Mark Tucker, on a good day, would have five bass in his livewell with enough weight to keep him in contention after Day One of the Classic. But it has not been a good day so far.
Part of his problem was self-inflicted. Tucker has spent all day in Shaw Lake. He picked up a rod with a spinnerbait that he wasn't planning to use today. It enticed a bite from a four-pounder that came unhooked right at the boat. That's when Tucker realized he'd left a hook cover on the spinnerbait from Wednesday's practice, when he wasn't trying to land a fish.
"Then I lost a three-pounder as I was lifting it in the boat," Tucker said. "It hasn't been a good day. I've got two fish and I should have five."
As to an earlier post about Mike Iaconelli and John Crews committing to finish Day One in Shaw Lake — wrong. Crews and Ike got out of here after only about 30 minutes of not catching anything. Terry Scroggins, on the other hand, has caught one bass, missed what appeared to be a good one, based on the bend in his rod, and continues to cast a crankbait through the stump field that is Shaw Lake.