Ashley To Be Docked 40 Minutes On Day 1

By BassFan Staff

Those hoping to catch a glimpse of Casey Ashley in action at Lake Hartwell on Friday will have to wait a few extra minutes.

Ashley, the winner of the 2015 Bassmaster Classic at Hartwell and one of the favorites again this week, will blast off 40 minutes after the rest of the field (at 8:20 a.m.) as a result of being 40 minutes late to check-in on Wednesday, which served as the official practice day.

He said he didn't update the time on his boat electronics to reflect Daylight Savings Time, so he was working off a clock that was an hour behind the actual time all day.

"It was just a dumb mistake and I'm glad it happened yesterday and not Friday," he said. "I just didn't change my GPS time for the time change. I was on Central time basically. I was just fishing along like I have 30 minutes or so left. We're so programmed to not use our phones during official days like that so I just happened to look at my phone because I hadn't seen anybody and I thought it was kind of odd. I looked at my phone and it said 4:12. I was supposed to be back at 3:40."

Ashley seemed unshaken by the prospect of being held up at the dock. At the 2015 Classic, the start of day 1 was delayed nearly two hours by weather, but Dean Rojas then had to serve a 28-minute penalty for the same reason. Rojas went on to catch 21-02 and was the day-1 leader.

So how does Ashley plan to pass the time at the dock while the rest of the 52-man field gets a head start on his home lake?

"I'll just sit there and twiddle my thumbs and let (Mark) Zona pick on me, I'm sure," he added with a laugh.

Hobbled Cox Will Compete Through the Pain

John Cox is putting off a visit to his doctor about the pain in his left foot and ankle because he's pretty sure what the response will be.

"I know they'll tell me I have to stay off of it," he said.

And that could pose a problem for someone who makes his living from the front deck of a bass boat. Sure, he can install the

Cox said he injured his foot earlier this month on the morning of the final day of competition at the Lake Seminole Southeastern FLW Series.

"I was half asleep after getting up at 4 a.m. and I was packing my boat for the day," he said. "I went to step down into the bottom of the boat and stepped on the handle of my net and fell. When I went to get back up, I fell back down because I couldn't put any weight on it. I almost threw up it hurt so bad."

He said the swelling began immediately, but he battled through it that day and wound up collecting an 8th-place finish in the weather-shortened tournament.

"I ran down the lake first thing and caught a 3-pounder and felt okay, but I could tell it was swelling," he said. "My toes were purple and there was a big knot on the side of my foot."

It couldn't have happened at a worst time as Cox was in the midst of a four-week stretch of tournaments stacked on top of each other, a stretch that culminates this week with his first Bassmaster Classic.

During the final practice session on Wednesday, he stood on the front deck for the majority of the day, wearing the Simms Challenge Mid Boat Shoe, which is similar to a high top sneaker. He has the front folding seat installed in his Crestliner and used it at last week's Lake Lanier FLW Tour, but he's going to try to battle through the discomfort for three more days at Lake Hartwell.

"Now, it's getting worse because the swelling is gone," he said. "I almost hope that I hurt it again so it swells back up and the pain kind of goes away."

Clausen: Classic Return 'Just Another Tournament'

Luke Clausen figured he'd be back in the Bassmaster Classic at some point. He just wasn't sure when.

Twelve years after his win at Lake Toho in the first springtime Classic back in 2006, Clausen finds himself back in the sport's premier event - and he's trying his hardest to treat it like just another tournament.

"I'm not sure it was a goal (to get back)," he said. "In attempting to qualify for the Elites and fishing the Elites, I was pretty confident I'd make it back."

After a solid 2017 season that saw him finish 23rd in Angler of the Year points - he started off the 2018 season with a 5th-place finish at Lake Martin - Clausen knows it's important to keep the Classic in perspective. That comes from experience as this will be his fourth career Classic (he's also competed in 10 Forrest Wood Cups).

"It's an event where emotions can ruin a guy," he said. "You start thinking about things like, 'If I win, it can change my life' or 'I don't want to suck and let people down.' It's just another tournament casting for bass. This one just has fewer guys and you're fishing for more money.

"I talked to a guy this week who's in his first Classic and he's geeked out about it. That goes away. I'm pretty sure KVD isn't out there taking pictures of billboards in the lobby. Some guys are star struck about it and some guys are also worrying about (not doing well). To me, it doesn't matter if I'm 5th or 52nd, I'm trying to win. That mentality, I hope, goes a long way. I don't really have a lot to lose here. We're going to get a paycheck either way."

He likes the timing of the Classic because its put a premium on versatility, but the venue is challenging because he competed in three different FLW Tour events at Hartwell. That history can be a double-edged sword in a high-stakes event.

"I like it this time of year because there is more change," he said. "I have no problem fishing in 40 to 4 feet. I'm a guy who's never been great at doing any one thing, but I'm pretty good at a lot of things. You just have to go on the fly and catch them different ways. I think the guy who wins will probably do different stuff as the tournament evolves.

"My performance hasn't been that great here. I've gotten a check, but have not excelled here. I actually fished for a check a lot of times and it's been hard to fish it because I have been here a fair number of times. It's easier to fish a place like Martin that I'd never been to compared to a place I've been to four times. This is more challenging. If I had a choice, I wish I'd have never been here."

Hackney Hopes to Break 'Routine' With a Win

For the Elite Series anglers competing in the Classic this week, their tournament preparation routine is much different from a typical Elite Series event.

For starters, practice is broken up into two sessions - three days a week before competition then an addition day two days ahead of the start of the tournament. Add in all the other functions and events and commitments and it can become a disjointed week real fast.

For Greg Hackney, this will be Classic number 15 and he is well-versed in keeping distractions to a minimum and maintain a semblance of normalcy to his tournament prep.

"I try as hard as possible to do my normal routine," he said. "A lot of it is not possible due to all of the functions, but I try to seclude myself from as much as possible. I'm not anti-social, but I've been to enough of these to know I don't need to be around the hoorah stuff. I'm to the point where I'm here for one thing so I try to block out the other stuff.

"There's no flow (to the week). It breaks up your routine and regardless of who it is, it has have a negative effect on some guys because we've had so many changing conditions."

The official practice day, he said, can be a blessing or a curse as he tries to hammer out a solid game plan for day 1.

"We practice so far in advance with those first three days and that Wednesday is a double-edged sword. You want to find something else, but you don't want to burn something that doesn't have time to heal for Friday. This week, I didn't go back to anything yesterday that I'd fished the first three days. I ran new stuff and stayed away from what I'd been doing."

Combs Likes Underdog Role

Last year, much of the pre-Classic hype centered on one man: Keith Combs. He tried to embrace it and harness the energy it gave him, but ultimately, the conditions did not play into his wheelhouse. He failed to make the day-3 cut and finished 35th.

"It was fun," he said, recalling last year at Lake Conroe. "Of course I wanted it to show off, but it didn't work out that way. There were chances for me to get a top 15, but I didn't want that. I wanted to win. It was always in the back of my mind to go do that, but I knew it was the wrong thing."

This week, he's enjoying being just another guy in a field of 52 as it's someone else's turn to be the favorite.

"This is nice, too, because there is no pressure," he added. "The way Conroe fishes, you could've pulled up and smashed 30 (pounds) on day 1 and you might not have gotten to fish there again. Here, I think it's more enjoyable being under the radar."