Zaldain, Reese Lead The Way After Day 1

By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor

For all the griping and groaning that went on amongst Elite Series anglers during practice this week, Kentucky Lake still seems to be in good shape.

It just took a couple guys from California to show everybody.

Chris Zaldain and Skeet Reese compare notes from time to time while on the road. It’s unknown if they fished similar patterns, but today they weighed comparable stringers as the third Elite Series event of the season got under way on the massive Tennessee River impoundment.

Zaldain, coming off a 43rd-place finish at Grand Lake last week, piled up 24-03 by 10 a.m. on a day when conditions were starkly different from what the field encountered in practice.

Reese, who has a pair of 4th-place finishes from previous Elite Series stops at Kentucky Lake, racked up 23-11.

Two Alabama pros occupy the next two spots on the leaderboard with Kelley Jaye sitting in 3rd with 22-00 while Jordan Lee, fresh off a 10th-place effort at Grand, is 4th with 21-03.

Jason Christie bounced back from the worst finish (97th) of his Elite Series career at Grand, his home lake, with a 20-13 bag, good enough for 5th.

Four other anglers eclipsed the 20-pound mark and another eight caught 19-plus.

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

1. Chris Zaldain: 24-03
2. Skeet Reese: 23-11 (0-08)
3. Kelley Jaye: 22-00 (2-03)
4. Jordan Lee: 21-03 (3-00)
5. Jason Christie: 20-13 (3-06)
6. Bobby Lane: 20-07 (3-12)
7. Gerald Swindle: 20-04 (3-15)
8. Josh Bertrand: 20-02 (4-01)
9. Paul Elias: 20-01 (4-02)
10. Jacob Powroznik: 19-13 (4-06)
11. Shaw Grigsby: 19-12 (4-07)
12 (tie). Ott DeFoe: 19-10 (4-09)
12 (tie). David Walker: 19-10 (4-09)

It was a rough start for rookie Roy Hawk, who was the points leader coming into the week. The Arizona angler is mired in 101st after bagging four fish for 7-09. Kevin VanDam, the two-time winner at Kentucky Lake who collected his 25th career Bassmaster victory a week ago, caught a 15-13 limit and sits in 47th.

After three days’ of sun and intermittent clouds for practice, the sun never made an appearance today as the wind picked up ahead of a front that’s moving in Friday evening. It’s due to rain through the night and right through Saturday with the daytime high reaching just 71 degrees. The dramatic drop in water level that frustrated anglers in practice seems to have halted, and it remains to be seen what impact Saturday’s rain will have.

The full field will compete Saturday with the top 50 advancing to Sunday. Only the top 12 after day 3 will move on to Monday when the winner will be determined by the highest cumulative weight.

No Complaints for Zaldain

> Day 1: 5, 24-03

Zaldain couldn’t have scripted a better start to the tournament and he just hopes he can maintain the pace he set, which was a carryover from practice.

“There was a lot of chatter going around about fish numbers, but I’m here to tell you these are Tennessee River fish and they are healthy and if you know what to look for you can catch them really good,” he said.

He was understandably guarded about the details of his pattern, but he said there are three ingredients he’s looking for and he’s fishing a way most others aren’t and he feels as though nobody has the bait he’s throwing.

He had four areas of the lake pinpointed coming out of practice and he only needed to lean on one of those areas today.

“Hopefully, if it’s a 4-day tournament, and it all adds up I’ll have gone through all of my stuff,” he said. “It’s a big-fish technique and I only need five bites and the hook-up ratio has been really good. I’ve only just scratched the surface of what I have.”

He feels like he’s in areas where pre-spawn bass hang out and feed before they head in to spawn and today’s weather shift played right into his hands.

“In practice, we had three days of sunny and partly cloudy and warm weather,” he said. “Today was a nice shift. A front came in and it got windy. Typically in the pre-spawn when there’s a warming trend then a dramatic change, those fish will get to feeding. It felt good to bank 24 pounds on a day like today. Tomorrow is going to be cooler and everything is changing so I banked it on a day things changed and the fish bit. It’s all about adapting.”

