Atkins tops 21 pounds at 10:30

Justin Atkins was a confident angler after weighing 22-14 and moving up from 8th place on Day 1 to 5th place on Day 2. Atkins is demonstrating this morning that his confidence was well-placed. Thanks in part to the 5-pound smallmouth pictured here and a 21-pound, 4-ounce limit in his livewell just before 10:30 this morning, Atkins has moved to the top of the BassTrakk leaderboard.

Atkins is in his first year on the Elite Series, but he doesn’t qualify as a rookie due to his success on other tours. The 31-year-old Florence, Ala., resident won the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Murray in his rookie season on that circuit. However, Atkins has struggled this season on the Elite Series. He was ranked 78th in Angler of the Year points entering this event. His best Elite finishes this year have been in Texas– with a 33rd on the Sabine River, and another 33rd on Lake Fork.

Atkins was an interested participant in the individual seminars New York B.A.S.S. Nation conservation director Barb Elliott provided during the three practice days this week at Waddington. He noted yesterday that he’d brought 10 lively smallmouth bass to the scales the first two days, thanks to learning how to fizz a smallmouth’s swim bladder from Elliott. All of Atkins’ fish have come from Lake Ontario, some in fairly deep water.

“It’s quick, and it’s easy, once you learn how to do it,” Atkins said. “She really does a good job of teaching that.”