Brent Ehrler overcame windy conditions to take the first-day lead at the Bassmaster Classic.
The first day of the 2017 Geico Bassmaster Classic saw 20-30 mph winds rake Lake Conroe, churning waves as high as 4 feet and forcing many of the 52 anglers in the three-day contest considered the world championship of professional bass fishing to adjust their tactics to deal with water conditions one contestant termed “breakstuff rough.”
Friday’s windy conditions didn’t seem a problem for angler Brent Ehrler who took the first-day lead when the five-bass limit the Newport Beach, Calif., resident carried to the scales during the weighin at Minute Maid Park totaled 23 pounds, 3 ounces.
A 9-pound, 12-ounce largemouth topping Ehrler’s stringer was the heaviest bass taken during the Bassmaster Classic’s first day.
Roy in second
All of the top five anglers after the tournament’s first day had per-fish averages of more than 4 pounds.
Angler Bradley Roy of Lancaster, Ky., heads into Saturday’s second day of competition trailing Ehrler by little more than a pound. Roy’s five bass weighed 22 pounds, 1 ounce.
Cliff Crochet of Pierre Part, La., held third place with 21 pounds, 8 ounces, followed by Michael Iaconelli of Pittsgove, N.J., with 21 pounds, 2 ounces and Clifford Pirch of Payson, Ariz., with 20 pounds, 11 ounces.
Alton Jones Sr. of Lorena, whose 19-pound, 13-ounce limit was good for eighth place, was the highest placing of the five Texans competing in the tournament.
Texas angler Keith Combs, a Huntington resident whose previous successes in high-stakes bass tournaments on Lake Conroe had him pegged as an early favorite to take the contest’s $300,000 first prize, had a tough first day.
Combs’ three-bass catch weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces to earn him a tie for 40th place.
Many anglers struggled to land five-fish limits on the contest’s first day.
Only half of the field managed to bring a fivebass limit to the stage set on the infield of Minute Maid Park. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t catch a lot of fish. The majority of anglers reported landing good numbers of bass, but many of the fish fell just short of the 16-inch minimum length limit Texas sets for largemouth caught from Lake Conroe.
Milder forecast
During the weigh-in and later interviews, the anglers were universally coy about revealing their fishing tactics or which lures they are using. But several anglers reported fishing shallow water and targeting large female bass on spawning nests.
Weather conditions are predicted to be milder for Saturday’ second day of competition in the 47th Bassmaster Classic. After Saturday’s weigh-in at Minute Maid Park, the field will be cut, with only the top 25 anglers fishing Sunday, the contest’s final day.