other competitors nearby.

Kendrick was one of just six anglers to surpass the 20-pound threshold at a lake that’s capable of producing 30-plus pound sacks. With the bass scattered all over the lake in their winter phase and cooler weather on the way this weekend, Kendrick’s day-1 effort may be the best the lake has to offer at this point.

“I’ve been feeling good about this one since they announced it at the Cup (last year),” Kendrick said. “Since then, I’ve been nothing but excited about it. I get to sleep in my own bed and it meant so much to have my friends and family here who stood in the rain to watch me weigh in five fish.”

Mark Rose is Kendrick’s closest challenger as the Tennessee River ace sacked 22-04. He’s followed by Texan Stephen Patek, who caught 21-04. Bryan Thrift, who finished a miserable 132nd in last year’s season opener at Lake Okeechobee, caught 20-13 today and is in 4th.

Todd Hollowell bagged 20-12 to round out the Top 5. He’s 3 ounces ahead of 67-year-old Larry Nixon, who is coming off quadrule-bypass heart surgery last August. Nixon had a day-best 8-06 kicker anchoring his 20-09 bag.

Here's a look at the Top 10 after the first day of competition with the deficit margin from Kendrick indicated by red numbers in parentheses:

1. Jay Kendrick: 25-12
2. Mark Rose: 22-04 (3-08)
3. Stephen Patek: 21-04 (4-08)
4. Bryan Thrift: 20-13 (4-15)
5. Todd Hollowell: 20-12 (5-00)
6. Larry Nixon: 20-09 (5-03)
7. Jordan Osborne: 19-10 (6-02)
8 (tie). Clark Reehm: 18-12 (7-00)
8 (tie). Cody Meyer: 18-12 (7-00)
10. Andy Morgan: 18-09 (7-03)

There were 66 limits caught today out of 165 pros and 31 pros caught 1 or zero bass, a testament to how challenging the lake is setting up right now. Scott Martin, the current No. 1-ranked angler in the BassFan World Rankings, caught 6-08 and is in 109th place. John Cox, last year’s Forrest Wood Cup winner, weighed in just one fish for 5-12 and is in 125th.

Things can turn around quickly at Guntersville, though. As spread out as the fish seem to be, the lake is still brimming with 6- and 7-pounders and one or two of those can certainly shift the momentum. Water temperatures remained consistent from Tuesday, but a steady rain Thursday afternoon was set to taper off this evening in advance of cooler temperatures moving in for Friday, when the high is supposed to be 45.

The field will be reduced to the Top 20 after Friday and then cut to the Top 10 after Saturday’s competition. The 10 finalists will compete Sunday with the winner being determined by highest cumulative weight.

Kendrick Ready to Move On

> Day 1: 5, 25-12

Kendrick came into day 1 trying to temper his optimism. On a lake where he has a lot of history, it would’ve been easy to get spun out running around to waypoint after waypoint. He kept his expectations to a minimum and wound up surprising himself.

“Honestly, I didn’t have a lot of expectations,” he said. “I didn’t want to set myself up like that. Here I just go out and fish. If I catch ‘em, I catch ‘em. If I don’t, I get beat. I never go out expecting to catch 25. If you have nothing at 11 a.m., that can mess with your head. The first time I looked at a clock today it was noon.”

By then, he had four fish in the boat, all caught from a causeway that proved to have an ample population of bass around it. He eventually ceded the area to other competitors who he said had been respectful.

“Everybody was super,” he said. “I had a couple guys get fairly close at one point and I asked them to give me some room. I felt they were respectful. I tried my best to do what’s right. They gave me some room to work.”

He said he didn’t spend any significant time in practice looking around the bridges and causeways.

“I didn’t know if I could catch them or not,” he said. “I thought I saw what I needed to see on the last day of practice. I never practiced on them. They’re either there or they’re not. I can usually just idle through and see if they’re set up in a way I think I can catch them. Not like every bridge is loaded. It’s more complicated than just pulling up and catching them.”

Surprisingly, he doesn’t anticipate going back to where he caught them this morning on Friday.

“I won’t go back there,” he added. “That was a one-stop shop. I may not fish another bridge (this week). I feel like I burned it up today. There were other people there that saw me catch fish. I was boat 4 today and I’m like boat 156 tomorrow so I’m sure there will be people already there.

