By Sean Ostruszka
Special to BassFan
They said everything was in play at Lake Chickamauga. The pros weren’t kidding.
Sight-fishing, offshore, shad spawn, flipping, burning the bank – all were represented at the top of the standings after day 1 of the FLW Tour event. Yet, that’s not all the pros foretold accurately. Many repeatedly mentioned one name as the favorite to win this event with how it was setting up, and sure enough, that name is at the very top, as well.
Doing what he does better than maybe anyone, John Cox used his eyes to sight-fish his way to a tournament-leading 24-11. His was just one of 12 bags to crack to 20-pound mark, though, which left him with only a 5-ounce lead over Ron Nelson.
Matt Greenblatt (23-05) and Ramie Colson (23-02) both showcased what became a significant trend among the top anglers, as they held up giant kickers on the weigh-in stage, with Colson’s weighing 9-04. Billy McCaghren took big-fish honors with a 9-13 that anchored his 23-pound bag, with Tim Frederick having an “unexpected” 23-pound bag, as well.
Randy Allen lit up FLW’s live coverage when it was reported he caught a 10-pounder (it was 9-06, actually). That helped him get to 22-14, while Andrew Upshaw – another well-regarded sight-fisherman – was able to pluck an 8-12 off a bed to buoy his 22-07 bag.
David Dudley (22-02) and Austin Felix (21-00) rounded out the top 10, but what day 1 lacked was a true mega-bag. However, both of the top anglers could’ve had it.
Cox came into the event solely looking to sight-fish, and he found plenty of big females to mark throughout practice. Yet, things didn’t go as planned today.
“I tried to target some females I saw in practice, but it’s almost gotten too hot for [the bedding fish],” Cox said. “The ones that were trying to spawn gave up and quit. So right away, first thing this morning I bailed on everything and went to the five biggest males I had marked and caught them.”
Not many lakes can you weigh in 24 pounds of males off beds, but that’s Chickamauga. Of course, the lake is also known for double-digit giants, and Cox started on one he thinks might be 12 pounds. Unfortunately, he tried to catch her twice, and both times he accidently caught the male she was rubbing with, causing her to swim off.
Yet, just before he came in he went and checked to see if she’d come back, and sure enough, she was there. Thus, Cox knows where he’ll be starting tomorrow, and he’ll even have the No. 1 boat draw after being the last out today.
After that, though, he says he’ll have to adapt as the water levels and temperatures rise.
“This tournament is going to change a lot,” Cox said “The fish are going to be moving. A lot will go to the bank. A lot will go to their shallower bars. If it stays real warm and the rain doesn’t cool it off, I don’t think there will be much more fish reloading spawning-wise. But there might be some other stuff that might start happening that I’m excited about.”
Nelson also mentioned the water rising closer to summer pool may have moved his fish a bit, as he started on a shad spawn and some ledges, with neither panning out. Once he found them, though, he figures he caught 20 keepers. That said, there were two he didn’t land that stopped him from cracking the 30-pound mark.
“I lost a pair of 6-pounders,” Nelson said. “Nothing I could do. They both jumped and just came off. That’s fishing, but I could have had a mega-bag today.”
Something that has Nelson particularly excited after today is that he also never got a giant bite – his biggest fish was a 6-10 – but he caught one over 8 pounds every day in practice. He’s hoping to get back to that tomorrow, especially since he said he had a lot of his stuff to himself today; a rarity on a lake like Chickamauga.
As mentioned earlier, Colson did have one of those giant bites, and it happened to be his first all week.
“On a lake like this, a giant one makes a big difference,” Colson said. “I was blessed to have her, and she came with 8 minutes left in my day.”
An offshore stick from another TVA fishery (Lake Barkley), Colson actually started shallow to get a quick limit before moving “out, but not deep,” which is where he started getting some bigger bites.
“Just those little shallow bars; the little first-come places before they move out,” Colson said. “I never caught a fish over 4 pounds in practice, but with that big one coming late in the day, maybe they’re starting to trickle out.”
