Cunningham in Control After Day 2 of the All-American
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The weather changed but the man at the top stayed the same — at least on the boater side — at the 39th annual Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine All-American. Rain and cloudy skies on Thursday made way for warmer temperatures and sunny skies on Day 2 on Lake Hamilton.
That change in weather didn’t hurt Day 1 leader Connor Cunningham. In fact, it helped him grow his lead to 8 pounds, 5 ounces over second-place Hunter Eubanks. Cunningham finished his day with a five-fish limit worth 15-2, pushing his two-day total to 32-10 heading into the final day of competition. Cory Guinn ended the day on top of the co-angler side with a two-day total of 18-7, 3-8 up on second place.
The field is now cut down from 49 boaters and Strike King co-anglers to just the Top 10 boaters and co-anglers for Saturday’s final day.
Cunningham’s All-Or-Nothing Strategy Keeps Paying Off
Cunningham mentioned yesterday that he’s taking a “swing for the fences” approach to this All-American. It paid off in a big way on Day 1 with a 17-8 bag and the lead. He decided to go with the same plan on Day 2, thinking he was either going to come away with similar results or fall flat.
“It worked today, so we’ll see if it can work one more day,” Cunningham said shortly after weighing in his bag. “I had two super great co-anglers that let me do whatever I needed to do, so I really appreciate them. It was a grind today, I didn’t have a limit until about 12:30 p.m. I caught seven today and was lucky enough to have that be good enough.”
The Missouri angler’s Day 2 bag of 15-2 was the biggest bag of the day yet again and increased his lead to a comfortable 8-5. Even after building a big lead and catching the biggest bag two days in a row, Cunningham still thinks he has a lot left in the tank.
“I haven’t really even fished what I found in practice yet,” Cunningham said with a grin. “I’ve been trying to save some fish because this lake is so small. I’m going to milk everything I have tomorrow for what it’s worth. I’m covering so much water and I have about 30 different spots all across the lake I feel comfortable fishing.”
Cunningham only caught seven fish all day, one of which was near 5 pounds. Although he excelled in the rain and clouds on Thursday, it was Friday’s sunshine and warmer temperatures that left him feeling more secure in his game plan.
“Today’s conditions were honestly better for me than yesterday’s,” Cunningham said. “I’m fishing about three different baits and just fishing what’s in front of me. I caught my last fish today out deep cranking a hump. I’m just doing what feels right in the moment for where I’m at on the lake, honestly.”
The Ozark Division qualifier is now one solid day of fishing away from walking away with a $120,000 check with his name on it. With numerous spots marked on his graph, a sizable lead and fish he’s yet to go after, Cunningham is feeling as good as he can heading into Saturday.
“I’m just really honored to even be here and to have a shot at winning this thing,” Cunningham said. “The worst I can do tomorrow is 10th place, so that’s something I can look forward to for tomorrow. I think I’ll be able to sleep tonight, but tomorrow morning at 6:30 when we takeoff I may start feeling some nerves.”
Top 10 Boaters
1. Connor Cunningham – 32 – 10 (10)
2. Hunter Eubanks – 24 – 5 (10)
3. Sean Wieda – 22 – 12 (10)
4. Brian Bean – 22 – 4 (10)
5. David Lowery – 21 – 7 (10)
6. Ryan Powroznik – 21 – 6 (10)
7. Andy Wicker – 20 – 12 (10)
8. Johnathan Crossland – 20 – 7 (10)
9. Justin Kimmel – 20 – 4 (10)
10. Mike Reid – 19 – 5 (10)
Guinn Jumps Into Strike King Co-angler Lead Thanks to a 9-9 Limit
Guinn began his morning in fourth place on the leaderboard with 8-14 on Day 1. The South Carolina Strike King co-angler was paired with boater George Brown for Day 2. Guinn and Brown collectively decided to work mostly shallow for the day and also pay some attention to offshore brush piles. That strategy worked to perfection for Guinn and played right into his self-described wheelhouse.
Guinn added 9-9 to his total, giving him 18-7 and a 3-8 lead over second-place Clint Horton. Guinn has improved each day, but says he’ll need some help from the weather tomorrow if he wants to take home the title.
“The cushion is going to be nice tomorrow and I hope we get some stable weather,” Guinn said. “As long as the shallow bite is working and those deep bites set up on brush piles, it should be a good day. Really it is just going to depend on what my boater is wanting to do.”
Guinn’s day started out as a grind. The morning fog had lifted and the rising sun had begun to peak over the trees before he even got his first bite.
“I didn’t have a single bite until about 10 this morning,” Guinn admitted. “As soon as the sun came out though, the fish started setting up right. I caught two back-to-back and it really got me going for the rest of the day.”
Guinn hails from Mountain Rest, South Carolina, more than 700 miles away from Hot Springs and Lake Hamilton. Although the distance may be far, the Palmetto State co-angler says that he feels right at home in the Ozarks because of Hamilton’s characteristics.
“Just like our lakes back home, Lake Hamilton has threadfin shad,” Guinn said. “There’s also a ton of docks and offshore brush piles. Learning how to skip docks really helps fishing here because when the sun is out here, these fish love to set up under those docks.”
Top 10 Strike King Co-anglers
1. Cory Guinn – 18-7 (10)
2. Clint Horton – 14-15 (10)
3. Brendan Vinton – 14-8 (9)
4. Zachary Verbrugge – 14-8 (10)
5. Eric Eden – 13-15 (10)
6. Evan Eldred – 13-14 (9)
7. Hunter Dahnke – 13-11 (10)
8. Jeffrey Johnson – 13-1 (10)
9. Alan Hill – 12-15 (8)
10. Steven Obester – 12-12 (7)