GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (May 18, 2018) – Pro Randy Haynes of Ripley, Mississippi, caught a five-bass limit Friday weighing 19 pounds, 15 ounces, to extend his lead at the FLW Tournament at Kentucky Lake. Haynes’ two-day total of 10 bass weighing 46 pounds, 2 ounces, gives him a 2-pound, 4-ounce advantage heading into Saturday over second-place pro Jason Lambert of Michie, Tennessee, who has 10 bass weighing 43-14. The field is now cut to the final 30 pros, with only 10 anglers advancing to championship Sunday where the winner will take home the top prize of up to $125,000.
Haynes returned to the same area he fished Thursday, putting a couple of keepers in the boat right off the bat. Later in the morning he said he hit a flurry that produced five or six good bites to cap off a limit.
“It was a struggle out there today. I had to relocate my fish and catch them a totally different way,” said Haynes, who has two career wins on Kentucky Lake in Costa FLW Series competition and finished 14th when the Tour last visited Kentucky Lake in 2016. “It was better in terms of numbers, but I didn’t catch the size.”
One of the key changes Haynes made Friday was switching from crankbaits to swimbaits.
“I caught them all, including a couple that upgraded me, on a Zoom Swimmer and a couple of other swimbaits,” said Haynes. “I slowed down, and that’s probably the reason I caught more fish today. I’m just blessed to have caught what I did and hopefully we can keep it going tomorrow.”
The top 30 pros that made the first cut and will fish Saturday on Kentucky Lake are:
1st: Randy Haynes, Ripley, Miss., 10 bass, 46-2
2nd: Jason Lambert, Michie, Tenn., 10 bass, 43-14
3rd: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 10 bass, 37-14
4th: Austin Felix, Eden Prairie, Minn., nine bass, 37-5
5th: Josh Douglas, Isle, Minn., 10 bass, 37-2
6th: Scott Canterbury, Odenville, Ala., 10 bass, 36-13
7th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 10 bass, 32-15
8th: John Hunter, Shelbyville, Ky., 10 bass, 32-1
9th: Tyler Stewart, West Monroe, La., 10 bass, 32-1
10th: Joseph Webster, Winfield, Ala., 10 bass, 31-15
11th: John Cox, DeBary, Fla., 10 bass, 31-12
12th: Jeff Gustafson, Keewatin, Ontario, Canada, 10 bass, 31-9
13th: David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 10 bass, 31-7
14th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., 10 bass, 31-5
15th: Scott Dobson, Clarkston, Mich., nine bass, 31-0
16th: Dylan Hays, Sheridan, Ark., 10 bass, 30-14
17th: Alex Davis, Albertville, Ala., eight bass, 30-11
18th: Matt Arey, Shelby, N.C., 10 bass, 30-10
19th: Mark Rose, West Memphis, Ark., nine bass, 30-4
20th: Tim Cales, Sandstone, W. Va., 10 bass, 30-4
21st: Brandon Mosley, Choctaw, Okla., 10 bass, 10 bass, 30-2
22nd: Timmy Thompkins, Myrtle Beach, S.C., 10 bass, 30-0
23rd: Jordan Osborne, Longview, Texas, nine bass, 29-9
24th: Cody Meyer, Auburn, Calif., 10 bass, 29-5
25th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., nine bass, 29-4
26th: Charlie Evans, Berea, Ky., 10 bass, 28-9
27th: Clark Wendlandt, Leander, Texas, 10 bass, 28-5
28th: Koby Kreiger, Bokeelia, Fla., nine bass, 28-4
29th: Jim Dillard, West Monroe, La., 10 bass, 28-2
30th: Bill McDonald, Greenwood, Ind., nine bass, 28-1
Matt Becker of Finleyville, Pennsylvania, earned the $500 Simms Big Bass award in the Pro Division Friday after weighing a 7-pound, 8-ounce bass. Overall there were 577 bass weighing 1,708 pounds, 11 ounces, caught by 165 pros Friday. The catch included 64 five-bass limits.
Ronny Webb of Dyersburg, Tennessee, won the Co-angler Division and $25,000 Friday with a two-day total of nine bass weighing 26 pounds, 14 ounces, followed by Stephen Crawley of Bush, Louisiana, who finished in second place with eight bass totaling 25-4, worth $7,600.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Ronny Webb, Dyersburg, Tenn., nine bass, 26-14, $25,000
2nd: Stephen Crawley, Bush, La., eight bass, 25-4, $7,600
3rd: Benjie Seaborn, Guin, Ala., eight bass, 23-3, $5,000
4th: Chatfield Smith, Minnetonka, Minn., nine bass, 22-9, $4,000
5th: Rex Jaeger, Hamilton, Ohio, eight bass, 22-3, $3,050
6th: Keith Gunsauls, El Cajon, Calif., seven bass, 21-5, $2,500
7th: Bradley Smith, Saint Jacob, Ill., seven bass, 20-3, $2,000
8th: B.J. Nelson, Louisa, Ky., eight bass, 19-14, $1,800
9th: Craig Middleton, Harrodsburg, Ky., seven bass, 19-14, $1,700
10th: Mike Gabel, Saint Charles, Ill., seven bass, 19-11, $1,600
Jim Hippensteel of Rochester, Indiana, earned $250 for the Simms Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division with a 6-pound, 3-ounce bass. Overall there were 282 bass weighing 761 pounds, 8 ounces caught by 136 co-anglers Friday. The catch included seven five-bass limits.