The wind blew harder, and in more random directions, than just about everyone expected today at Lake Champlain.
“I don’t know who the weatherman is here but I need to talk to him,” said rookie Wesley Gore (14th, 58-4), who had his worst day of the tournament and fell from six places and out of the Top 10.
The gusts affected different pros in different ways. For example, Chris Johnston (3rd, 61-6) noted that to get his bait down in front of the targeted fish, he had to go up to a half-ounce weight, which gives the spastic smallmouths more leverage to throw the lures. He somehow still made lemons into lemonade, and while his 19 pound 8 ounce limit was the worst he’s weighed in three days, it didn’t immediately cost him, as he rose from 4th to 3rd place.
But the impacts of the wind that the anglers have lived through this week will be felt in ways that aren’t immediately obvious. First and foremost, it pushed back the end of the tournament, and shortened practice for next week’s win-and-you’re-in event just 100 miles to the west. More significantly, though, it put strain on every available muscle and mechanical part.
We’re at the point in the season where everyone is already tired and beaten down. Another day of big waves – especially when the consensus seems to be that it’ll take long runs to win next week – can be costly, even if fighting them is beneficial in the short run. There are lots of races to be determined, everything from both standalone tournaments to Angler of the Year to Rookie of the Year to the mere ability to requalify, and all of them may hinge on a single decision or a single transom bolt.
I like having this much up in the air at this late date, but then again I get paid the same either way. I’m sure the anglers, at least those sitting pretty, would love a little bit more certainty. Here’s what I saw, heard, thought and surmised as 50 pros competed on the tour’s favorite lake:
Manic Mondays – This year there have been three Championship Mondays. Tournament leader Ed Loughran (1st, 63-14) is the only angler who has qualified to fish on all three. Someone call Susanna Hoffs for his new walk-up music. Patrick Walters, JT Thompkins, Trey McKinney, John Garrett and Will Davis Jr. have each competed on two Mondays in 2024.
AOY Contenders with Points to Gain – Justin Hamner (28th, 56-11) will head to the next event leading the AOY race, but without a chance to improve his points tally tomorrow. Of those anglers with a legit chance to win the AOY this year, only Chris Johnston and Jacob Foutz will compete on this Championship Monday. Johnston is currently in 3rd at Champlain, which means that he has very few points to gain, and a chance to lose more. Foutz is in 6th, but just over a pound out of 2nd, and about a pound ahead of 10th. At a point where every ounce counts, there’s a lot riding on each Monday cull. Cory Johnston (9th, 59-12) will also fish, and appears to have an outside shot at AOY. He’s in 9th at the event, which gives him lots of points to gain, but it’ll take a lot of falling dominoes for him to claim the title.
Foutz Flips It – Eleven straight Elite Series cuts is impressive by any metric, but what Jacob Foutz has done is even more stunning when you realize that the streak was immediately preceded by eight straight missed cuts spanning two years. Worst among them was a 100th place finish at the Sabine that immediately preceded the turnaround, but that bad beat also had four finishes between 81st and 89th. After finishing 68th in the 2024 AOY race, one year later he’s in position to compete for the AOY title.
An Opportunity for Foutz – Coming off that tough 2023 season, Foutz made waves in the industry with a video explaining the difficulties he had making a living as a pro. This week he has a legitimate shot at his first Elite Series win, which would then put him in prime position to win the AOY title. It’s at that point that the real work of cementing a career would start. Very few anglers win two titles, even in a great carer. Of the limited number of anglers who’ve won multiple AOYs, only Brandon Palaniuk (2022 and 2017) and Gerald Swindle (2016 and 2004) compete today. They’ve had Hall of Fame careers, and neither have won a Classic, but both capitalized on their existing popularity and recognition when they did win a title, and even more when they won a second. Someone would do Foutz a favor to point back to the list of Classic winners who didn’t meaningfully boost their careers when they had the chance – you’ve got to make hay while the sun shines.
So You’re Saying There’s a Chance – The difference between 1st and 10th place is 4 pounds 11 ounces. The difference between 2nd and 10th is a mere 2-9. Everyone who’s fishing tomorrow still has a chance to win.
Mr. Consistency – Matt Robertson (2nd, 61-12) is the only angler who has weighed in 20 or more pounds each day. Last year at Champlain, in a tournament where he ended up 10th after weighing in 18-12 on Day Four, he likewise caught 20 or more each of the first three days. His three day weight then was 61-06. This year he has 6 ounces more.
Gee Stands Alone – Robert Gee (5th, 60-13) is the lone rookie in the Top 10 this week. The only other time we’ve had fewer than two in 2024 was at the St. Johns, when there were none. The group of first-years went a little crazy at Fork, when five of them fished all four days – winner Trey McKinney, plus Tyler Williams, Wesley Gore, Kyle Patrick and Ben Milliken.
Twenties vs. Twenties – Last year through three days five anglers had weighed in 20 or more pounds each day, and two weighed in at least that amount all four days. Notably, the winner, Kyoya Fujita, was not amongst the latter group. This year Fujita was 46th with 54-10.
Ups and Downs — Zero anglers in the Top 10 saw their weights go up every day. Four of them – Robert Gee, Jacob Foutz, Will Davis Jr. and Greg DiPalma — saw decreasing returns from Day One to Day Two to Day Three.
Loughran’s Scale – Loughran has a reputation among the BASS staff for providing the most accurate daily BassTrakk estimated weights. Today the board had him at 21-10 when he culled at 1:43pm. He eventually weighed in 21-14. Was he unusually inaccurate? Was he sandbagging? Or was his cameraman estimating the weights?
Wes Logan (60th, 35-13) on Robert Gee – “When he catches them, it’s Top 10 catching them, not like forties and fifties.” Indeed, with this Top 10, Gee has five of them in his BASS career (17 total events), including three as an Elite in eight tries. Backing up Logan’s point, that’s more Top 10s as an Elite than forties and fifties – Gee was 40th at the Harris Chain and 52nd at Wheeler.
The injured Wes Logan on what he would have done if he’d made the cut to fish today – “I would have 100% went.” After bulldozing his way out of the ER to get on the water yesterday, did anyone have any doubt?
Mid-morning Matt Robertson – “I gotta tell you how nice it is. I haven’t looked at that Livescope all day.”
Bryan Schmitt (38th, 55-11) – “Champlain doesn’t owe me anything. Today she stung me a bit.”
Karma Points – As he competed for his first Elite Series regular season victory, Chris Zaldain took valuable time to make sure Bryan Schmitt and his fish got back to weigh-in.
Tyler Williams (24th, 57-1) — “We get to go from waves to even bigger waves.”
Drew Cook (31st, 56-6) – “I just weighed in the first largemouth that I’ve ever weighed at Champlain and I caught him in 35 feet of water on a rock.”
Robert Gee — “When it’s calm, it’s my favorite lake in the world.”
Swindleism of the Day — “The great minner pond in the sky.”
Elite Unanimity — The Elite Series pros can rarely agree on even the most insignificant matters, but I’ve yet to hear a single one of them say they dislike Champlain. Over and over and over again during weigh-in we heard some iteration of “This is my favorite lake in the country.”