Notable
> Day 1 stats – 165 anglers, 134 limits, 15 fours, 8 threes, 5 twos, 2 ones, 1 zero.
Day 1 Standings
1. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 24-11 (5)
2. Ron Nelson -- Berrien Springs, Mi -- 24-6 (5)
3. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, Fl -- 23-5 (5)
4. Ramie Colson Jr -- Cadiz, Ky -- 23-2 (5)
5. Billy McCaghren -- Mayflower, Ar -- 23-0 (5)
5. Tim Frederick -- Leesburg, Fl -- 23-0 (5)
7. Randy Allen -- Gilliam, La -- 22-14 (5)
8. Andrew Upshaw -- Tulsa, Ok -- 22-7 (5)
9. David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va -- 22-2 (5)
10. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, Mn -- 21-0 (5)
11. Jared McMillan -- Belle Glade, Fl -- 20-9 (5)
12. Dicky Newberry -- Houston, Tx -- 20-1 (5)
13. Cody Hahner -- Wausau, Wi -- 19-12 (5)
14. James Niggemeyer -- Van, Tx -- 19-11 (5)
15. Lendell Martin Jr -- Nacogdoches, Tx -- 19-6 (5)
16. Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Tx -- 19-4 (5)
17. Glenn Chappelear -- Acworth, Ga -- 19-3 (5)
18. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 18-9 (5)
19. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 18-8 (5)
20. John Voyles -- Petersburg, In -- 18-7 (5)
21. Alex Davis -- Albertville, Al -- 18-1 (5)
22. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, NC -- 18-0 (5)
23. Buddy Gross -- Chickamauga, Ga -- 17-12 (5)
24. Tommy Dickerson -- Orange, Tx -- 17-10 (5)
25. Sam George -- Athens, Al -- 17-7 (5)
26. Tom Monsoor -- La Crosse, Wi -- 17-3 (5)
26. David Williams -- Maiden, NC -- 17-3 (5)
28. Miles Howe -- San Juan Capistrano, Ca -- 17-1 (5)
28. Hensley Powell -- Whitwell, Tn -- 17-1 (5)
30. Greg Bohannan -- Bentonville, Ar -- 16-15 (5)
31. Clayton Batts -- Butler, Ga -- 16-14 (5)
32. Tyler Woolcott -- Port Orange, Fl -- 16-9 (5)
33. Kurt Mitchell -- Milford, De -- 16-3 (5)
34. David Gaston -- Sylacauga, Al -- 16-2 (5)
34. Darrell Davis -- Dover, Fl -- 16-2 (5)
34. Jeremy Lawyer -- Sarcoxie, Mo -- 16-2 (5)
34. Joel Willert -- Prior Lake, Mn -- 16-2 (5)
38. Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fl -- 15-14 (5)
39. Bill McDonald -- Greenwood, In -- 15-13 (5)
39. Jason Meninger -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 15-13 (5)
41. Pete Ponds -- Madison, Ms -- 15-11 (5)
42. Grae Buck -- Harleysville, Pa -- 15-7 (5)
43. Christopher Brasher -- Longview, Tx -- 15-6 (5)
43. Brad Knight -- Lancing, Tn -- 15-6 (5)
45. Nick Lebrun -- Bossier City, La -- 15-5 (5)
45. Bradley Dortch -- Atmore, Al -- 15-5 (5)
47. Luke Dunkin -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 15-3 (5)
47. Ron Farrow -- Rock Hill, SC -- 15-3 (5)
47. Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Mn -- 15-3 (5)
50. Bradford Beavers -- Summerville, SC -- 15-1 (5)
51. Andy Wicker -- Pomaria, SC -- 14-15 (5)
