Story by Justin Brouillard | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
As the dust settles on day one, those anglers who targeted smallmouth prevailed. With only one angler in the top five bringing all largemouth to the scales, the smallmouth game or a mixed bag of both is dominating early on. With much of the field opting for largemouth and the water conditions different than in 2022, the schools are more spread out and bigger fish are harder to come by.
Coming into the event, Patrick Walters had known that the offshore bite was his best chance to earn another NPFL victory but was weary of committing fully. With wind forecasted for day two, his half-day practice fishing shallow be the difference in his tournament. In 2022, Walters brought two good bags to the scales but failed to secure a limit on day two, which ultimately cost him.
This year, with the wind blowing, look for Walters to tuck into the shallows of Saginaw Bay to fish for a limit of largemouth before venturing back offshore.
Louis Fernandes weeded through 60+ bass to catch his limit. Compared to the smallmouth guys catching 6-12 bites, Fernandes is right at home doing what he loves. He believes he is fishing differently than anyone in the field and if he can continue to get one or two big bites per day, he will be right where he needs going into Showdown Saturday.
The California angler is making a long run and sticking with a shallow pattern to catch his fish. He is fully committed and believes he can secure 15 pounds fairly easily while covering both water he located in practice and running new water.
The unofficial leader in the Progressive Angler of the Year race is now Todd Goade. With a lot of the tournament left at Saginaw in a tight race, after day one, Goade did what he needed to take the lead. Coming into the event, Goade practiced and planned for different wind conditions and was going to take his shots when given the opportunity. On day one, landing in the third-place spot, he was extremely thrilled.
For day two with expected winds, he is not necessarily laying up, but he can focus on fishing more protected areas of the lake to get a limit and only venture offshore if the conditions allowed. He is not fighting from behind so far in the event and has to feel good about his chances of bringing a double-digit limit to the scales on day two.
In fourth and fifth place, Trent Palmer and Mike Corbishley are rooming with leader Patrick Walters and it’s no surprise they also committed, mostly, to the offshore bite. Palmer is also weary of the wind and felt like he survived on day one while not even fishing his best two areas.
Palmer and Corbishley are both keeping an eye on the wind for day two and will let the condition dictate where and how they fish.
Coming into the event, Timmy Reams was leading the AOY race but slipped slightly on day one. While 20th place is not a bad event, Reams only has room to grow in the standings while Goade is already near the top. One big bite on the day can jump him way up in the standings and I still expect another top ten for one of the most consistent anglers over the last two NPFL seasons.
Rest of the best:
Stu Martel 18-3
Barron Adams 16-11
Ron Johnson 15-14
Hunter Baughman 15-12
Dustin Smith 15-10
Check out the day one leaderboard, here!
Weather Watch
Anglers can expect a mix of sun and clouds on day two with highs in the low 80s. Winds will be expected NNW from 5 to 10 MPH.
How to Watch
Tune in today and tomorrow to watch daily action from Saginaw Bay, with Live Coverage here and on the FREE PHYX TV App beginning this morning from 8 AM to 1 PM.
Follow along and watch the daily LIVE Leaderboard, LIVE Blog, and on-the-water photo galleries and blogs of the anglers on Saginaw Bay.
Under the Go Live Tab, choose LIVE Broadcast or check out the real-time leaderboard on the Weigh Live Tracker with estimated weights entered by the anglers on the water and join us for the LIVE Weigh-ins.
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