GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. – After rocketing into the lead with 28 pounds, 2 ounces on the first day of the Bassmaster Elite tournament at Lake Guntersville, Michael Iaconelli went back out during Friday’s second round with intentions of fishing the same way. But after a while, things just didn’t feel right. So he followed his instincts, made a quick adjustment and put together another fantastic catch, a five-bass limit weighing 24-15, to widen his lead in the event with a two-day mark of 53-1.
The remainder of the 5 saw some drastic changes on a day that was delayed one hour by thunderstorms with David Walker (48-6) moving into second, and Carl Jocumsen (46- 8), a rookie from Australia, holding down third. Byron Velvick (45-3) and Brent Ehrler (43-13) are fourth and fifth. With the lake itself undergoing changes, even more shifting could happen atop the leaderboard Saturday.
“On Thursday, I thought I knew exactly what was happening,” Iaconelli said. “After today, I believe there’s a lot more fish moving up to spawn than I thought and a lot more fish coming out for the postspawn than I thought. There are a lot of fish on the move.”
Iaconelli, who never said which lures he was using Thursday, said he switched to a crankbait when things got slow Friday. That’s when he caught two of his largest fish of the day.
“The first cast on a crankbait, I caught one that weighed almost 8 pounds,” Iaconelli said. “The next one on a crankbait was a 6-pounder. That was a key decision, because without those two fish, I probably would have only weighed in about 16 or 17 pounds.”
Several of Iaconelli’s fish had what he called “big quarter sores” on their gill plates. He believed those were identifying marks for bass that have entered the postspawn phase. Because Guntersville has such an immense bass population, Iaconelli believes the bass don’t stay on bed as long as they do in other venues. With so many fish in transition, he said things were tough Friday – and could get tougher.
“It looked a lot better for me today than it really was,” Iaconelli said. “Yesterday, it was happening. I’d pull up to spot and just know I was going to catch them. I caught over 30 keeper bass. Today, I caught maybe nine keepers.
“I feel like I’m in the winning area, but it’s going to be really important to keep moving with the fish.”
Iaconelli also earned the Livingston Lures Leader award of $500 for being the second-day leader.
Walker, who suffered through a dismal 107th-place finish in the Elite Series event last month on the Sabine River, came to Guntersville worried that another bad finish might jeopardize his chances of qualifying for the 2016 Bassmaster Classic. But after landing 23-1 Friday and 25-5 Saturday, he easily made Saturday’s Top 53 cut and put himself within striking distance of his second Elite Series win.
“I started off with a 5-pounder on my first cast, and that’s the way to start the day,” Walker said. “After a while, I had that one good fish and just four others that would measure. But as the day went on, I’d catch another fish that was a big one and then another. My culls were going up really fast, because I started with such small ones.”
Walker, who revealed little about the technique he was using, said confidence played a major role in his Friday success.
“It was one of those days when I had the one thing you always want as a fisherman,” Walker said. “It’s not a secret spot or a secret lure. It was confidence in my choices. Almost every time I thought I needed to try something it would work. And if it didn’t work, I knew that it didn’t because when I got there it just didn’t feel right.”
The biggest catch of the day belonged to Jocumsen, who brought in 26-10 to vault himself into third with 46-8. The popular Australian pro, who is fishing only his second event as an Elite Series rookie, had 21 pounds around noon and actually upgraded his catch while scouting for Saturday.
Jocumsen said the weigh-in took place around 6 a.m. in Australia, and more than 20,000 people in his native country were likely watching live on the Internet. He said many had also been up most of the night following his progress on the web.
“Because of the Internet, they say no one’s sleeping because they’re refreshing it all through the middle of the night,” Jocumsen said, laughing. “My sponsors and my friends say they haven’t slept the last two nights.
“Everyone in Australia is so excited. It’s going to bring awareness to the sport and put bass fishing on the map a little bit in another country.”
The 53 pros surviving the cut will launch from Guntersville City Harbor at 6:15 a.m. Saturday with the weigh-in scheduled back at the park at 3 p.m. Only the Top 12 anglers after Saturday’s weigh-in will move on to Sunday’s championship round.