2nd: Reese Went to Plan B

> Day 1: 5, 23-11

Reese had to scrap his original game plan this morning when he was without at a keeper at 8 a.m., but his backup strategy involved targeting water he didn’t check in practice.

He relied on reaction baits in a spot where fish were coming and going to and from a spawning area.

“It was one of those things where I didn’t know I was going to catch 23 pounds,” he said on stage. “I really went out to get five bites and get five keepers in the boat. I caught a couple decent ones in practice, but just not a lot of them. It seemed like every one I hooked today was a big one so it was a nice thing.”

3rd: First One Set Tone for Jaye

> Day 1: 5, 22-00

Jaye was uneasy about the cloud cover today, but it didn’t seem to hamper his ability to trigger big bites. He did most of his damage with a jerkbait in 8 feet of water.

“I was kind worried about it,” he said. “I had a real good practice, but I didn’t know if the sun not being out was going to affect things. I didn’t catch the quantity I’d been catching, but I caught the same quality.”

He said the morning bite was slower, likely as a result of the clouds, which dampened the shad spawn activity that had been happening on previous days.

“The shad weren’t on top and it took me a while to get it going,” he added. “I had to stay persistent and just know the bites would come.”

His first keeper was a 5-pounder and he remained committed to what he was doing after that. He’s hopeful day 2 is just as productive.

“I caught fish on about every waypoint I had, but there were three where I caught them in practice that I didn’t get a bite on today, so hopefully those will turn on tomorrow,” he said.

4th: Audible Pays Off for Lee

> Day 1: 5, 21-03

After a tough practice, Lee wasn’t sure what to expect this morning. He went two hours without a bite, a bitter pill since he figured the early portion of the day would offer the best opportunities.

“Then I changed things and caught three off one spot, hit another similar spot and caught two more there,” he said. “I felt like I practiced wrong and I even knew it yesterday before the day was over. I went back to similar areas and didn’t try new stuff so I had to go practicing again today.”

He tallied seven keepers for the day, six of them rating as “good ones,” Lee said.

“I just happened to run into them,” he added. “I felt like I was going to zero doing what I’d been doing.”

5th: Christie Still Unsure What to Expect

> Day 1: 5, 20-13

Christie was more surprised than anything that his stringer broke the 20-pound threshold today. Practice had been rough on him and the fishing pressure in certain areas made it hard to be confident he was fishing untapped water.

“I’m really excited and surprised,” he said. “I was not getting that many bites in practice. It just so happened today that a few of the bites I got were good ones.”

He said the sour taste from a poor showing at Grand Lake last week has him keenly focused on bouncing back at the Tennessee River.

“I fished history there and thought they’d show up (to spawn) the first day of the tournament,” he said. “I didn’t make good decisions. As awesome as it is to do well in front of your home crowd it sucks just as much to stink in front of your home crowd.

“I could catch 8 pounds tomorrow. Everything worked out good today and I made good decisions and got everything in the boat. I don’t know what to expect tomorrow. It feels good to catch ‘em. I just don’t know what tomorrow will bring.”

99th: Frazier’s Flipping Plan Flopped

> Day 1: 2, 8-00

The last time Micah Frazier competed at Kentucky Lake, he finished 6th. He’ll need a monumental turnaround Saturday to have any hope of matching his outcome at BASSFest in 2015.

The Georgia pro didn’t have much to build on after a tough practice and his flipping program on the south end didn’t pan out how he’d hoped.

“I didn’t have a great practice, but I felt like found place where I could catch some,” he said. “I ran all way south and never got bite in the area I went to. Then I had to scramble and ran back up here, but never could piece anything together.”

He thinks the water receded too far for flipping to be an effective strategy where he was.

“It was pretty good in practice down there and I had concerns about it, but I still had to try it,” he added. “It was one of those deals where I didn’t have much else to go on so I had to give it a fair shake.