“I have some other stuff. I only fished two places today. I ran out of time to go elsewhere. I know I can catch them at other places.”

2nd: Rose Junked Around

> Day 1: 5, 22-04

Rose wasn’t too happy with how he started his season a few weeks ago at the Harris Chain Bassmaster Southern Open (158th-place finish), but he was pretty enthused by how his FLW Tour season got going today.

He junk-fished his way around Guntersville and tallied about 10 keeper bites.

“I’m very pleased,” he said. “I had a so-so practice so today was a good day. It’s the kind of start you want to try to get off to.”

He fished a variety of cover (grass, rock, wood, bluffs and docks) and had a 6-pounder anchoring his bag.

“I scratched and clawed and caught one here and there,” he said, adding he caught fish on at least five different baits. “I’d just run around and fish what looked good.

“It’s about 4 degrees from busting wide open. If we could get some stable, warm nights, which we won’t see this week, this fishery is so good that even with below ideal conditions we’re still catching good fish. It could be lights out if the water were 5 degrees warmer.”

He hopes to expand on what he found today, but will have to adjust to what the conditions are in the morning.

“It’s hard to say you have it figured out because we’re going to have a different weather day,” he noted. “The weather is changing pretty drastically each day. They won’t act the same tomorrow so we’ll have to make adjustments.”

3rd: Patek Likes What He Found

> Day 1: 5, 21-04

Patek is fishing Guntersville for just the second time and today went considerably better than his practice session.

“I had a horrible practice,” he said. “I literally had three bites in three days. I definitely wasn’t expecting what I ended up with today.”

The three bites in practice all came in the same area, so that’s where he started today.

“The fish got bigger,” he quipped. “There were a few other guys around, but they’re not fishing the spot where I caught four of my fish. It’s a pretty big area and I know there’s a bunch of fish there so it’s a matter of getting them to bite.”

He boated two 5-pounders right away, but then endured a lull. After leaving to check a different spot, he returned and caught a 4-pounder and a 3 1/2-ounder in the same vicinity. He left again and came back toward the end of the day and finished off his limit.

“They all came on one bait,” he said. “I’ve tried two things, but only one thing is working.”

He plans to spend all day Friday in the same spot for obvious reasons.

“I have no choice,” he said. “I have nothing else found. I feel like the fish are coming to that area. I just hope it reloads. We’ll see. It’s not a very big spot, but there’s bait in there, there are crappie there and the birds are working. There’s life in there.”

4th: Grass Was Key for Thrift

> Day 1: 5, 20-13

Today was a garden variety tournament day for Thrift. He fished 30 to 40 spots, picking off fish “one here and one there,” and ultimately found himself near the top of the standings.

“Today greatly exceeded my expectations,” he said. “I caught fish off stuff I practiced on and other stuff I hadn’t practiced on. It was definitely a run-and-gun sort of day.”

Thrift said it’s hard to get zeroed in on one pattern with the fish so spread out. He did reveal all of his fish were grass related today.

“They’re scattered everywhere and that what’s making it hard to say what’s actually happening,” he said. “I’m still going to run around everywhere and fish a little of everything. I think they’re constantly moving.”

5th: Patience Paid Off For Hollowell

> Day 1: 5, 20-12

Hollowell was in the later flight today so he didn’t have the pick of areas to start on. He bided his time and caught the majority of his weight later in the day.

“I didn’t get on what I wanted to,” he said. “All of the choice locations were covered so I scrambled for a while. It’s just wintertime fishing. They don’t feed all day. You can go through a place and not get a bite, then come back 3 hours later and catch 20 pounds.”

He junk-fished all day and eventually got into a groove.

“I made three or four good stops in the last half of the day where I caught some 3- to 5-pounders,” he said. “It’s random for me. I fished some grass, docks, rock, bridges, laydowns – anything I feel like would hold a bass I made casts to it. I figured if I do that enough through the course of a day, I’ll run into some.”

He had six bites all day, but doesn’t feel like he learned enough today to start narrowing down his patterns for tomorrow.

“I wish I could say yes and have a clue that will lead me in the direction of winning,” he said. “I’m just thankful I got the bites I got. I’m going to scratch and claw and keep casting where I know they want to be.”

125th: Two Bites for Cox

> Day 1: 1, 5-12

Cox says he’s never gotten into a groove at Guntersville and today was no different.

