You’ll see two schools of thought as we head into practice at our fifth stop for the Bassmaster Elites — Lay Lake. Some will choose to go after the slightly easier to catch, but not as heavy spotted bass, while others will opt for chasing fewer bites with a better chance at a quality bite. But in the end, which strategy will lead to a victory?
Lay Lake will be relatively unknown to much of the field; however, a few interesting points are worth exploring. Michael Iaconelli and Larry Nixon both fished the 2002 Bassmaster Classic, which was held on this lake. This was a summer Classic and it took only 45 pounds for winner Jay Yelas to secure the victory.
The Bassmaster Opens visited Lay Lake back in December of 2020. It took just a hair over 15 pounds a day to win that event as well. A 46th-place finish in that event clutched the eventual Elite berth for Scott Martin.
Lay Lake is a current-driven body of water which means that when they’re pulling water through the dam, life is good. But on the other hand, if they shut it down, you better be ready for a grinder of a day. I suggest looking for anglers who understand how to fish lakes with current. Those slow days can be brutal, and just getting five keeper bites could keep you in the hunt.
There are two primary ways you’ll see anglers attacking the lake. The first will be fishing main lake points and current breaks, targeting a shad spawn and otherwise actively feeding fish. You’ll see plenty of quality spotted bass get caught this way throughout the event, and more than likely a few guys that target them will find their way to Championship Sunday. The second approach will be picking apart shallow vegetation with a frog or flipping bait looking for five of the right bites. I’d speculate that the bulk of the field on Championship Sunday will have been specifically targeting largemouth.
Let’s get into some picks.
BUCKET A: WELCHER
You’ll likely see a pattern emerge between the pundit articles and the ownership percentage in each bucket. When you have a relatively unknown body of water, it makes sense that people will pick based on the criteria they have on hand. In this case, there are a bunch of anglers from Alabama, and they should at least have some idea how to break down the lake.
Kyle Welcher has spent a lot of time on this lake fishing local tournaments before and likely even during his time as an Elite Series angler. He is going to be targeting those postspawn largemouth by slinging a frog and dropping a big weight on their heads.
Don’t forget about: Scott Canterbury
Scott Canterbury is from Odenville, Ala., which happens to be just north of this body of water. He will have plenty of knowledge and should be able to break down the lake efficiently.
BUCKET B: PALANIUK
Brandon Palaniuk just wrapped up the Santee Cooper Lakes Elite with yet another single-digit finish on that waterway. He feeds off of momentum and ice cream, and when he can also fish his strength, you better watch out. It’s been a few years since he has won one, and I’m sure he is hungry. He is exceptional with a frog in the grass, but he can also catch them walking a big topwater on points. If it becomes a post-spawn or shad-spawn event, he’s incredibly good at adjusting with the changing conditions. He is a balanced angler who is very aware of his surroundings, and that will bode well for him here.
Don’t forget about: Clifford Pirch
Give this man a Whopper Plopper and he will make some good TV for us. Anytime I think about Clifford Pirch, I remember a few years ago where he was catching absolute giants on a big plopper style bait. If the fish are in full-blown postspawn, that dog will hunt.
BUCKET C: LESTER
Santee Cooper Lakes weren’t good to Brandon Lester. He is sitting down in Bucket C with a bunch of other unlikely Bucket C hammers. My guess is he will be one that targets the main lake fish, and he can go to finesse tactics if the going gets tough. This should make for consistent results at the very least and hopefully will secure good points for my team.
Don’t forget about: Hank Cherry
Two-time Classic winner Hank Cherry will find any excuse to throw a jerkbait, and if there is a good shad spawn, he’ll certainly have an opportunity.
BUCKET D: CREWS
John Crews has built a career off of fishing shallow grassy cover, and there will be plenty of it to be explored here. Frogs, bladed jigs and Texas rigs are likely to be on the front deck for many anglers, including Crews. He hasn’t had the start to the season that he would have preferred, but he still has time to make adjustments and get back inside the Classic cut.
Don’t forget about: Wes Logan
Wes Logan won his first blue trophy while throwing a swimjig around shallow, flooded cover. Similar techniques are likely to play a major role here.
BUCKET E: DAVIS JR.
Will Davis Jr. is a local Alabama angler who lives just east of the lake. He has spent a ton of time fine tuning his craft on this very lake. He may be heavily owned, but there is a reason for that. This one should fit him perfectly.
Don’t forget about: Matt Herren
Being one of the best flippers in the world, Matt Herren should be quite comfortable here. There are plenty of backwaters and docks for him to pick apart. He is not used to being in Bucket E and really needs to get the train back on the tracks if he wants to have a shot at the 2024 Bassmaster Classic.
Mercury Bassmaster Drain the Lake Challenge
• Scott Canterbury
• Will Davis Jr.
• David Gaston
• Matt Herren
• Wes Logan
• Larry Nixon
• Matthew Robertson
• Josh Stracner
