Water Clarity Was Improved, But Fishing Still Was Tough...For Some

'Twould appear the cool mornings may be here to stay. Today marked the second tournament morning in a row when nearly everyone started their day in jackets. Nevertheless, all 17 anglers in 9 boats seemed eager for me to get the show on the road this morning, so I didn't disappoint. At day's end, these "eager beavers" served up a combined total of 33 bass at weigh-in, with a total weight of 69.13 lbs. and an average weight of 2.09 lbs. per fish.

Leading the parade of winners was the team of (from left) Al Napier and Wayne Hayes, who combined their skills to bring a limit to the scales weighing 12.43 lbs., including the day's lunker at 5.01 lbs.

Next in line was the team of (from left) Duane Kessel and Bobby Moore, also with a limit, and a total weight of 11.95 lbs., including a big fish weighing 4.44 lbs.

Holding down 3rd place was the team of (from left) Rob Peppers and Don Carter. They, too, had a limit, with a total weight of 11.54 lbs. Their big fish tipped the scales at 3.33 lbs.

Mystery-weight winners were (left) Randy Conkle and Bob Glass (not available for photo). They had five fish for a total weight of 6.47 lbs., which was closest to the drawn weight of 6.50. Their big fish weighed 2.41 lbs.






Here is how the rest of the field stacked up when weigh-in was complete:

     * The team of Gary Coderre and Ken Testorff, five bass, 9.83 lbs. total weight, 2.34-lb. big fish.
     * David Davenport, four bass, 8.88 lbs. total weight, 4.05-lb. big fish.
     * The team of James Calhoun and Rusty Girard, four bass, 8.03 lbs. total weight, 3.39-lb. big fish.
     * The teams of Steve Bailey and Mitch Portervint and Andy Morath and Diana Mendez didn't weigh any fish.

There were no new additions to the list of anglers who have qualified to fish our season-ending two-day Classic on Oct. 14 and 15.

Congratulations to all of today's winners and thanks to everyone who participated. Look forward to seeing you at our last qualifying tournament of the 2017 series on Saturday, Oct. 7. We will be fishing from safe light to weigh-in at 3 p.m.

Let it never be said that I'll stand idly by and accept credit for someone else's accomplishments. I, therefore, want to make it known here and now that all five of the keeper bass which spent the day riding around in my boat's livewell were caught by Gary Coderre. To be brutally honest, I never even felt a confirmed strike in eight hours of fishing, and that was after throwing crankbaits, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, soft plastics, and topwater.

Meanwhile, Gary caught not only those five keepers, but also five dinks and a small white perch. For me, it was simply a day of spending quality fishing time with a good friend who goes out of his way to make my job as tourney director easier. I welcomed the opportunity to have him holding down my back seat and made sure he knew there's an open invitation for a repeat any time he chooses. Given the tourney drought I seem to be locked up in now, believe me when I say it was refreshing to have someone onboard to chat with off and on all day long.

And last but certainly not least, here is how the AOY chase stood after I added today's totals to the mix:

(From left) Bobby Moore - 145.56 lbs., Duane Kessel - 143.19 lbs., Rob Peppers - 138.28 lbs., Al Napier - 137.22 lbs., Bob Glass and Randy Conkle - 132.61 lbs.

All the waiting and wondering who will claim victory as the 2017 AOY will come to an end at the conclusion of our last qualifying tourney on Saturday, Oct. 7. Good luck to one and all.