52. Tyler Stewart -- West Monroe, La -- 14-14 (5)
52. Kurt Dove -- Del Rio, Tx -- 14-14 (5)
52. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, Md -- 14-14 (5)
52. Casey Scanlon -- Lake Ozark, Mo -- 14-14 (5)
52. Kyle Weisenburger -- Ottawa, Oh -- 14-14 (5)
57. Brandon McMillan -- Clewiston, Fl -- 14-13 (5)
57. Larry Nixon -- Quitman, Ar -- 14-13 (5)
59. Wes Logan -- Springville, Al -- 14-9 (5)
59. Matthew Stefan -- Junction City, Wi -- 14-9 (5)
59. Ryan Salzman -- Huntsville, Al -- 14-9 (5)
59. Derrick Snavely -- Piney Flats, Tn -- 14-9 (5)
59. Terry Bolton -- Benton, Ky -- 14-9 (5)
64. Joseph Webster -- Winfield, Al -- 14-7 (5)
65. Clark Reehm -- Elm Grove, La -- 14-6 (5)
66. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fl -- 14-5 (5)
67. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 14-4 (5)
67. Chuck Stratton -- Chaffee, Mo -- 14-4 (5)
69. Jay Kendrick -- Grant, Al -- 14-1 (5)
69. Jimmy Reese -- Witter Springs, Ca -- 14-1 (5)
71. Curtis Richardson -- Belleville, On -- 14-0 (4)
72. Jim Jones -- Big Bend, Wi -- 13-15 (5)
72. Brant Grimm -- Church Hill, Tn -- 13-15 (5)
74. Dakota Ebare -- Denham Springs, La -- 13-14 (5)
75. Charles Sim -- Nepean, On -- 13-13 (5)
76. Colby Schrumpf -- Highland, Il -- 13-12 (5)
76. Braxton Setzer -- Montgomery, Al -- 13-12 (5)
78. Chris Whitson -- Louisville, Tn -- 13-11 (5)
78. Austin Wilson -- Citrus Heights, Ca -- 13-11 (5)
78. Wade Strelic -- Alpine, Ca -- 13-11 (5)
81. J Todd Tucker -- Moultrie, Ga -- 13-8 (5)
81. Jacob Wall -- Jacksonville, Or -- 13-8 (5)
83. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, Tx -- 13-5 (4)
83. Randy Blaukat -- Joplin, Mo -- 13-5 (5)
85. Brian Latimer -- Belton, SC -- 13-3 (5)
85. Jordan Osborne -- Longview, Tx -- 13-3 (5)
87. Scott Wiley -- Bay Minette, Al -- 12-15 (5)
88. Brandon Mosley -- Choctaw, Ok -- 12-14 (5)
89. Billy Hines -- Vacaville, Ca -- 12-13 (5)
90. Matt Becker -- Finleyville, Pa -- 12-10 (5)
90. Johnny McCombs -- Morris, Al -- 12-10 (5)
92. Cody Kelley -- Conway, Ar -- 12-9 (5)
92. Tim Cales -- Sandstone, WV -- 12-9 (5)
94. Chad Grigsby -- Maple Grove, Mn -- 12-7 (5)
94. Barry Wilson -- Birmingham, Al -- 12-7 (5)
96. Miles Burghoff -- Hixson, Tn -- 12-6 (5)
96. Daryl Biron -- South Windsor, Ct -- 12-6 (5)
98. Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Ok -- 12-5 (5)
99. Joey Cifuentes -- Clinton, Ar -- 12-4 (5)
100. Kevin Finley -- Phoenix, Az -- 12-3 (5)
100. Bill Hutchison -- Bessemer, Al -- 12-3 (5)
102. Robert Case -- Point, Tx -- 12-1 (5)
102. Matt Wittekiend -- Angleton, Tx -- 12-1 (5)
104. Joshua Weaver -- Macon, Ga -- 11-15 (5)
104. Charlie Ingram -- Centerville, Tn -- 11-15 (5)
104. Jason Abram -- Piney Flats, Tn -- 11-15 (5)
107. Rex Jaeger -- Hamilton, Oh -- 11-14 (5)
108. Josh Douglas -- Isle, Mn -- 11-13 (5)
109. Michael Matthee -- Centurion, Gp -- 11-12 (5)
