Schroeder Slides Ahead on Rayburn
Close weights set up a final day shootout
Climbing from fourth to first, Blake Schroeder took over the lead in the Toyota Series Southwestern Division event on Sam Rayburn with his second-consecutive 18-pound bag. Weighing 18-3 on day one, the Texas pro put an even 18 pounds on the scale on day two for a 36-3 total. Behind him, the weights are stacked, and five other pros are within 5 pounds going into the final day on the big Texas lake.
As he said on day one, Schroeder thinks he’s on to something a little special this week. Though he’s fishing shallow grass like many of the others in the top 10, he thinks he’s doing it a bit different than the rest of the crew.
“I definitely feel like I can go catch 12 pounds tomorrow, I got more bites today than I did yesterday,” says Schroeder, who reckons he caught at least 20 keepers. “But, I still didn’t have a fish over 5 pounds today, I’m just around good quality. I still haven’t run all of my areas, I’m hoping to run around more tomorrow.”
Schroeder won a Phoenix Bass Fishing League event on Rayburn with 28-11 back in 2017, but this would be his biggest win yet.
“Doing what I’m doing is something I’m confident in and I’ve had success on in the past,” says Schroeder. “It’d be my biggest win, and it feels good, but there’s some stiff local talent in there. There’s a lot of steep tournament anglers in this area.”
Top 10 pros
1. Blake Schroeder – Whitehouse, Texas – 36 – 3 (10)
2. Aaron Johnson – Shreveport, La. – 36 – 0 (10)
3. Nick LeBrun – Bossier City, La. – 34 – 4 (10)
4. Chris McCall – Palmer, Texas – 34 – 2 (10)
5. Stephen Johnston – Hemphill, Texas – 32 – 13 (10)
6. Cole Moore – Anacoco, La. – 31 – 9 (10)
7. Kenneth Cates – Zavalla, Texas – 30 – 6 (10)
8. Justin O`Brian Cooper – Zwolle, La. – 30 – 6 (10)
9. Todd Castledine – Nacogdoches, Texas – 29 – 6 (10)
10. Tim Reneau – Richland Springs, Texas – 29 – 6 (10)