HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Day 1 of the Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Hamilton impressed at the scales – six boaters caught more than 15 pounds, and big bass hit the scales pretty steadily throughout weigh-in. In the lead, Buddy Benson weighed 20 pounds, 3 ounces, thanks in large part to a mammoth 9-6 he wrangled midway through the day. In second, Matteo Turano weighed 19-10, and Tanner Hadden and Clint Knight both caught more than 18 pounds to finish the day in third and fourth, respectively.
Day 2 should prove critical, as the standings below seventh are stacked as tight as can be – 9-12 is good for 26th place and 13-12 currently stands in eighth. Making the Top 10 is going to be a real rodeo, especially considering the size of the fish that are evidently available on Hamilton at the moment.
Benson gunning for the win, again
Despite his young age, Benson is fishing his third consecutive All-American, and after finishes of third and fourth, he’s looking to do just a little better this time. Today, a midday kicker propelled him to the top of the leaderboard.
“I caught it at probably 12 o’clock,” Benson said. “I had 12 1/2 pounds on my scale and then I pulled up on a little clay point. I thought it was, like, a carp or something, laying on a little brush pile in probably 5 or 6 foot of water. I pitched over there and it came up.
“I told my co-angler when I hooked it, I didn’t know if it was a bass or a catfish or what it was, but I just knew it was giant. And it came up and could only get, like, part of its head out of the water, and I fought it, fought it, fought it – finally got it in. I literally could barely stand up for, like, five or 10 minutes.”
That fish obviously vaulted Benson into an enviable position, but 12 pounds was still a pretty good start – plenty of other anglers would have loved 12 pounds today.
“I thought I was going to do at least solid,” Benson said of his practice. “I thought I would have at least 12 or 13 pounds, but I didn’t see a lot of big ones in practice. I didn’t know if I could get much more than that, but I knew there were big ones in here to be caught. I felt like I got a little something figured out that’s a little different, but at the same time, a 9-pounder changes everything.”
As the event goes on, one thing that Benson has going for him is his comfort with the fishery. Though his Georgia address doesn’t make him a local, Benson is a modern angler, and Day 1 of the event seemed to play into the hands of the more youthful anglers in the field.
“I definitely feel like [Hamilton] fishes pretty good to my strengths, just being clear, and the fish like to roam around on bait, which is a lot like home,” he said. “So, I definitely feel pretty comfortable here. And I always like fishing grass, so when I saw there was grass in here, that kind of made me smile a little bit.”
He’ll be smiling a lot if he can maintain for two more days – with the last two winners being Georgia products, he’s seen how far an All-American win can go first-hand.
“It would mean everything,” Benson said of the prospect. “Especially watching the last two people win it from the hometown, just seeing what it did for them. It would mean everything; it would truly be crazy.”
Turano in the hunt in his first All-American
A recent standout performer on the Tennessee River, Turano won last year’s Regional on Pickwick to make his first All-American. Today, a mid-morning adjustment got him on a roll.
“It was a super slow morning,” said Turano, who recently moved to Tennessee from Illinois. “I was all down in the dumps, and I just felt like I needed to keep switching spots. I finally pulled up to an area and caught a 3-pounder on a lure that I haven’t caught one on this week. And then it gave me some confidence to just keep that in my hands and keep moving. And no more than, like, five minutes later, I caught that 7-pounder.”
Most of the top pros had a really big fish, and Turano was no exception – it’s clear that kickers will go a long way this week.
“I feel like I’m in the right area, and I’m seeing some big ones,” he said. “I just need to cover as much water as I can and hopefully get another big bite. This lake reminds me of a lake I used to fish back home in Illinois, Lake Springfield, and it’s a grind all day, but you really just have to put your head down and grind for that one big bite.”
Turano and his family moved to Tennessee a few years ago, and since then, he’s been putting a ton of time in on the water. Winning the Regional in the fall was the culmination of that effort, and he’s in the hunt for a lot more this week.
“Winning that Regional and coming here, it was a dream come true; I’m super thankful to be here,” he said. “When I caught that big fish today, I know how close the weights are, and I was like, ‘Man, this could be it.’ I’ve been thinking about it all day, and it’s not even the end of day one.”
Top 10 boaters
1. Buddy Benson – 20 – 3 (5)
2. Matteo Turano – 19 – 10 (5)
3. Tanner Hadden – 18 – 8 (5)
4. Clint Knight – 18 – 1 (5)
5. Zack Fogle – 17 – 15 (5)
6. Harbor Lovin – 15 – 4 (5)
7. Jake Lawrence – 14 – 15 (5)
8. Mike Brueggen – 13 – 12 (5)
9. Mel Kennedy – 13 – 6 (5)
10. Cody Ross – 12 – 15 (5)
Standafer tops on co-angler side
With the co-angler limit set at three bass in the BFLs this year, Scott Standafer did about as much as you could ask for on Day 1. Weighing three for 12-6, he’s solidly in the lead, and an 8-9 kicker did a lot of the damage for him. In second, Richard Williams tallied 11-11, and Brian Townley is holding down third with 9-11.
“I was just looking for three bites – I was happy for any three, and I got lucky and got a big one and got blessed,” said Standafer. “That one fish was more weight than I thought I was going to catch on three fish.”
Fishing behind Mike Brueggen, a living legend at the BFL level, Standafer had a standout day of fishing.
“That was fun,” he said. “This is my first time, it don’t get much better than this at the amateur level of fishing.”
Top 10 co-anglers
1. Scott Standafer – 12 – 06 (3)
2. Richard Williams – 11 – 11 (3)
3. Brian Townley – 9 – 11 (3)
4. Robert Massey – 8 – 08 (3)
5. Nathan Hall – 8 – 00 (3)
6. Kade Wesner – 7 – 03 (3)
7. Bill Hockaday – 6 – 11 (3)
8. Brent Jones – 6 – 06 (3)
9. Andy Morita – 6 – 04 (3)
9. Tony Stevens – 6 – 04 (3)