GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. — It’s Super Tournament time for the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine Illini Division anglers, with their Sept 6-7 event set to be held on Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley. The summer-to-fall transition is starting, and the fish should be on the move.
This year, BFL anglers benefit from an expanded slate of Regionals, which minimizes travel costs and provides more opportunities to qualify for the $120,000 BFL All-American while fishing familiar, closer-to-home waters. Click here to find out more.
What to expect
Clint Knight has won a BFL each of the last two years on Kentucky Lake and says the fish could still be deep, but the chance to do well in shallow water will be there.
“It’s the start of the transition, and while there are still some schools out, they’re few and far between, and finding them can be difficult,” he said. “Those offshore fish are a little deeper than most years, but I think that’s because the largemouth have returned strong and tend to stay out a little longer. The smallmouth are already starting to move up pretty shallow.”
The smallmouth population has received the most attention recently, but Knight says the largemouth will be a factor and could win this Super Tournament.
“When the BPT came in June, it kind of exposed just how many largemouth are in the lake with the numbers they were catching,” said Knight. “Many of those were smaller, but some big ones are still showing up.”
Kentucky Lake gets most of the fishing pressure, but Knight says the connected Lake Barkley can compete for a win in this event.
“Kentucky seems to have a better population, but the fish on Barkley tend to be a little more predictable this time of year – but it can be a hit or miss,” he said. “If Barkley is going to play, it’s going to be from July to September. It also gets a lot less pressure, and there have been quite a few big tournaments on the lakes recently.”
Baits to bring
Knight says that sticking with a topwater walking bait all day is a great way to catch better-than-average fish, and it’s his predicted winning bait. Other options he thinks will be a factor are finesse jigs and a single swimbait on a jighead.
What will it take?
Since September can be a tougher time to fish, Knight says weights will be slightly lower than usual. He believes 18 or 19 pounds a day should put an angler in contention for the win. Getting to 11 or 12 pounds should be enough to advance to the second day.