“I had two areas I thought I could fish around and grind on ‘em and catch five,” he said. “My co-angler had three bites, I had 2. One was nearly 6 that I caught and the other was nearly 5.”

He concentrated on areas where he felt fish were migrating through en route to or from grass flats in 5 to 8 feet of water. His only fish came on a jerkbait after he saw birds diving for bait. He remains optimistic about making a big improvement on Friday.

“I might come out and bust a big bag,” he said. “You just don’t know with it being so early. I wanted to do better, of course. It was a rough day. You’re going to have rough days. Toward the end of the day, I realized that maybe I shouldn’t have been fishing one spot. It’s not fishing like it’s pre-spawn. These fish are wintering and chasing shad.”

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 165 anglers, 66 limits, 18 fours, 22 threes, 28 twos, 21 ones, 10 zeroes.

> Billy McCaghren, making his FLW Tour debut today after seven seasons with the Bassmaster Elite Series, said on stage that his father underwent quadruple-bypass surgery today and tournament officials allowed him to take a phone call from his wife to advise him the surgery was a success.

Weather Forecast

> Fri., Feb. 3 – Chance of Rain - 51°/36°
- Wind: From the NNW at 5 to 10 mph

> Sat., Feb. 4 – Partly Cloudy - 57°/46°
- Wind: From the ENE at 5 to 10 mph

> Sun., Feb. 5 – Rain - 59°/46°
- Wind: From the SW at 8 to 12 mph

Day 1 Standings

1. Jay Kendrick -- Grant, Al -- 25--12 (5)

2. Mark Rose -- West Memphis, Ar -- 22--4 (5)

3. Stephen Patek -- Dallas, Tx -- 21--4 (5)

4. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, NC -- 20--13 (5)

5. Todd Hollowell -- Fishers, In -- 20--12 (5)

6. Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ar -- 20--9 (5)

7. Jordan Osborne -- Longview, Tx -- 19--10 (3)

8. Clark Reehm -- Huntington, Tx -- 18--12 (5)

9. Cody Meyer -- Auburn, Ca -- 18--10 (5)

10. Andy Morgan -- Dayton, Tn -- 18--9 (5)

11. David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va -- 18--9 (5)

12. Justin Atkins -- Florence, Al -- 18--8 (5)

13. Shinichi Fukae -- Palestine, Tx -- 18--4 (5)

14. Barry Wilson -- Birmingham, Al -- 18--2 (5)

15. Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Tx -- 17--11 (5)

16. Scott Suggs -- Alexander, Ar -- 17--10 (5)

17. Alex Davis -- Albertville, Al -- 17--7 (5)

18. Johnny McCombs -- Morris, Al -- 17--7 (5)

19. Christopher Brasher -- Longview, Tx -- 17--5 (5)

20. Michael Neal -- Dayton, Tn -- 17--4 (5)

21. Shane Lehew -- Catawba, NC -- 17--2 (5)

22. Aaron Britt -- Yuba City, Ca -- 16--11 (5)

23. Jeff Sprague -- Point, Tx -- 16--11 (4)

24. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, Fl -- 16--10 (5)

25. Scott Canterbury -- Springville, Al -- 16--8 (3)

26. Randy Blaukat -- Joplin, Mo -- 16--7 (5)

27. Blake Nick -- Trussville, Al -- 15--15 (5)

28. Scott Wiley -- Bay Minette, Al -- 15--15 (5)

29. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 15--14 (5)

30. Jeff Gustafson -- Keewatin, On -- 15--11 (5)

31. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, Md -- 15--8 (4)

32. Cory Johnston -- Cavan, On -- 15--8 (5)

33. Jeremy Lawyer -- Sarcoxie, Mo -- 15--8 (5)

34. Chris Neau -- New Orleans, La -- 15--8 (5)

35. Brandon Medlock -- Lake Placid, Fl -- 15--8 (5)

36. Andrew Upshaw -- Tulsa, Ok -- 15--5 (5)

37. Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, SC -- 15--4 (5)

38. Clark Wendlandt -- Leander, Tx -- 15--2 (5)

39. Jonathan Henry -- Grant, Al -- 14--14 (5)

40. Dennis Tietje -- Roanoke, La -- 14--13 (5)

41. Eric Jackson -- Walling, Tn -- 14--11 (5)

42. Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Mn -- 14--11 (5)

