Just as every Elite Series angler predicted after practice, a 5-bass, 10-pound limit is going to keep you in the hunt at Lake Martin. Of the 110 anglers, 25 finished with between 10-0 and 10-15 on Day 1 — almost one-fourth of the field — ranging from 40th place Dustin Connell and Jamie Hartman with 10-15 each to 62nd place Adrian Avena, Jeff Kriet and Kevin VanDam with 10-0 each.
It was two-pound-spotted-bass city at the weigh-in. A total of 533 bass weighing 1,139-10 were brought to the scales when 100 of the 110 fishermen caught a limit. That’s an average bass of 2.14 pounds
Of course, not every bass weighed two pounds. They ranged from a 13-ounce spotted bass caught by Bobby Lane to the 6-pound, 11-ounce largemouth landed by Day 1 leader Cliff Prince, who also had a 6-3 in his 19-pound, 13-ounce bag.
Veterans of Lake Martin, like Mark Menendez, will tell you that it has remained remarkably consistent over the years. Menendez fished his second Top 100 tournament here in 1992 and competed often at Lake Martin in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He recalled having two phenomenal practice days where he caught over 20 pounds. But his best tournament day ever on this lake was yesterday when he had the third-place bag of 17-9.
One thing has changed: While the majority of the spotted bass aren’t big, they’re bigger than they used to be.
“I’m not seeing any of those little hammer-handles like I saw years ago,” Menendez said. “I’ve seen five here not weigh five pounds – many times – and be proud to have those five.”