GILBERSTVILLE, Ky. – After a weather cancellation forced the LBL Division of the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine to reschedule the season-opener on Kentucky-Barkley Lakes, the sister lakes will play host to a late-winter showdown March 15 and 16 in a LBL season-opening doubleheader.
Now that heavy rains have subsided and water levels are back to normal winter pool, this weekend’s twin bill expects to set up a lot like a normal wintertime event on the Tennessee and Cumberland River impoundments – though the exact stage of winter fishing is yet to be determined.
The BFLs offer an expanded slate of Regional events in 2025, which minimizes travel costs and provides anglers more chances to qualify for the 2026 All-American. Anglers are able to fish closer to home on familiar lakes, with a chance to take home a $50,000 Phoenix 819 Pro bass boat with a 200-horsepower outboard as a boater, and a new $20,000 cash award as a co-angler.
What to Expect
Edward Gettys of Dover, Tennessee, has 17 Tops 10s at Kentucky Lake dating back to 2014, including a second- and sixth-place finish in 2024. He says the lake is back to normal winter pool, but that doesn’t mean it’s fishing the same way it fished March 15 and 16 last year.
“I think [the lake’s] quite a bit behind schedule,” he said, citing frigid temperatures and heavy rain earlier in the year. “Last year we were two or three weeks ahead and this year we’re two or three weeks behind. The water temperatures have stayed in the low-to-mid 40s all of winter, and even in the 30s. The water has finally hit 50 degrees. I was out yesterday and 51 was the average temperature. But it’s just getting there.”
With Kentucky being a little behind the normal spawning phases of late winter, bass seem to still be set up pretty well offshore with little evidence that big females have started their move shallow. With the booming smallmouth population of Kentucky being so prolific over the last couple years, it’s pretty easy to imagine that likely both BFLs will be won offshore on the main lake.
“The fish really have not moved shallow really strong,” Gettys said. “I’ve caught some shallow, but they’re all male largemouth. I think you could catch a limit throwing a ChatterBait, spinnerbait or squarebill or any of that kind of stuff, but I don’t think it’ll be won that way.
“I think it’ll be won out on the main lake ‘Scoping or finding a school of smallmouth out on a bar somewhere.”
Even with some storms forecasted for Friday into Saturday, it’s likely the fishing will still be pretty strong. Kentucky Lake is resilient, and there are bunches of ways to catch its fish.
“A good guess on the weight would be between 23 and 25 (pounds), just going by what I’ve seen from other tournaments,” Gettys said. “It’ll be about 24 unless the weather complicates it, but someone will catch them anyway. I’m going to say 24 to win, predominantly smallmouth, and they might have a big largemouth mixed in.”
Baits and techniques across the board will catch fish on Kentucky and Barkley from the shallowest sloughs to deepest parts of the main lake, but as is the case nearly everywhere these days, forward-facing sonar is going to be the biggest player with swimbaits, jighead minnows and umbrella rigs doing the heavy lifting. Gettys does believe, though, jigs, lipless crankbaits and spinnerbaits could play targeting smallmouth on shallower offshore bars.
As for the best areas of the lake to secure a winning bag, it’s usually a good bet the southern end (especially near Paris Island State Park) will produce some quality bags. But it’s not an easy run from Moors Resort and Marina when the wind’s blowing, and Gettys thinks the north end has actually been producing really well this year in particular.
“If I had to put money on it, I’d say it’s going to be won north of Kenlake (State Resort Park),” he said. “Fishing down on the south end has been kind of slow. You can catch them anywhere, but I think the majority of the field will fish north.”