43. Zell Rowland -- Montgomery, Tx -- 14--11 (5)

44. Zack Birge -- Blanchard, Ok -- 14--10 (5)

45. Buddy Gross -- Chickamauga, Ga -- 14--10 (5)

46. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 14--10 (5)

47. Greg Bohannan -- Bentonville, Ar -- 14--9 (4)

48. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, Mn -- 14--8 (5)

49. Joshua Weaver -- Macon, Ga -- 14--7 (5)

50. Todd Auten -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 14--4 (5)

51. Jason Meninger -- Gainesville, Ga -- 14--2 (4)

52. Chris McCall -- Palmer, Tx -- 14--1 (5)

53. Dan Morehead -- Paducah, Ky -- 14--0 (5)

54. Cody Bird -- Granbury, Tx -- 13--14 (5)

55. Bradley Dortch -- Atmore, Al -- 13--14 (5)

56. Bill McDonald -- Greenwood, In -- 13--13 (3)

57. Austin Terry -- San Angelo, Tx -- 13--10 (4)

58. Pete Ponds -- Madison, Ms -- 13--9 (5)

59. Tom Monsoor -- La Crosse, Wi -- 13--9 (4)

60. Ramie Colson Jr -- Cadiz, Ky -- 13--8 (4)

61. Grae Buck -- Harleysville, Pa -- 13--5 (5)

62. Bradley Hallman -- Norman, Ok -- 13--3 (5)

63. Jt Kenney -- Palm Bay, Fl -- 13--1 (5)

64. Peter Thliveros -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 12--15 (4)

65. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 12--11 (5)

66. Bill Hutchison -- Bessemer, Al -- 12--11 (5)

67. Joseph Webster -- Fulton, Ms -- 12--11 (5)

68. Kurt Mitchell -- Milford, De -- 12--7 (5)

69. Tom Redington -- Royse City, Tx -- 12--6 (4)

70. Kyle Weisenburger -- Ottawa, Oh -- 12--6 (3)

71. Michael Wooley -- Collierville, Tn -- 12--4 (5)

72. Jimmy Reese -- Witter Springs, Ca -- 12--2 (5)

73. Kenneth (Boo) Woods -- London, Ky -- 12--1 (4)

74. Charlie Evans -- Berea, Ky -- 12--1 (5)

75. Bill Day -- Frankfort, Ky -- 11--12 (5)

76. Matthew Stefan -- Junction City, Wi -- 11--11 (5)

77. Kerry Milner -- Bono, Ar -- 11--10 (5)

78. Brian Latimer -- Belton, SC -- 11--9 (3)

79. Billy McCaghren -- Mayflower, Ar -- 11--6 (5)

80. William(Billy) Shelton Iii -- La Crosse, Va -- 11--5 (3)

81. Rob Kilby -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 11--3 (5)

82. Chris Johnston -- Peterborough, On -- 10--15 (5)

83. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 10--0 (4)

84. Chad Randles -- Elkhorn, Ne -- 10--0 (4)

85. Alvin Shaw -- Roaring Gap, NC -- 9--12 (4)

86. Lendell Martin Jr -- Nacogdoches, Tx -- 9--11 (4)

87. Rodney Thomason -- Maumelle, Ar -- 9--3 (4)

88. Jim Jones -- Big Bend, Wi -- 9--3 (3)

89. Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Ok -- 9--3 (4)

90. Mark Fisher -- Wauconda, Il -- 8--14 (4)

91. Jason Abram -- Piney Flats, Tn -- 8--10 (3)

92. Kurt Dove -- Del Rio, Tx -- 8--5 (3)

93. Kyle Cortiana -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 8--2 (3)

94. Carl Jocumsen -- Frisco, Tx -- 8--1 (3)

95. Brandon Mosley -- Choctaw, Ok -- 8--0 (2)

96. Shawn Murphy -- Nicholasville, Ky -- 8--0 (3)

97. Joe Holland -- Jefferson, Me -- 7--15 (3)

98. Curtis Richardson -- Belleville, On -- 7--12 (4)

99. Capt Blake Smith -- Lakeland, Fl -- 7--10 (2)

100. Chris Gosselaar -- Fresno, Ca -- 7--10 (3)

101. Peter Cherkas -- Des Moines, Ia -- 7--6 (3)

102. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, Tn -- 7--2 (3)