“I’ll just try to do better tomorrow. I’ve dug myself a hole and I have to catch a big bag to do anything. I’ll just try to salvage points at this point.”

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 108 anglers, 82 limits, 13 fours, 8 threes, 3 twos, 1 one, 1 zero.

Weather Forecast

> Sat., May 5 – Thunderstorms - 71°/53°
- Wind: From the E at 5 to 10 mph

> Sun., May 6 – Sunny - 80°/56°
- Wind: From the WNW at 5 to 10 mph

> Thurs., May 7 – Mix of sun and clouds - 76°/52°
- Wind: From the NNE at 5 to 10 mph

Day 1 Standings

1. Chris Zaldain -- Laughlin, NV -- 5, 24-03 -- 110
Day 1: 5, 24-03

2. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 5, 23-11 -- 109
Day 1: 5, 23-11

3. Kelley Jaye -- Dadeville, AL -- 5, 22-00 -- 108
Day 1: 5, 22-00

4. Jordan Lee -- Grant, AL -- 5, 21-03 -- 107
Day 1: 5, 21-03

5. Jason Christie -- Park Hill, OK -- 5, 20-13 -- 106
Day 1: 5, 20-13

6. Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL -- 5, 20-07 -- 105
Day 1: 5, 20-07

7. Gerald Swindle -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 20-04 -- 104
Day 1: 5, 20-04

8. Josh Bertrand -- San Tan Valley, AZ -- 5, 20-02 -- 103
Day 1: 5, 20-02

9. Paul Elias -- Laurel, MS -- 5, 20-01 -- 102
Day 1: 5, 20-01

10. Jacob Powroznik -- North Prince George, VA -- 5, 19-13 -- 101
Day 1: 5, 19-13

11. Shaw Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL -- 5, 19-12 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 19-12

12. Ott DeFoe -- Blaine, TN -- 5, 19-10 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 19-10

12. David Walker -- Sevierville, TN -- 5, 19-10 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 19-10

14. Cliff Pace -- Petal, MS -- 5, 19-09 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 19-09

15. Matt Lee -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 19-07 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 19-07

16. Edwin Evers -- Talala, OK -- 5, 19-06 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 19-06

16. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, TN -- 5, 19-06 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 19-06

18. Chad Pipkens -- Lansing, MI -- 5, 18-15 -- 93
Day 1: 5, 18-15

19. Jesse Wiggins -- Cullman, AL -- 5, 18-14 -- 92
Day 1: 5, 18-14

20. Jacob Wheeler -- Harrison, TN -- 5, 18-13 -- 91
Day 1: 5, 18-13

21. Bradley Roy -- Lancaster, KY -- 5, 18-10 -- 90
Day 1: 5, 18-10

22. Skylar Hamilton -- Dandridge, TN -- 5, 18-09 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 18-09

22. Alton Jones -- Lorena, TX -- 5, 18-09 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 18-09

22. Kyle Monti -- Okeechobee, FL -- 5, 18-09 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 18-09

22. Randall Tharp -- Port St. Joe, FL -- 5, 18-09 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 18-09

26. John Murray -- Spring City, TN -- 5, 18-06 -- 85
Day 1: 5, 18-06

27. Fred Roumbanis -- Russellville, AR -- 5, 17-15 -- 84
Day 1: 5, 17-15

28. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 5, 17-15 -- 83
Day 1: 5, 17-15

29. Adrian Avena -- Vineland, NJ -- 5, 17-14 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 17-14

29. Gerald Spohrer -- Gonzales, LA -- 5, 17-14 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 17-14

31. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 5, 17-04 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 17-04

31. Brent Chapman -- Lake Quivira, KS -- 5, 17-04 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 17-04

31. Paul Mueller -- Naugatuck, CT -- 5, 17-04 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 17-04

34. Jared Lintner -- Arroyo Grande, CA -- 5, 17-03 -- 77
Day 1: 5, 17-03

35. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 5, 17-01 -- 76
Day 1: 5, 17-01

36. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 5, 16-15 -- 75
Day 1: 5, 16-15

37. Brent Ehrler -- Redlands, CA -- 5, 16-14 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 16-14

37. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 5, 16-14 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 16-14

39. Brandon Card -- Knoxville, TN -- 5, 16-13 -- 72
Day 1: 5, 16-13

40. Caleb Sumrall -- New Iberia, LA -- 5, 16-08 -- 71
Day 1: 5, 16-08

41. Chris Lane -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 16-07 -- 70
Day 1: 5, 16-07

42. Andy Montgomery -- Blacksburg, SC -- 5, 16-06 -- 69
Day 1: 5, 16-06

43. Alton Jones Jr. Waco, TX -- 5, 16-04 -- 68
Day 1: 5, 16-04

43. Hunter Shryock -- Newcomerstown, OH -- 5, 16-04 -- 68
Day 1: 5, 16-04

45. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, KY -- 5, 16-00 -- 66
Day 1: 5, 16-00

46. Jake Whitaker -- Fairview, NC -- 5, 15-14 -- 65
Day 1: 5, 15-14

47. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 5, 15-13 -- 64
Day 1: 5, 15-13

48. Terry Scroggins -- San Mateo, FL -- 5, 15-11 -- 63
Day 1: 5, 15-11

49. Ish Monroe -- Hughson, CA -- 5, 15-10 -- 62
Day 1: 5, 15-10

50. Marty Robinson -- Lyman, SC -- 5, 15-08 -- 61
Day 1: 5, 15-08

51. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 5, 15-06 -- 60
Day 1: 5, 15-06

52. David Fritts -- Lexington, NC -- 5, 15-04 -- 59
Day 1: 5, 15-04

53. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 5, 15-03 -- 58
Day 1: 5, 15-03

54. Fletcher Shryock -- Dennison, OH -- 5, 15-01 -- 57
Day 1: 5, 15-01

55. Aaron Martens -- Leeds, AL -- 5, 14-14 -- 56
Day 1: 5, 14-14

56. Seth Feider -- Bloomington, MN -- 5, 14-12 -- 55
Day 1: 5, 14-12

56. Greg Vinson -- Wetumpka, AL -- 5, 14-12 -- 55
Day 1: 5, 14-12

58. Brandon Palaniuk -- Hayden, ID -- 5, 14-11 -- 53
Day 1: 5, 14-11

59. Matt Herren -- Ashville, AL -- 5, 14-02 -- 52
Day 1: 5, 14-02

60. Boyd Duckett -- Guntersville, AL -- 4, 14-02 -- 51
Day 1: 4, 14-02

61. Chris Groh -- Spring Grove, IL -- 5, 14-01 -- 50
Day 1: 5, 14-01

62. Keith Poche -- Pike Road, AL -- 4, 13-13 -- 49
Day 1: 4, 13-13

63. Scott Rook -- Little Rock, AR -- 5, 13-12 -- 48
Day 1: 5, 13-12

64. Randy Howell -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 13-11 -- 47
Day 1: 5, 13-11

64. Justin Lucas -- Guntersville, AL -- 5, 13-11 -- 47
Day 1: 5, 13-11

66. Mark Daniels Jr. Tuskegee, AL -- 5, 13-09 -- 45
Day 1: 5, 13-09

67. Stephen Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 3, 13-09 -- 44
Day 1: 3, 13-09

68. Brett Hite -- Phoenix, AZ -- 5, 13-08 -- 43
Day 1: 5, 13-08

69. Rick Morris -- Lake Gaston, VA -- 5, 13-07 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 13-07

69. Brock Mosley -- Collinsville, MS -- 5, 13-07 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 13-07

71. Randy Sullivan -- Breckenridge, TX -- 5, 13-06 -- 40
Day 1: 5, 13-06

72. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 4, 13-05 -- 39
Day 1: 4, 13-05

