FORT WORTH, Texas — Neither the Bassmaster Elite Series nor the Bassmaster Opens offer the opportunity for unlikely comebacks on the final day of competition that exist at the Bassmaster Classic. In the Elite Series and the Opens, only 10 anglers compete on the final day. Twenty-five anglers will be on Lake Ray Roberts today.
You don’t have to dig far into the historical records of Classic history to find some incredibly unlikely comebacks. Championship Sunday at the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour offers another possibility for a winner coming from way back in the pack.
The key ingredient is a lake that offers an abundance of big bass and the possibility of catching a huge five-bass limit. Day 2 leader Easton Fothergill demonstrated what’s possible at Lake Ray Roberts with his 29-pound, 6-ounce limit Saturday. He starts the final day with an 8-pound, 8-ounce lead over his closest competitor, Cory Johnston.
What’s possible at Ray Roberts? “Forty pounds, oh yeah, for anybody,” said Texas angler Lee Livesay, who is in 4th place, 9-12 back of Fothergill.
The most recent example of unlikely Classic comebacks came right here in the state of Texas. In 2019 at Lake Conroe near Houston, Jordan Lee didn’t catch a limit either of the first two days – three bass on Day 1 and four on Day 2. He was in 15th place going into the final day, 13 pounds, 14 ounces behind leader Brent Ehrler, before sacking 27-4 to win the Classic by 1-9 over second-place Steve Kennedy. Jordan’s total was 56-10.
Similarly, Randy Howell came from 11th place, 9 pounds behind Day 2 leader Edwin Evers to win the 2014 Classic on Alabama’s Lake Guntersville. Howell weighed 29-2 on the final day to win by one pound over Paul Mueller. It was at Guntersville on Day 2 where Mueller set the single-day Classic record five-bass limit of 32-3.
Something similar is possible today. That’s not to wish any ill will on Fothergill, the 22-year-old angler from Grand Rapids, Minn., who is a rookie rising star on the Bassmaster Elite Series. He would be a wonderful Classic champion. The point here is just the fact that anything is possible on the final day of the Bassmaster Classic, especially on a big bass fishery as fickle as Lake Ray Roberts.
“This lake is notorious for guys catching big bags, then catching two or three fish and bombing,” said Livesay.
The biggest bass that Patrick Walters has ever caught weighed 11.28 pounds. It came from Florida’s Kissimmee Chain of Lakes. He hooked one bigger at Ray Roberts Saturday.
“I think it was over 13 (pounds),” Walters said. “I’d never seen a bass that big on my (sonar). I didn’t think it was a bass. I pulled it off a tree. I worked it for about two minutes with a jerkbait. I finally hooked into it, and it was like a tree. I caught a 7-4 twenty minutes after that, and it looked very, very small in comparison.”
Even with that big miss, Walters weighed-in 23-1 Saturday to vault from 32nd place (12-13) on Day 1 to 11th place with a total of 35-14. He’s 18-7 behind Fothergill. Is any lead safe at Lake Ray Roberts?
“No, they live in this pond,” said Walters. “I had two 7s and lost one over 13. That’s the biggest bass I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been to (Lake) Fork many times, live on Santee Cooper and been to Florida many times.”
Eleven anglers caught 20 pounds or better on Day 1 at Ray Roberts, and 11 weighed 20 pounds or more on Day 2. But only five have done it two days in a row, and those are the top five anglers in the standings.
On the other hand, there were numerous examples of the fickle nature of Lake Ray Roberts. The most glaring example was Ben Milliken, who was in 43rd place with two bass weighing 8-2 on Day 1. He zoomed into 13th place with a limit weighing 26-11 on Day 2. Tyler Rivet was in 35th place with four bass totaling 11-7 on Day 1. He jumped to 8th place with 25-13 on Day 2.
If you don’t believe almost anything is possible in the Classic finale today, you’re not paying attention.
