“This is not the old Arkansas River,” said Lee Livesay, the winner of multiple Progressive Elite Series events, who spent nine of his formative years in Oklahoma. He weighed in 13 pounds, 12 ounces today and sits an ounce outside of the 50 cut.
Justin Hamner, who won a Bassmaster Classic in Oklahoma just two years ago, was equally surprised: “This ain’t the Arkansas River that everyone was talking about,” he said. With 15-7, he finds himself in a three-way tie for 29th. That’s the sort of bag that used to raise eyebrows and now it just raises expectations.
Indeed, with apologies to other flowing fisheries like the Sabine, the Red and all three rivers of Pittsburgh, this isn’t just any old river at all. Today we saw weights that look at home on Champlain or even the TVA system. It took 17-13 to slide inside the Top 10 and 13-13 to hit the Top 50 mark.
The days of being able to “12-pound ‘em to death” are over on the Elite Series. Today a 12-spot would’ve put an angler in 75th.
It’s unclear whether the river’s revitalization is the result of an overturned fertilizer barge – as some have suggested – a “Crossroads style” bargain from the Chamber of Commerce, or just the cycles of nature, but this week is going to be a tough time for pessimists and lowballers.
And don’t look now, but you can throw away the idea that the young guns can’t catch fish on shallow, muddy rivers. It remains to be seen whether they scoped anything at all, but right now we have two rookies at the top of the charts.
Day 1 in Muskogee had little downtime, as the fish catches threatened to overheat BassTrakk – but with just about everyone catching loads of fish, and most prime areas overloaded with boats, today’s largesse threatens to detract from tomorrow’s smiles. As with all tight tournaments, expect to see some flip-flopping.
Here’s what I saw, heard, thought and speculated on one of the most fish-filled days we’ve enjoyed in a long time:
Gerald Swindle (8th, 18-0) – “There’s always that one guy who’s gotta overdo it.” In this case, that one guy was leader Fisher Anaya, one of Swindle’s proteges. Be careful who you teach and how well you teach them.
Cut Weight Math – We’ve repeatedly cited the Elite Series cut weight standard as two times the first day’s weight, plus a pound. This year, however, it’s been right at doubling the Day 1 mark. At Guntersville, the cut weight was 2x plus an ounce. At Lake Martin it was 2x minus an ounce. At Tenn-Tom, it was 2x minus 3 ounces. Today there was a tie at the cut mark between Blake Capps and Sam Hanggi at 13-13. Double that and you get 27-10. There are 16 anglers within a pound of the cut looking in, and 10 anglers who are a pound or less above the cut weight.
Jason Christie – “You have to have a plan. Hopefully it works out. Today it worked out.”
The Old Switcheroo – Christie had his initial area to himself, although he was later joined by fellow Oklahoman Luke Palmer (69th, 12-8). The Tenn-Tom champ had no trouble getting bites early, but they were all small, many of them requiring use of a measuring board. A simple lure switch made a huge difference. “I could tell by the way they were biting the bait that they didn’t want it,” he said. “When I started throwing the second bait, they wanted it.” Not only were the hookups better, but the average size seemed to at least double. The last angler to win consecutive Elite Series regular season tournaments within a calendar year was Edwin Evers in 2015 when he won at Kentucky Lake and the St. Lawrence River.
Seems Like Old Times – Elite Series senior statesman Mark Menendez (82nd, 11-9) fished his first Arkansas River tournament, a “Country Boy Classic,” in 1985, before most of the current Elites were born.
Austin Felix – “I think it was about 3 gallons per pound today.” He’s fourth with 18-15, so that translates into 57 or so gallons. Even with Muskogee area stations charging below the national average, that’s still a hefty bill at week’s end. Several anglers reported using similar amounts of gas, especially those who locked down and then ran to the end of the lower pool.
Okie from Muskogee – Blake Capps, who ascended the stage to the sounds of Merle Haggard, desperately needed an edge or a boost of some sort. After finishing 101st in AOY last year, and 44th/75th/99th to start 2026, he is in danger of being relegated off the tour at season’s end. Today he landed in a precarious but not unpromising position – tied for the last spot inside the cut with 13-13. “I like it when the pressure is on and the pressure is definitely on,” he said.
Jacob Powroznik (40th, 14-10) – “If you’re around them, they bite. If you’re not, they don’t.”
