Canadians Cory Johnston 31th, Chris Johnston 41st, Gustafson 42th, Gallant 86th & Kung 101st
COLUMBUS, Miss. — Wesley Gore knew he had options, but his commitment to local waters delivered a limit of 17 pounds, 15 ounces that moved him atop the leaderboard at the Mountain Dew Bassmaster Elite at Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.
After placing fifth on Day 1 with 16-8, the Clanton, Ala., pro went on to tally 34-7. Gore heads into Semifinal Saturday with a lead of 2-7 over Dakota Ebare.
“I had another great day on the water,” Gore said. “It was a grind. I had seven keeper bites again, but I feel like I’m doing the right thing to win.”
While many of his competitors locked up and down from the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway’s Columbus Pool, where the tournament is based, Gore again took locking off the table and afforded himself maximum fishing time.
“I really wasn’t on anything,” Gore said of his practice results. “I felt like I could run down to Aliceville and catch 8-10 pounds, but I felt like if I stayed in Columbus, I might not catch a limit, but I would catch one or two big ones.
“I took that gamble the first day and slowly but surely, we have put it together every day. Hopefully, we can put it back together tomorrow and see where it goes.”
Gore said his day was a mix of yesterday’s water and a few new spots.
“I made a slight adjustment today and I moved areas,” Gore said. “The place I caught them yesterday, I only left there with two fish, but they were both 5-pounders.
“I went to some of my other areas and filled my limit with some small keepers and then went into a place where I had a decent bite in practice and culled two more. I had one really nice one, almost a 4-pounder, and a 2-pounder.”
Gore said he’s fishing backwater areas and catching his fish around grass. Some of his areas have standing timber, but the wood is purely incidental.
“I actually wish it wasn’t there,” Gore said of the timber. “It just gets in the way.”
While he kept his details brief, Gore said he’s using two moving baits, both of which have uniquely appealing visual features that seem to be helping him entice fish in the stained water.
“I’m fishing slowly, but quick,” Gore said. “I’m moving very slowly, but making a lot of casts and fishing fast-moving baits, trying to trigger those bigger bites.”
Gore said he’s planning to open his third day by picking up where he left off, but he’s mindful of the impending weather impacts that likely will shuffle the deck.
“We have a big front coming in and it’s gonna blow really hard out of the north and the temperature is gonna drop,” he said. “Tomorrow is gonna be a very challenging day and we gotta keep an open mind, get out there and hopefully catch a few of the right ones.
“It’s gonna be cold and, in the springtime, they don’t like that. If it’s meant to be, it’ll happen.”
Ebare, who makes his home in Brookeland, Texas, is in second place with 32 pounds. Coming off a ninth-place finish at the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour, Ebare caught a Day 1 limit of 13-10 and tied Buddy Gross for 16th place.
The second round of competition saw him add 18-6 — the day’s heaviest bag — and make a significant move up the leaderboard.
“I had a couple of big bites yesterday that I just missed my bait, so I had an opportunity to have a big bag yesterday,” Ebare said. “Today, I was just able to capitalize on a few bites that I got.
“I feel like there’s some good quality around me, but I’m not getting a lot of bites. I’m just having to keep my head down, stay positive and keep fishing.”
Ebare said he’s has been locking down one pool and catching his fish on a technique that’s different from his nearby competitors. Timing, he said, has been the most important detail.
“You can definitely fish through an area, turn around and fish right back through it and get bit,” he said. “This morning, I caught my first keeper on a stretch I had just fished. I didn’t get bit so I turned right back around and I caught one.
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