All ten of today’s final qualifiers relished the thought of fishing Lake Guntersville without a horde of other anglers around. The biggest five-bass limit of the tournament so far was the 24-pound, 12-ounce sack that Kelley Jaye weighed on Saturday. There are expectations of bigger bags today.
“Somebody’s likely to bring in 26 or 27 pounds with the way things are going,” said Matt Arey, who leads after three days with 62-13. “Everything should be right (Monday), and I need to make the most of it.”
Who will make the most of it today? That’s what this tournament may come down to – just today. There’s a separation of only 2 pounds, 3 ounces between Arey and second-place Chris Zaldain. Matt Herren starts the day 3-11 back. Also within five pounds are Lee Livesay (4-11) and Brandon Lester (4-9).
But on a lake like Guntersville, everyone has a shot today. Big bass the first three days is the 7-pounder Bernie Schultz caught on Day 1. That’s likely to be topped today too. It’s Big Monday, Big Bass, Big Stage, Big Dreams on Lake Guntersville.