LA CROSSE, Wis. — Tom Monsoor’s fish aren’t where they’re gonna be, but they’re on the way. Intercepting them en route delivered a Day 1 limit of 19 pounds, 6 ounces, which leads the Turtlebox Bassmaster Open at Upper Mississippi River presented by Battery Tender.
“The (bass) just got done eating the bedding sunfish,” said Monsoor, the La Crosse pro that won last month’s Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier at Upper Mississippi River presented by Lowrance. “Being a local, I know where some are gonna go and they weren’t there.
“I thought, ‘Man, this is gonna be a bummer,’ but where I didn’t think I was gonna get ’em I did get ’em. They’re in transition right now. A few of them started to get to a couple of spots. Hopefully, there will be more coming.”
Monsoor said his practice did not leave him with high expectations, so he was pleasantly surprised by what the tournament’s opening round produced.
“I didn’t think I was going to do good at all; I was hoping I’d catch a limit,” Monsoor said. “During practice, you catch one fish in a spot and you leave, so you don’t know what’s there. I went back today and caught a couple of nice ones in each spot.”
Following Wednesday’s rainy conditions, Day 1 dawned with a cloudy, dreary look that yielded to partly sunny skies by midday. Monsoor said the day’s complexion did not impact his productivity. In his view, it was all about seasonal movements.
With the event launching out of Pool 8, tournament waters also include pools 7 and 9. Monsoor committed his time to the local pool and fished grass edges.
Renowned for his swim jig prowess, Monsoor put that reaction bait to work and caught all but one of his fish that way. Monsoor also caught one of the fish he weighed on an urchin style bait.
“In practice, I caught my biggest fish on an urchin, so I had to throw it,” Monsoor said. “I caught a 3-10 on it today.”
With this round tentacled bait literally dominating the 2026 bass tournament scene, Monsoor’s old-school mindset had him resisting this bait phenomenon as long as possible.
He finally relented and started making his own urchins — but he fishes them his way.
“I fished the urchin on my swim jig without a skirt,” Monsoor said. “It’s perfect; it has a weight, it has a hook, and it has a keeper. I have some old swim jigs with a Gamakatsu EWG hook that’s extra long and it’s perfect for big urchins.”
Looking ahead to Day 2, Monsoor said he’s planning to repeat his Day 1 game plan, but he’s making no assumptions.
“Today was a fun day, but tomorrow, you can’t expect that again,” he said. “I’ll just go fishing and see what happens.”
Aiden Denzer, also of La Crosse, is in second place with 17-10. After experiencing what he described as the best practice he’s ever had on these waters, Denzer got his business handled in short order.
“I caught (my weight) in an hour and a half and then I went prefishing the rest of the day,” Denzer said of his limit that comprised three smallmouth and two largemouth.
Trusting his local knowledge, Denzer remained in Pool 8. With a keen understanding of the river’s dynamics, he said targeting an area with significant current flow was the key to minimizing the impact of a low, muddy river.
“I fished slow with bottom baits,” Denzer said. “I think they’re in a weird stage right now where they’re trying to get on shad, but they’re still on crawfish. I’m just trying to match the hatch.”
Anchoring his bag with a 4-pounder, Denzer said he’s hopeful that the area he found can carry him through the event’s final day.
“I tried to save some for tomorrow and Saturday,” Denzer said of his decision to lay off his fish after securing what he felt was a strong first-round limit. “I hope I can do it again tomorrow. Smallmouth tend to move a lot here.”
Alex Wetherell of Middletown, Conn., is in third place with 17-6. After his best practice spot failed to produce today, Wetherell rotated through several of his options and pieced together a solid performance.
“I tried to balance saving some stuff for tomorrow and having enough for today,” Wetherell said. “Around 9 a.m. I didn’t have a fish, so I ran everything else and thankfully, I got some good bites. I had a 4-pound, 14-ounce largemouth and a 4-pound smallmouth.
“I stayed in Pool 8 and ran probably 20 different spots. On one spot, I was able to get four to five fish, but for the most part, I’m looking for one good bite on each spot.”
Wetherell said he fished a mix of mats, rock and laydowns. His bait selection included soft plastics and crankbaits.
Wetherell holds the Phoenix Boats Big Bass lead with a 4-14.
Friday’s takeoff is scheduled for 6:30 a.m. CT at Veterans Freedom Park. The weigh-in will be held at the park at 2:30 p.m.
Explore La Crosse is hosting this event.