Hudson’s River – Caleb Hudson entered the tournament leading Pake South in the Rookie of the Year race, 223 points to South’s 191. He potentially extended that lead today as he sits in second and South is in 60th. Fisher Anaya held down third in ROY, 68 points behind Hudson. He gained ground today by taking the early lead, but just a single point.
Start of Something Good? – In 2025, Wisconsin pro Pat Schlapper had a miserable start to the season, finishing 42nd at the St. Johns and then missing three consecutive cuts, two of them by a wide margin. But then he went on a tear, finishing out the season with five straight checks, including wins at the Sabine and La Crosse. Maybe he’s starting the redemption tour a little bit early this year. He came into Muskogee 87th in AOY, having missed all three cuts, but right now he’s lucky 13, just 7 ounces outside of the Top 10 with 17-6. “I did not expect that,” he said. “I caught three today that were bigger than anything I caught in practice.” He reported that it was a fun day and he got a few breaks. At one point a quality keeper got wrapped up in his trolling motor and somehow he managed to get it into the boat. “The goal tomorrow is just having a good day.”
Surprising Struggles – John Cox, who has fished eight Bassmaster Classics and seven in a row, missed the first three cuts of the season. He’s looking to right the ship and sits in 35th with 15-1.
Jordan Lee (33rd, 15-5) – “It’s probably one of the sketchiest places I’ve ever run a boat.” He hit something today and also posted a picture of his boat stuck during practice. While the service crews are available and fellow pros are often willing to help – for example, Jeff Gustafson brought in Bryan New today – the river’s hazards are another factor that could make or break someone’s tournament. It’s just one of several uncontrollable variables that mean this one likely won’t be over until the last bass is weighed.
Locked and Loaded – The original lock schedule had anglers loading up around 1 p.m., but the lockmaster subsequently extended the final opportunity to 2 p.m., giving some who locked down more time to fish.
Boomer Sooner – Other than Jason Christie (6th), it was generally a disappointing day for the Oklahomans in the field. Blake Capps is tied for 50th, Luke Palmer is in 69th and rookie Austin Cranford is in 91st.
Start Strong, Finish Stronger – Randy Howell finds himself in the Top 10 on Day 1 of the second consecutive Elite event. He started the Tenn-Tom in second but eventually fell to 25th after three days. Today he’s tied for ninth with 17-13, which has him 2-7 off the lead. He was one of the anglers who benefitted from the extra hour from the lockmaster today. Staying later allowed him to catch three or four of his best fish in the afternoon when he would otherwise have had to be in Pool 16. “If I had come back at 1pm I would’ve only had 12 pounds and I ended up with almost 18,” he said. “That last tournament was a one-day place. At this one I have a little more of a pattern,” he said, hopefully.
International Anglers – Jeff Gustafson and Cory Johnston, tied for 29th with 15-7 (Alabamian Justin Hamner is also tied with them) are the top-ranked international anglers. Taku Ito (32nd, 15-6) is the only other international angler inside the cut.
Fashion Throwback – Zona’s pastel OP Shorts from the pre-Ronnie era.
AOY Hit or Miss – While past two-time AOYs Brandon Palaniuk (3rd) and Gerald Swindle (8th) are inside the Top 10, other past AOYs including Kyle Welcher, Chris Johnston, Mike Iaconelli, Greg Hackney, Seth Feider and Scott Canterbury are all outside the cut, with four of them in 81st place or worse.
Mistaken Lure Sighting – Pink Helicopter Lure.
Limiting Out – Ninety eight out of 100 competitors weighed in a limit today. Five of those limits weighed less than 10 pounds. Mike Iaconelli and Chris Zaldain are tied for 89th with 11 pounds. Just more reason to believe we’ll see someone vault up from the 80s or even the 90s to make the cut.
Blake Capps — “They call them finesse spinnerbaits but I call them finance spinnerbaits.” A check of $10,000 or greater will go a long way toward preserving his Elite Series career.
The biggest question for tomorrow is not the wind, nor the locking schedule, although both of those will in some way play a role. Rather, it is seeing how these fish respond to the heavy beating that they took today. It looked good on the live broadcast, but there are few if any secrets out there and sore-mouthed bass are unlikely to bite again in the short term.
Someone like Christie who has an area more or less to himself – and more places to go – could have a decided advantage.
It may just depend on how well Swindle taught Anaya, and how much gas a few others still have in the tank.