2015 Bassmaster Elite at Lake Guntersville 4/9-4/12
Lake Guntersville, Guntersville AL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 53-01 100 $500.00
Day 1: 5 28-02 Day 2: 5 24-15
2. David Walker Sevierville, TN 10 48-06 99
Day 1: 5 23-01 Day 2: 5 25-05
3. Carl Jocumsen Queensland TX AUSTRALIA 10 46-08 98
Day 1: 5 19-14 Day 2: 5 26-10
4. Byron Velvick Boenre, TX 10 45-03 97
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 26-06
5. Brent Ehrler Newport Beach, CA 10 43-13 96
Day 1: 5 23-08 Day 2: 5 20-05
6. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 10 43-11 95
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 24-00
7. Brett Hite Phoenix, AZ 10 43-10 94
Day 1: 5 17-02 Day 2: 5 26-08
8. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 43-06 93
Day 1: 5 23-00 Day 2: 5 20-06
9. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 10 42-12 92
Day 1: 5 23-05 Day 2: 5 19-07
10. Matt Lee Auburn , AL 10 42-08 91
Day 1: 5 23-15 Day 2: 5 18-09
11. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 42-05 90
Day 1: 5 24-15 Day 2: 5 17-06
12. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 42-04 89
Day 1: 5 22-02 Day 2: 5 20-02
13. Shaw Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL 10 41-15 88
Day 1: 5 22-03 Day 2: 5 19-12
14. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 10 41-13 87
Day 1: 5 20-07 Day 2: 5 21-06
15. Kelly Jordon Flint, TX 9 41-10 86
Day 1: 5 26-01 Day 2: 4 15-09
16. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 41-08 85
Day 1: 5 21-04 Day 2: 5 20-04
17. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, IL 10 41-02 84
Day 1: 5 16-10 Day 2: 5 24-08
18. Jacob Powroznik Port Haywood, VA 10 41-01 83
Day 1: 5 22-04 Day 2: 5 18-13
19. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 40-09 82
Day 1: 5 25-08 Day 2: 5 15-01
20. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 40-01 81
Day 1: 5 23-11 Day 2: 5 16-06
21. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 10 40-00 80
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 19-00
22. Josh Bertrand Gilbert, AZ 10 39-06 79
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 22-01
23. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 39-04 78
Day 1: 5 23-02 Day 2: 5 16-02
24. Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL 10 39-01 77
Day 1: 5 21-07 Day 2: 5 17-10
25. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 10 38-12 76
Day 1: 5 20-01 Day 2: 5 18-11
26. Alton Jones Lorena, TX 10 38-11 75
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 5 21-07
27. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 38-08 74
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 5 21-04
28. Matt Herren Ashville, AL 10 38-06 73
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 23-00
29. Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA 10 38-05 72
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 22-00
30. Kelley Jaye Dadeville, AL 10 38-04 71
Day 1: 5 24-04 Day 2: 5 14-00
31. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 38-00 70
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 20-10
32. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 37-05 69
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 25-08
33. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 37-04 68
Day 1: 5 18-12 Day 2: 5 18-08
34. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 10 36-15 67
Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 17-15
35. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 10 36-13 66
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 16-07
36. Hank Cherry Jr Maiden, NC 9 36-11 65
Day 1: 4 19-07 Day 2: 5 17-04
37. Jordan Lee Vinemont, AL 10 36-11 64
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 18-03
38. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 10 36-08 63
Day 1: 5 20-07 Day 2: 5 16-01
39. Jason Williamson Wagener, SC 10 36-06 62
Day 1: 5 15-04 Day 2: 5 21-02
40. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 10 35-15 61
Day 1: 5 18-12 Day 2: 5 17-03
41. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 35-13 60
Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 5 23-00
42. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 35-13 59
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 19-06
43. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 35-07 58
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 5 17-07
44. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 35-05 57
Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 5 16-15
45. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 35-02 56
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 17-05
46. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 35-00 55
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 19-07
47. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 35-00 54
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 15-12
48. James Elam Tulsa, OK 10 35-00 53
Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 16-00
49. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 34-14 52
Day 1: 5 20-09 Day 2: 5 14-05
50. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 10 34-13 51
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 15-09
51. Justin Lucas Guntersville, AL 10 34-12 50
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 15-06
52. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 34-11 49
Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 5 18-12
53. David Mullins Mt Carmel, TN 10 34-09 48
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 15-04
54. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 10 34-07 47
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 14-14
55. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 10 34-05 46
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 15-13
56. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 10 34-04 45
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 15-13
57. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 34-01 44
Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 18-09
58. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 33-15 43
Day 1: 5 19-02 Day 2: 5 14-13
59. Chad Pipkens Holt, MI 10 33-14 42
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 19-04
60. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 10 33-13 41
Day 1: 5 22-04 Day 2: 5 11-09
61. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 33-06 40
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 13-11
62. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 10 33-06 39
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 19-01
63. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 33-00 38
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 19-00
64. Boyd Duckett Guntersville, AL 10 33-00 37
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 18-06
65. Brandon Coulter Knoxville, TN 10 33-00 36
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 17-07
66. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 32-14 35
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 5 19-14
67. Kurt Dove Del Rio, TX 10 32-13 34
Day 1: 5 14-14 Day 2: 5 17-15
68. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 32-12 33
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 5 16-01
69. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 10 32-09 32
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 13-14
70. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 10 32-07 31
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 5 20-07
71. Randy Allen Shreveport, LA 10 32-04 30
Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 16-12
72. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 32-03 29
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 16-06
73. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 10 32-02 28
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 15-09
74. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 31-12 27
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 17-03
75. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 10 31-09 26
Day 1: 5 17-10 Day 2: 5 13-15
76. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 31-06 25
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 18-01
77. Koby Kreiger Bokeelia, FL 10 30-15 24
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 17-06
78. Micah Frazier Newnan, GA 10 30-15 23
Day 1: 5 14-04 Day 2: 5 16-11
79. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 10 30-10 22
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 15-09
80. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 10 30-08 21
Day 1: 5 15-04 Day 2: 5 15-04
81. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 10 30-07 20
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 13-06
82. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 10 30-05 19
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 5 15-02
83. Morizo Shimizu Suita, Osaka JAPAN 10 30-04 18
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 16-11
84. Randall Tharp Port St. Joe, FL 10 30-01 17
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 19-00
85. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 10 30-01 16
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 14-12
86. Ken Iyobe Tokoname Aichi JAPAN 10 30-00 15
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 16-04
87. Kevin Ledoux Choctaw, OK 6 29-15 14
Day 1: 5 24-03 Day 2: 1 05-12
88. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 9 29-11 13
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 4 09-05
89. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 10 29-11 12
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 13-15
90. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 29-10 11
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 13-09
91. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 10 29-10 10
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 15-08
91. David Williams Maiden, NC 10 29-10 10
Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 14-02
93. Kevin Hawk Guntersville, AL 10 29-09 8
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 18-09
94. Seth Feider Bloomington, MN 10 29-07 7
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 14-12
95. Mike Kernan Wylie, TX 10 29-03 6
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 15-05
96. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 28-15 5
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 5 13-12
97. Casey Scanlon Lanexa, KS 10 28-14 4
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 15-03
98. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 10 28-10 3
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 15-00
99. Stephen Longobardi Northford, CT 10 28-04 2
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 5 15-09
100. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 27-10 1
Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 5 14-13
101. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 26-09 0
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 15-12
102. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 9 26-01 0
Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 4 10-02
103. Brandon Card Caryville, TN 9 25-15 0
Day 1: 4 09-14 Day 2: 5 16-01
104. Fletcher Shryock New Philadelphia, OH 10 25-11 0
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 11-13
105. Joseph Sancho New Windsor, NY 10 25-11 0
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 12-01
106. Jared Miller Norman, OK 9 25-02 0
Day 1: 4 11-00 Day 2: 5 14-02
107. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 24-13 0
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 13-07
108. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 24-12 0
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 13-04
109. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 23-10 0
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 12-01
110. David Smith Del City, OK 10 23-06 0
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 12-08
111. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 9 23-01 0
Day 1: 4 09-14 Day 2: 5 13-03
112. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 9 22-03 0
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 4 10-01
113. Boo Woods Oneida, KY 7 20-13 0
Day 1: 2 05-11 Day 2: 5 15-02
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 108 558 1930-13
2 108 557 1939-03
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216 1115 3870-00