DECATUR, Ala. – Brandon Palaniuk competed in the Bassmaster Open last May on Wheeler Lake. He almost won it, finishing 7 ounces behind winner Adam Rasmussen’s three-day total of 54-15. Palaniuk was excited about coming back here when the Whataburger Bassmaster Elite was announced on the 2024 schedule. After three days of practice, the thrill is gone.
“It’s amazing how much better it was in the Open,” Palaniuk said. “You could catch them any way you wanted. This year, you can’t catch them any way you try.
“I’m just baffled after being here last year to see how good it can be. If I didn’t know better, I’d say (the bass) died.”
Palaniuk, the two-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year, does know better. It’s almost a full month later than the May 18-20 Open last year. There’s no bass spawn or shad spawn to take advantage of, it’s about to get really hot with temperatures well into the 90s forecast over the next four days, and most important of all, there’s no current in the Tennessee River. Water releases from Lake Gunterville Dam have slowed to 15,000 to 11,000 cubic feet per second. That dam forms the headwaters of Wheeler Lake, which stretches 60 miles long on the Tennessee River.
“It’s typical Tennessee River in that these fish are so conditioned to current,” said Elite Series veteran Greg Hackney, who also fished the Open last year, finishing 25th. “Here’s the deal. We’re late, it has quit raining and the current is shut off. It’s just dead stagnant. There’s still a good supply of fish. But as far as getting bit, it’s the toughest I’ve ever seen it here.”
“It’s might be boat number bingo,” said two-time Bassmaster Classic champion Jordan Lee, who will be sleeping at his nearby Cullman, Ala., home this week.
Lee was referring to early boat takeoff numbers having an advantage in getting on key spots, like in the Decatur Flats. And key spots seem to be in short supply now. Lee won’t have any advantage in the bingo game today. He’s boat number 82 at the 6 a.m. CDT launch. (The boat numbers are reversed on Day 2, so he’ll launch 18th on Friday.)
“I think this lake always fishes better in May, especially early May when the shad are spawning. Fish get predictable,” Lee said. Two years ago this lake was fishing better than it has in a long time, and it was good again last year too.
“But this week, I’ve just been scratching my head like everybody else. I think there’s going to be a lot of soft plastics fished offshore, a lot of worm dragging.”
The Elite Series was last here April 28-May 1, 2016. Takahiro Omori won that tournament with a four-day total of 81 pounds, 6 ounces. Among the top anglers in that one who are competing this week, John Crews was third, Steve Kennedy was fourth, Hackney was sixth and Gerald Swindle was 10th.
“Before we got here for practice, I predicted it would take 75 pounds to win,” Hackney said. “Now, I’m going to say 70 pounds, and if anything, I’d bet that’s going to be high.”
Kennedy was excited when he saw water releases from Guntersville Dam at 70,000 to 80,000 cfs last week. It had dropped to 40,000 cfs when practice started Monday. It has been falling every day since. It 11,000 cfs overnight Wednesday.
“It’s brutal,” said Kennedy, who drew boat number 3 for Thursday’s takeoff. “I didn’t find any fish, like practically none. I did not get a bite offshore, so I’m going to go shallow.
“Somebody is going to catch them. I just don’t know how.”