73. Shin Fukae -- Palestine TX JAPAN -- 4, 13-04 -- 38
Day 1: 4, 13-04

74. Russ Lane -- Prattville, AL -- 5, 13-03 -- 37
Day 1: 5, 13-03

75. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 5, 13-02 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 13-02

75. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 5, 13-02 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 13-02

77. Brian Snowden -- Reeds Spring, MO -- 5, 13-01 -- 34
Day 1: 5, 13-01

78. Kelly Jordon -- Flint, TX -- 5, 13-00 -- 33
Day 1: 5, 13-00

79. Casey Ashley -- Donalds, SC -- 5, 12-14 -- 32
Day 1: 5, 12-14

79. James Elam -- Tulsa, OK -- 5, 12-14 -- 32
Day 1: 5, 12-14

81. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 5, 12-13 -- 30
Day 1: 5, 12-13

82. Dean Rojas -- Lake Havasu City, AZ -- 3, 12-13 -- 29
Day 1: 3, 12-13

83. Tyler Carriere -- Youngsville, LA -- 4, 12-02 -- 28
Day 1: 4, 12-02

83. Mike McClelland -- Bentonville, AR -- 4, 12-02 -- 28
Day 1: 4, 12-02

85. Robbie Latuso -- Gonzales, LA -- 5, 11-15 -- 26
Day 1: 5, 11-15

86. John Crews Jr -- Salem, VA -- 5, 11-12 -- 25
Day 1: 5, 11-12

86. Ray Hanselman Jr -- Del Rio, TX -- 5, 11-12 -- 25
Day 1: 5, 11-12

88. Jamie Hartman -- Newport, NY -- 5, 11-11 -- 23
Day 1: 5, 11-11

89. Tim Horton -- Muscle Shoals, AL -- 5, 11-07 -- 22
Day 1: 5, 11-07

90. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, OK -- 4, 11-03 -- 21
Day 1: 4, 11-03

91. Cliff Crochet -- Pierre Part, LA -- 5, 10-15 -- 20
Day 1: 5, 10-15

92. Dustin Connell -- Clanton, AL -- 4, 10-07 -- 19
Day 1: 4, 10-07

93. Rick Clunn -- Ava, MO -- 4, 10-06 -- 18
Day 1: 4, 10-06

93. Dave Lefebre -- Erie, PA -- 4, 10-06 -- 18
Day 1: 4, 10-06

95. Brandon Coulter -- Knoxville, TN -- 4, 10-04 -- 16
Day 1: 4, 10-04

96. Hank Cherry Jr -- Lincolnton, NC -- 2, 09-08 -- 15
Day 1: 2, 09-08

97. Gary Klein -- Mingus, TX -- 4, 08-12 -- 14
Day 1: 4, 08-12

98. Cliff Prince -- Palatka, FL -- 3, 08-08 -- 13
Day 1: 3, 08-08

99. Micah Frazier -- Newnan, GA -- 2, 08-00 -- 12
Day 1: 2, 08-00

100. Morizo Shimizu -- Suita, Osaka JAPAN -- 3, 07-11 -- 11
Day 1: 3, 07-11

101. Roy Hawk -- Lk Havasu Cty, AZ -- 4, 07-09 -- 10
Day 1: 4, 07-09

102. David Mullins -- Mt Carmel, TN -- 3, 07-03 -- 9
Day 1: 3, 07-03

103. Jeff Kriet -- Ardmore, OK -- 3, 06-10 -- 8
Day 1: 3, 06-10

104. Jason Williamson -- Wagener, SC -- 3, 06-08 -- 7
Day 1: 3, 06-08

105. Jonathon VanDam -- Gobles, MI -- 3, 05-07 -- 6
Day 1: 3, 05-07

106. Bill Weidler -- Helena, AL -- 2, 04-09 -- 5
Day 1: 2, 04-09

107. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, TX -- 1, 02-08 -- 4
Day 1: 1, 02-08

108. Darrell Ocamica -- New Plymouth, ID -- 0, 00-00 -- 0
Day 1: 0, 00-00