WADDINGTON, N.Y. — When is a 23-pound, 2-ounce five-fish limit of smallmouth bass disappointing? When your name is Chris Johnston and you’re fishing the St. Lawrence River/Lake Ontario.
Johnston’s 23-2 left him in a three-way tie for 15th place after Day 1 of the Humminbird Bassmaster Elite at the St. Lawrence River. Progressive Angler of the Year contenders Jacob Foutz is 7th with 24-7 and AOY leader entering this event Justin Hamner is in a two-way tie for 29th with 22-1.
AOY points aren’t official until your place in the standings is final, but if the tournament had ended Thursday, Foutz would be on top with 749 points, Johnston would be second with 747 and Hamner would be third with 746.
Granted, this is a four-day tournament, but Day 2 could well be the most important day in the AOY race. The 101-angler field left in AOY order Thursday, from first to last. That order will be reversed today. Those three leaders coming into the tournament will be the last three out at this morning’s takeoff, which starts at 7:00 a.m. Instead of a 3 p.m. check-in time Thursday, the fourth and final flight has a 4:30 check-in time today.
“I got a little rushed today, trying to hit everything I thought I needed to,” said Hamner, who is trying to become only the third B.A.S.S. angler to win the Bassmaster Classic and the AOY title in the same year. Let’s be honest. I was a little jacked up. You’ve got two hours sitting in that (driver’s) seat, when you finally pull up, yeah, you’re ready to go. It took me awhile to calm down, then I had to leave.”
That’s just it. All three leaders, and at least half the rest of the field, are making the long run through the St. Lawrence River to Lake Ontario. The ride there and back leaves only about a 3- to 4-hour fishing window.
Asked if he was disappointed by his 23-2 bag on Day 1, Johnston said, “One hundred percent. I only got seven or eight bites, and I guarantee you I threw at 28 pounds. They wouldn’t bite. They’re getting well-educated. I knew that. I thought I could at least trick five or six big ones to bite. I only had three good bites, and I lost one.”
It marked the first time in now 21 days of Elite Series competition on the St. Lawrence River where Johnston hasn’t finished in the top 10.
Foutz, 26, from Charleston, Tenn., enjoys fishing for smallmouth bass. He led the tournament on Day 1 in 2022, his Elite Series rookie year, with 27-15.
“I love it, man. It’s my favorite thing in the world,” he said. “Smallmouth have always treated me well. I’m looking forward to getting back out there. In my mind, there’s no reason we can’t duplicate it or catch more than what we caught (Thursday).”
With his Day 1 total, Foutz has practically clinched making his 12th-straight Day 2/Top 50 cut, which dates back to 2023. But he, like Hamner and Johnston, has his eyes on a bigger prize.
“Yeah, it’s in my head,” Hamner said of the AOY title. “All those guys who say it ain’t, they’re liars. It’s all everybody wants to ask me about. We’ve got more time (Friday). I figured out my big fish I found in practice have pulled out a little bit deeper. It took me a couple of hours to figure that out. I finally did, and I caught a 5-12. Then I had to leave right after that.”
There was also a potential shakeup in the Dakota Lithium Rookie of the Year race. Trey McKinney, who started the tournament one point behind JT Thompkins is now the leader, based on his 13th-place finish on Day 1, with 724 points. Wesley Gore, 14th on Day 1, is second with 711. Thompkins dropped to third with 695 based on his 43rd-place finish Thursday.
Another Elite Series rookie is near the top of the tournament leaderboard for the third straight event. Robert Gee was second at Alabama’s Smith Lake in June, followed that with a third-place finish, three ounces behind winner Ed Loughran III, at Lake Champlain last week, and finished Day 1 at the St. Lawrence in second place with 25-12. Gee is now 5th in the ROY standings with 683 points, behind 4th-place John Garrett, who has 690 points.
