Pro Picks: Kentucky Lake

Tournament site

If you like to make your Fishing Challenge picks based on what you think will emerge as the dominant pattern at the upcoming tournament, good luck with Kentucky Lake. Deep-diving crankbaits always play a key role at this lake this time of year, but anglers are also talking about catching them shallow. The water level’s just a little above summer pool, which will give the shallow anglers access to some flooded bushes, though not as much we saw three years ago when Steve Kennedy won under near-flood conditions. But it is similar to two years ago when Anthony Gagliardi won this tournament on his crankbait. Most of the top guys will probably be shooting for the deeper, postspawn bass, but with the full moon, there could also be a few straggling spawners out there to keep a few shallow-water guys in contention. Plus, the weather could be a little touchy, too, which will push fish around. In short, they’ll be catching them on pretty much everything, so an angler’s versatility might be your best weapon in the picks.

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Wal-Mart FLW Tour stop No. 5

Kentucky Lake, Benton, Ky.

May 10-13

Clark Wendlandt FLW pro Cedar Park, Texas Record: 4-0 Points: 2,975	VS.	Carl Svebek FLW pro Siloam Springs, Ark. Record: 1-3 Points: 2,405
1) ANTHONY GAGLIARDI.Anthony has a great chance at Angler of the Year this year. When you have that kind of momentum, every decision you make is right. He also won here a couple of years ago. 2) DAVE LEFEBRE.A top five is definitely in the cards for Lefebre. His bad tournament at Beaver will just add extra motivation. 3) MIKE SURMAN.Mike has a great track record at Kentucky Lake. No matter if the water is low or high, I look for him to do well. 4) CHRIS MCCALL.Chris has been making great decisions lately. I believe it will carry over at Kentucky Lake. 5) CRAIG POWERS.Momentum plus his favorite time of year with a topwater equals a top five.		1) CLARK WENDLANDT.Clark’s coming off a good finish at the FLW Series. I look for him to get on a roll that will carry him right through the end of the season. 2) DARREL ROBERTSON.He’s leading the AOY race, and you don’t get there without being consistent. Darrel is a great guy and just deserves to stay at the top. 3) MIKE SURMAN.He’s done well on Kentucky Lake and is coming off a top-10 in the FLW Series. Look for another top finish here. 4) DAN MOREHEAD.A local favorite, and not without reason. He knows the lake as well as anyone and should capitalize on that fact. 5) TERRY BOLTON.Another local favorite, he can catch them at any stage, shallow or deep. He’s always a top contender on Kentucky Lake.

David Dudley FLW pro Lynchburg, Va. Record: 3-1 Points: 2,687	VS.	Randy Blaukat FLW pro Lamar, Mo. Record: 0-4 Points: 2,106
1) DAVID YOUNG.He’s the local king. A deep cranker, it’s his time of year. 2) DAVID FRITTS.Where David Young’s the local king, David Fritts is the national king cranker. 3) SHINICHI FUKAE.Just hotter than a pistol right now. I’m going to keep picking him until he does poorly. Only then he’s off my list. 4) ANTHONY GAGLIARDI.He’s an excellent deepwater fisherman. He won it here last time, and he’ll have another good performance. 5) MARK DAVIS.He’s just consistently good and an excellent deepwater fisherman, too. He’s always good for a bunch of points.		1) MARK DAVIS.Although Mark is doing well in the point standings, he has yet to live up to his skill level this season. I think the postspawn on Kentucky Lake will fall right into his hands. He is one of the best postspawn anglers in fishing. 2) CURT LYTLE.Curt has been in a slump the past few seasons, but he has a lot of experience on Kentucky Lake in May. Fishing is a game of cycles, and I think Curt is ready to get on a roll. 3) MIKE ELLENSTEIN.Mike is a Kentucky Lake expert. He has spent more days on this lake than anyone I know and will be fishing deep for the postspawners. Anytime we come to Kentucky Lake, there are a lot of good locals, but I think Mike will lead the pack. 4) MARK ROSE.One of the most underrated anglers on tour, Mark did not surprise me by taking second at Beaver. He is a great all-around angler and will be on a confidence roll after the last event. 5) RANDY BLAUKAT.The past few years we have been here, I have usually been only a pound or two out of the top 10. Like the rest of the field, if I can find a subtle pattern working after the lake gets pounded the weekend before our tournament, I feel really good about the potential outcome.

Art Berry FLW pro Hemet, Calif. Record: 2-2 Points: 2,425	VS.	Dave Lefebre FLW pro Erie, Pa. Record: 2-2 Points: 2,424
1) DAVID FRITTS.Straight cranking power. Few can contend with Fritts on this lake. 2) ART BERRY.You know when you can just feel it. 3) MATT HERREN.Finally a lake where Matt can show his real expertise. 4) DAN MOREHEAD.Paducah, Paducah, Paducah. 5) TERRY BOLTON.Did I say Paducah?		1) DAN MOREHEAD.I know this is a little out of the ordinary, but I’m going out on a limb here and pick Morehead, just to be different. 2) TERRY BOLTON.He’s a local boy who knows how to catch them on Kentucky Lake. What more can I say? 3) STEVE KENNEDY.My good buddy Steve has won here in the past and he is on an unbelievable roll right now. I am not looking for it to end anytime soon. 4) ANTHONY GAGLIARDI.I look for him to win 2006 AOY and, since he has struggled a little on Champlain in the past, he will have to do well here to pull that off. 5) DAVID FRITTS.I think we will be looking at a postspawn bite on Kentucky Lake. That equals crankbaits, crankbaits and more crankbaits, which inevitably equals David Fritts.

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