Palaniuk Pleased with Table Rock Redemption
BRANSON, Mo. – Redemption, thy name is Brandon Michael Palaniuk.
After a 52nd-place finish during Stage Six on Table Rock Lake, BMP turned around just two weeks later to notch a second-place finish in the Bad Boy Mowers Stage Seven Presented by Covercraft.
“Definitely a better week than I had in Stage Six,” Palaniuk said. “It was nice to get a little redemption. I would have loved to come out with a win, but I just dug myself too much of a hole in the second period and I couldn’t come back from it. Credit to Wheeler, he did everything he needed to do and caught a bunch of fish.”
Searching for a School
Palaniuk ended his Championship Round with 39 bass for 69 pounds, 2 ounces, trailing the stage champion Jacob Wheeler by 14-14. The Idaho pro spent the majority of his day drop-shotting a Zoom Trick Worm or casting a Zoom Z-Swim swimbait on a 3/8-ounce head. Even though he came close to catching Wheeler, Palaniuk had some trouble getting the groups of fish to chase his bait in the second period.
“I could not get on a school,” Palaniuk explained. “I would pull up and catch one right away on the first or second cast but then it would pull the other fish off of the structure and they would shut down after that. I made some adjustments to fish a little bit differently in the morning. I caught some topwater fish as well but I feel like if we would have started about an hour earlier, I would have been lights out.”
History Nearly Repeated Itself
This was Palaniuk’s third career Top-10 finish in a tour-level event in the Ozarks. He won a B.A.S.S. Elite Series event in 2012 and took home an eighth-place finish in 2014, both on Bull Shoals Lake in northern Arkansas. For Palaniuk, the characteristics of the Ozark lakes make him feel like he’s back in Idaho.
“I really like to fish clear water and rocks,” Palaniuk admitted. “This area of the country reminds me a lot of home with the way the fish position and move around. I feel really comfortable fishing here. That’s why I’m glad I came back with a vengeance this time after finishing 52nd in Stage Six.”
Happy to be Here
For the second time this season, Palaniuk leaves a Championship Round without a stage championship trophy in hand. As competitive as the Huk pro can be, he prefers to look at the brighter side of things after missing out on a win.
“I try to be as positive about it as possible,” Palaniuk explained. “I gained some good points and cut a nice check. But, I hate losing. I’m still happy with making the adjustments that I did, sticking to my instincts, and having a shot during a Championship Round. That’s all you can really ask for.”
Palaniuk and the rest of the pros on the Bass Pro Tour finish out the regular season in Neenah, Wisconsin for Stage Eight on Lake Winnebago. Stage Eight begins June 25 and runs through June 30.