The 24-year-old Idaho angler’s Day 3 weight of 19-10 gave him a three-day total of 65-7 and an almost insurmountable margin over the rest of the field.
Palaniuk said a dramatic change in weather today – from overcast, rainy and warm on Friday to 38 degrees and bluebird skies at the start of fishing today – made fishing much tougher, and it slowed even more as the afternoon progressed. He expressed disappointment that he didn’t weigh a limit worth more than 20 pounds, as he did the first two days, yet his 19-10 was the heavyweight of the day.
Even with the tournament virtually in the bag, Palaniuk is determined to catch the heaviest string again in Sunday’s final round.
“I’m going to go out and try to sack up 20 pounds,” Palaniuk said. “If I have 20 pounds by 7:30, I’m going to keep grinding it out until 2 o’clock when I have to make my run back.”
Aiming to catch Palaniuk is Britt Myers of Lake Wylie, S.C., who moved up two places from yesterday and sits in second with 52-8. He feels as if he’s dialed in on the right tactic to do that: fishing a reaction bait.
“When you can keep the bait in the strike zone where the fish are, and they react to it like that, it’s good,” Myers said. “At first, I was trying to catch the fish suspended, then they moved up higher. If I can just follow where the fish are (moving), I can have some good luck. I might go out tomorrow and catch 12 pounds, or I might go out tomorrow and catch 25 pounds.”
Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., third with 50-13, said he should have had a much bigger limit today, but he lost three big bass today.
“I think I had an opportunity to catch 17 or 18 pounds today, but Palaniuk’s tough to catch,” he said. “The cold front put a little ding on the fish today.”
In Sunday’s final round, he intends to move less and milk everything he can out of certain areas. “The longer you fish one spot, the more opportunity you have to catch a big one there,” he said. “It’s a crap shoot.”
Matt Herren, fourth with 50-9, noted that the lake level, which has been dropping several inches every day, is a major reason he fell from second yesterday to fourth today.
“I’ll get a chance to regroup tomorrow and put together another pattern,” Herren said, explaining that he will switch to a deeper-diving crankbait.
Scott Rook, the only Arkansan to make the Top 12 final round cut, discovered that big smallmouth are biting deeper than the largemouth, and two smallies helped him hold onto fifth with 49-10.
First prize in the TroKar Quest is $100,000 and a qualification for the 2013 Bassmaster Classic. Pros are also fishing to rack up points that count toward postseason entry, Classic qualification and the Bassmaster Angler of the Year award.
The public is invited to the final TroKar Quest weigh-in Sunday, which begins at 3 p.m. CT at Bull Shoals White River State Park at Pavilion #2 & Picnic Area on the east side of Bull Shoals Dam.
2012 4/19-4/22
Bull Shoals Lake, Bull Shoals, Ark.
Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Winnings
1. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 15 65-07 99
Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 24-04 Day 3: 5 19-10
2. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 15 52-08 98
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 20-04 Day 3: 5 17-05
3. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 15 50-13 97
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 19-12 Day 3: 5 13-06
4. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 15 50-09 96
Day 1: 5 20-13 Day 2: 5 17-00 Day 3: 5 12-12
5. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 15 49-10 95
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 20-12 Day 3: 5 14-12
6. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 15 49-05 94
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 15-00 Day 3: 5 18-04
7. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 15 48-13 93
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 14-02 Day 3: 5 18-02
8. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 15 48-08 92
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 18-15 Day 3: 5 14-03
9. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 15 48-05 91
Day 1: 5 16-08 Day 2: 5 16-06 Day 3: 5 15-07
10. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 15 48-02 90
Day 1: 5 19-10 Day 2: 5 12-07 Day 3: 5 16-01
11. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 15 47-02 89
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 14-03 Day 3: 5 17-10
12. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 15 47-01 88
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 15-15 Day 3: 5 13-13
13. Clark Reehm Shreveport, LA 15 46-13 87 $10,000
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 15-07 Day 3: 5 14-01
14. Randy Howell Springville, AL 15 45-13 86 $10,000
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 13-13 Day 3: 5 15-09
15. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 15 45-12 85 $10,000
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 16-06 Day 3: 5 14-07
16. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 15 45-10 84 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 5 19-08 Day 3: 5 13-02
17. David Walker Sevierville, TN 15 45-06 83 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 18-06 Day 3: 5 13-09
18. Brandon Card Caryville, TN 15 45-06 82 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 14-13 Day 3: 5 17-10
19. Michael Iaconelli Pittsgrove, NJ 15 45-00 81 $10,000
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 16-10 Day 3: 5 11-15
20. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 15 44-12 80 $10,000
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 5 13-03
21. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 15 44-03 79 $10,000
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 15-09 Day 3: 5 11-04
22. Travis Manson De Pere, WI 15 43-15 78 $10,000
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 15-14 Day 3: 5 11-00
23. Kyle A. Fox Lakeland, FL 15 43-04 77 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 5 15-08 Day 3: 5 14-04
24. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 15 43-02 76 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 20-08 Day 3: 5 10-02
25. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 15 42-12 75 $10,000
Day 1: 5 17-03 Day 2: 5 13-05 Day 3: 5 12-04
26. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 15 42-11 74 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 16-15 Day 3: 5 12-02
27. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 15 42-09 73 $10,000
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 11-15 Day 3: 5 14-14
28. Alton Jones Woodway, TX 15 42-07 72 $10,000
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 13-02 Day 3: 5 11-08
29. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 15 42-06 71 $10,000
Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 5 14-14 Day 3: 5 11-09
30. Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA 15 42-03 70 $10,000
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 16-10 Day 3: 5 13-11
31. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 15 42-03 69 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 16-00 Day 3: 5 13-01
32. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 15 42-02 68 $10,000
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 12-06 Day 3: 5 11-10
33. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 15 41-14 67 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 14-00 Day 3: 5 14-09
34. Rick Morris Lake Gaston, VA 15 41-13 66 $10,000
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 13-08 Day 3: 5 14-03
35. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 15 41-06 65 $10,000
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 13-01 Day 3: 5 12-12
36. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 15 41-06 64 $10,000
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 13-04 Day 3: 5 13-08
37. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 15 41-03 63 $10,000
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 15-01 Day 3: 5 12-00
38. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 15 41-00 62 $10,000
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 13-06 Day 3: 5 12-09
39. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 15 41-00 61 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 5 14-07 Day 3: 5 13-12
40. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 15 40-15 60 $10,000
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 5 11-07
41. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 15 40-11 59 $10,000
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 14-09 Day 3: 5 11-13
42. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 15 40-11 58 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 5 14-02 Day 3: 5 13-09
43. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 15 40-10 57 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-15 Day 2: 5 13-05 Day 3: 5 13-06
44. Casey D Ashley Donalds, SC 15 40-08 56 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 15-08 Day 3: 5 11-09
45. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 15 40-05 55 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 14-03 Day 3: 5 12-14
46. Russell Parrish Riesel, TX 15 40-03 54 $10,000
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 13-14 Day 3: 5 12-08
47. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 15 39-15 53 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 16-04 Day 3: 5 11-08
48. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 15 39-14 52 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 15-01 Day 3: 5 12-07
49. Jeremy Starks Scott Depot, WV 15 38-14 51 $10,000
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 15-07 Day 3: 5 10-11
50. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 13 32-11 50 $5,000
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 10-12 Day 3: 3 04-09
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 95 489 1349-02
2 98 493 1387-15
3 49 248 671-12
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242 1230 3408-13