Canadians: Cory Johnston 30th, Chris Johnston 40th, Kung 55th, Gallant 70th & Gustafson 72nd
Alabama's Randy Howell takes the Day 1 lead at the Whataburger Bassmaster Elite at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, S.C., with a weight of 21-11.
(Photo: Seigo Saito/ BASS)
BASS Press Release
ANDERSON, S.C. — Randy Howell did not know how his day would start, but he definitely knew where it would start.
Capitalizing on a key practice discovery, the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro from Guntersville, Ala., made the most of his early plan and laid the foundation for a five-bass limit of 21 pounds, 11 ounces that leads Day 1 of the Whataburger Bassmaster Elite at Lake Hartwell.
Heading into Friday’s second round of competition, the 2014 Bassmaster Classic champion leads Japanese sensation Kyoya Fujita by 1-2. Howell anchored his leading bag with a 7-pound, 15-ounce largemouth.
“I found that big fish on a bed in practice and shook her off on a green pumpkin purple/green Senko — I had my hook point cut off,” Howell said. “This morning, I lined up on it with my GPS and caught her on my first cast.
“A big fish on any lake in this game is huge, but man, 6-pounders are usually (considered) big here. So, to catch a (nearly) 8-pounder here — definitely, God is blessing me.”
Howell said his strong start has put a much-needed gust of wind in his sails.
“I really needed a good tournament,” Howell said. “I had two 57th places back to back (Pasquotank River and Lake Okeechobee) and I started with a bomb in the first Elite event (St. Johns River), so I have to climb my way out of a hole.
“Today was the first day that I just had that smooth momentum; everything went right.”
Howell said that surge of confidence fueled what would turn out to be a stellar day.
“After that big fish, the rest of the day got better because I already had that fish as a kicker,” Howell said. “This was one of the days you dream about.”
After boating his big bed fish, Howell caught the 1 1/4-pound male. From there, he moved to the main lake and filled his limit by throwing a Livingston Walking Boss for bass that were schooling on the blueback herring spawn.