109. AJ Slegona -- Pine Bush, NY -- 11-12 (5)
109. Mark Fisher -- Wauconda, Il -- 11-12 (4)
112. Dylan Hays -- El Dorado, Ar -- 11-11 (5)
113. Corey Neece -- Bristol, Tn -- 11-10 (5)
114. Marty Lawrence -- Mesa, Az -- 11-9 (5)
114. Ryan Chandler -- Hebron, In -- 11-9 (5)
114. Shawn Murphy -- Nicholasville, Ky -- 11-9 (5)
117. Sheldon Collings -- Grove, Ok -- 11-7 (5)
118. Kyle Cortiana -- Coweta, Ok -- 11-5 (5)
119. Troy Morrow -- Eastanollee, Ga -- 11-3 (5)
120. Nick Gainey -- Charleston, SC -- 11-1 (5)
121. Chad Warren -- Sand Springs, Ok -- 11-0 (5)
121. Jimmy Brewer -- Marshall, Tx -- 11-0 (4)
121. Charlie Evans -- Berea, Ky -- 11-0 (5)
124. Eric Jackson -- Walling, Tn -- 10-13 (5)
125. Bob Morin -- Seymour, Tn -- 10-10 (5)
125. Kerry Milner -- Bono, Ar -- 10-10 (5)
127. Derek Fulps -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 10-9 (5)
127. Scott Ashmore -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 10-9 (3)
127. Bailey Boutries -- Daphne, Al -- 10-9 (4)
130. Timmy Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 10-8 (4)
131. Tim Malone -- Kodak, Tn -- 10-7 (4)
132. Tom Redington -- Royse City, Tx -- 10-6 (5)
132. Jon Englund -- Farwell, Mn -- 10-6 (5)
134. Chris McCall -- Palmer, Tx -- 10-5 (5)
135. Robert Behrle -- Hoover, Al -- 10-3 (5)
136. Randy Despino -- Colfax, La -- 9-14 (5)
137. Jonathan Canada -- Helena, Al -- 9-9 (5)
137. Chad Randles -- Elkhorn, Ne -- 9-9 (5)
139. Chris Neau -- New Orleans, La -- 9-4 (4)
140. Rob Kilby -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 9-2 (5)
141. Andy Young -- Isle, Mn -- 8-14 (5)
142. Rob Jordan -- Flowery Branch, Ga -- 8-13 (5)
143. Aaron Britt -- Yuba City, Ca -- 8-12 (3)
144. Chip Harrington -- Olathe, Ks -- 8-8 (4)
145. Rex Huff -- Corbin, Ky -- 8-4 (5)
146. John Hunter -- Shelbyville, Ky -- 7-15 (4)
146. Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga -- 7-15 (4)
148. Blake Smith -- Lakeland, Fl -- 7-14 (3)
149. Jeff Dobson -- Bartlesville, Ok -- 7-12 (4)
150. Russell Cecil -- Willis, Tx -- 7-11 (2)
151. Evan Barnes -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 7-7 (4)
151. Bradley Hallman -- Norman, Ok -- 7-7 (4)
153. Todd Castledine -- Nacogdoches, Tx -- 7-0 (4)
154. Cody Murray -- Nampa, Id -- 6-3 (3)
155. Alton Wilhoit -- Noble, Ok -- 6-2 (2)
156. Hunter Freeman -- Monroe, La -- 5-12 (3)
157. Jason Christy -- Jacksons Gap, Al -- 5-9 (3)
158. Troy Roder -- Brookeland, Tx -- 5-6 (3)
159. Chuck Medley -- Owens Cross Roads, Al -- 4-13 (2)
160. David Wootton -- Collierville, Tn -- 4-7 (3)
161. Drew Ratley -- Shreveport, La -- 3-14 (2)
162. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 2-13 (2)
163. Zell Rowland -- Montgomery, Tx -- 2-4 (1)
164. Craig Rozema -- Simpsonville, SC -- 1-11 (1)
Tony Dumitras -- Winston, Ga -- 0-0 (0)
