George Cochran, Hot Springs, Ark:
"I have two different types of areas and they are both shallow. I eliminated one yesterday and am going to stick with the second. I also found two more spots today, so I'm building a good, solid pattern. There are 5-6 foot dropoffs along the shoreline. I don't know how many fish will move back into those spots. I left them at noon. One place is dingier than the other."
"Everybody knows that I like to fish shallow (both of his Classics were won in the shallows). But the real key for me was in narrowing my lure choices from four down to one bait. I think this is very important, not only because of the confidence factor, but because I believe the fish have a limited diet in the summertime. If I had not used this one particular lure then I have no doubt that I wouldn't have done well today. It's a new lure made by Strike King, and I think it's a little bit different because the fish haven't seen it."
Cochran caught a five-bass limit and culled four additional keepers. He caught his limit by noon. "The water level is dropping, and I thought that would hurt me but it didn't. It just makes the fish hold a little tighter."
Alton Jones, Waco, Texas:
"I found one key bait that I caught all my fish on. The bait that I caught them on was actually my third or fourth choice. Like George Cochran, I'm fishing with a new bait that the fish haven't seen and I think that was a big deal."
"Things didn't really go as I had visioned. I started with six baits and narrowed down to one after catching three fish in a row. I caught some fish shallow (3 feet) and some deep (15 feet). But the good thing about these areas is that they replenish themselves and I'm counting on that. I feel like I can go behind other anglers and catch fish behind them." He caught 8 keepers.
Randall Romig, Barto, Pa.:
"I was fortunate to pick the right bait at the start of the day, unlike the other guys. I had three fish in five minutes, although only one was a keeper. I caught my fifth fish before 9 a.m. I'm not sure my fish will replenish themselves. I'm fishing relatively shallow."
"This is one of the hardest lakes I've ever fished. It's famous for its crankbaiting, but these fish have seen so many of those baits. And I think there's not a lure these fish aren't used to seeing. But I think just a subtle change in color can make a difference. I'm fishing the same way that I did in 1995 here."
Tom Biffle, Wagoner, Okla.:
"The water has dropped quite a bit since we were here during pre-practice. It's hurting the shallow anglers. I had a game plan before I came here to not fall into the shallow groove. Everybody identifies me as a shallow water fisherman (flipping and pitching), but I like to fish deep. I didn't fish anywhere today that I fished during practice. I started out shallow and finished deep."
"I really didn't want to be in the top five today because of the spectator boats. I know I'll be having a lot of company. The options of fishing shallow or deep are good for me. I spent four of the six days I was here during pre-practice in deep water. And now I have confidence in fishing deep. I'm keeping an open mind. I might start shallow but will not hesitate to switch to deeper water."
Skeet Reese, Cotati, Calif.:
"I'm trying different patterns. I fished hard all day. It was a little tough because of the intimidation factor of being here for the first time. I think I found the one bait that will work. The fish seem to be eating it fairly good, so I abandoned the rest of the choices. I'm catching fish in both shallow and deep water."