103. Luke Dunkin -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 7--0 (2)

104. Brandon Mcmillan -- Clewiston, Fl -- 6--13 (2)

105. Daryl Biron -- South Windsor, Ct -- 6--13 (2)

106. Chris Whitson -- Louisville, Tn -- 6--12 (3)

107. Jason Lambert -- Pickwick Dam, Tn -- 6--10 (2)

108. Mike Kernan -- Wylie, Tx -- 6--9 (2)

109. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fl -- 6--8 (3)

110. Terry Bolton -- Paducah, Ky -- 6--8 (2)

111. Casey Scanlon -- Lenexa, Ks -- 6--7 (2)

112. John Voyles -- Petersburg, In -- 6--7 (3)

113. Daniel Kweekul -- Bryant, Ar -- 6--7 (3)

114. Dylan Hays -- Sheridan, Ar -- 6--6 (2)

115. Jamey Caldwell -- Carthage, NC -- 6--5 (1)

116. Jay Yelas -- Corvallis, Or -- 6--5 (3)

117. Powell Kemp -- Scotland Neck, NC -- 6--3 (3)

118. Robert Behrle -- Hoover, Al -- 6--1 (2)

119. Jamie Horton -- Centerville, Al -- 6--0 (2)

120. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 6--0 (2)

121. Rex Huff -- Corbin, Ky -- 5--14 (2)

122. Richard Lowitzki -- Hampshire, Il -- 5--14 (2)

123. Cody Kelley -- Conway, Ar -- 5--13 (2)

124. Billy Hines -- Vacaville, Ca -- 5--13 (2)

125. Braxton Setzer -- Montgomery, Al -- 5--12 (2)

126. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 5--12 (1)

127. Bill Smith Jr -- Burlington, Ky -- 5--9 (2)

128. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, Tx -- 5--4 (2)

129. Chad Warren -- Sand Springs, Ok -- 5--3 (2)

130. Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fl -- 4--15 (2)

131. Clayton Batts -- Macon, Ga -- 4--12 (2)

132. Ron Farrow -- Rock Hill, SC -- 4--11 (2)

133. Robert Pearson -- Herndon, Va -- 4--8 (2)

134. Jeff Cannon -- Douglasville, Ga -- 4--6 (2)

135. Scott Ashmore -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 4--3 (2)

136. Chase Brooks -- Iraan, Tx -- 4--2 (2)

137. Jason Johnson -- Gainesville, Ga -- 3--14 (1)

138. Derrick Blake -- Rockwood, Tn -- 3--6 (1)

139. Dean Alexander -- Georgetown, Tx -- 3--6 (1)

140. Evan Barnes -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 3--0 (1)

141. Jim Moulton -- Merced, Ca -- 2--14 (1)

142. Bob Morin -- Seymour, Tn -- 2--13 (1)

143. Andy Young -- Mound, Mn -- 2--13 (1)

144. Drew Montgomery -- Maiden, NC -- 2--12 (1)

145. Joey Cifuentes -- Clinton, Ar -- 2--11 (1)

146. Jim Dillard -- West Monroe, La -- 2--10 (1)

147. Troy Morrow -- Eastanollee, Ga -- 2--9 (1)

148. Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga -- 2--5 (1)

149. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 2--2 (1)

150. Nick Gainey -- Charleston, SC -- 2--2 (1)

151. David Smith -- Del City, Ok -- 2--2 (1)

152. Tracy Adams -- Wilkesboro, NC -- 2--1 (1)

153. Timmy Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 2--1 (1)

154. Jeff Dobson -- Bartlesville, Ok -- 1--14 (1)

155. Keith Bryan -- Novato, Ca -- 1--14 (1)

156. Tim Frederick -- Leesburg, Fl -- 0--0 (0)

157. Wade Curtiss -- Meadow Vista, Ca -- 0--0 (0)

158. Michael McCoy -- Mentor On The Lake, Oh -- 0--0 (0)

159. Brad Knight -- Lancing, Tn -- 0--0 (0)

160. Josh Douglas -- Mound, Mn -- 0--0 (0)

161. Matt Wittekiend -- Angleton, Tx -- 0--0 (0)

162. James Watson -- Nixa, Mo -- 0--0 (0)

163. Jimmy Brewer -- Marshall, Tx -- 0--0 (0)

164. Tim McDonald -- Prestonsburg, Ky -- 0--0 (0)

165. John Devere -- Berea, Ky -- 0--0 (0)