The difficulty of consistency and the rewards of one good day were on full display Friday in the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Alabama’s Smith Lake.
On the difficulty side, example No. 1 was Day 1 leader Hunter Shryock, whose 15-pound, 15-ounce limit Thursday was followed by 10-4 Friday. He dropped to 14th place.
On the rewards side, example No. 1 is Todd Auten, who jumped from 62nd place (10-10) to 10th place with 16-0 Friday. That’s the biggest bag of the tournament so far, by one ounce.
Then there’s the two-day king of consistency, Drew Benton. He weighed 13-4 both days and moved up from 16th place Thursday to 12th Friday.
“I did that the most inconsistent way you possibly can,” laughed Benton.
All three of the above-mentioned anglers have one thing in common, they’re fishing shallow and keeping it simple. No one is keeping it any simpler than Shryock, who is throwing a Berkley Choppo topwater lure all day long. It’s what produced his big bag on Day 1, which included the big bass of the day, 4 pounds, 7 ounces.
“I missed a 3-pound spot on Day 1 that would have given me about 17 ½ pounds,” Shryock said. “That would be just about a perfect day out here right now. (Friday) a 4- or 5-pound spot came completely unglued on my bait in the last 30 minutes and somehow didn’t get it.”
That fish would have moved Shryock right back among the leaders, and it’s what’s going to keep him keep on keeping on.
“It might be a sinking ship, but I’m going to ride it,” said Shryock, who is now one of only three anglers who have made all seven Day 2/Top 50 cuts this year. (Tournament leader Cody Huff and 26th-place Jacob Foutz are the other two.)
Todd Auten has been throwing two baits both days, a jig and a buzzbait. “I did the same thing I did the first day, just in different areas,” Auten said. “I caught one big spot out of shallow shore grass. At different times of the day, I’ll put down one rod and pick up the other. I’m trying to catch largemouths, but I’m catching mostly spots.”
Auten, the 58-year-old Lake Wylie, S.C. pro, did have two largemouths in his limit Friday, including a 4-6 that just missed taking big bass honors. For the second day in a row big bass was an4-7. Auten has had some success on Smith Lake in the past, finishing 2nd in a Bassmaster Open in 2014 and 6th in a 2017 Open.
The key to success for the shallow water anglers has been bright sunshine. It creates a shade line along the banks. You’ll hear the anglers frequently mention “wolfpacks,” small schools of bass chasing bait inside that shade line.
For Benton, his inconsistent consistency, as he put it, refers to two different scenarios producing the same 13-4 each day. Consistent are the baits he’s throwing, a topwater and a 7 ¼-inch Clutch Glide Bait. He was struggling on Day 2, “Then about 10:30 something changed,” Benton said. “It positioned the shade line and the wolfpacks started running.
“They’re never in the same place. The shade just positions them. If there’s a single fish, those are really hard to catch. If there are two or more, you can get them to bite. They’ll compete for your bait.”
Benton has been concentrating on largemouth bass. His 5-fish limit on Day 1 was all largemouths. Friday he had three largemouths and two spots.
“This will be an event where anybody who makes the top 10 Sunday has a chance to win,” he said.
And based on Auten’s rise from 62nd to 10th on Day 2, anybody in today’s top 50 has a chance to make Championship Sunday.
