GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. – The Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Central Division season is underway, starting again at the much-favored Lake Guntersville. This week, with 207 boats and a big warming spell, plan on the historic lake showing out in a big way.
Recent tournaments provide a guide
Over the weekend, Ben Yarbrough of Athens, Alabama, caught a total of five bass weighing 24 pounds, 13 ounces, to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine event on Lake Guntersville. In that one, Yarbrough weighed fish he caught in the grass, as well as fish caught with the aid of forward-facing sonar. Shortly before, Hank Cherry won the Bassmaster Elite Series event with a four-day total of 88-11 – slightly more than a 22-pound average. For that event, the lake was coming out of a spell of cold weather, with ice forming in some protected areas, which had a definite effect on the bite.
Lane thinks the ‘Scope time will be key
Finishing second in the BFL, Cal Lane thought that he’d get off to a big start with ‘Scope.
“I burned my three hours the first three hours,” he said. “I really thought I was going to be able to catch them doing it, and I had 13 pounds of spotted bass when my three-hour period was over. Then I went fishin’ shallow.”
Winding a ChatterBait and a lipless, Lane culled everything out and got up to 23-9 to finish second.
Still, despite his recent success in the grass, Lane hasn’t given up on a productive sonar session.
“I’ve spent a lot of time on my ‘Scope period,” he said. “I’ve been heavily ‘Scoping the past few days. There’s 100% a ‘Scope bite for somebody. I believe the guy who wins will mix in both. Even if you catch two or three fish, big ones, 5-plus-pounders, which is very doable, it’s one less you have to catch on a lipless or a ChatterBait or a jerkbait or A-rig.”
High hopes for this event
With rapidly warming water, the bass in Guntersville are thinking spring, and Matteo Turano has seen it.
“I think people are still going to catch them really good, I think there will be a lot of 20 to 22 pound bags, but anything over that is going to be really hard to do, especially with only three hours of ‘Scope,” he said. “There’s a lot of fish to be caught, but it’s a little harder to get a big one – anything over 5 pounds right now is a really good fish.”
For his part, Turano plans to be in the grass the whole time, both with and without sonar assistance.
“It seems like a lot of the ‘Scope fish this year are so much more pressured,” he said of the traditional open water options. “All the fish are so much more educated. I think somebody could get on a good ‘Scope bite in the morning, but it’s hard to choose what area to do it in.
“I’ve been ‘Scoping in the grass, and it seems like a lot of the fish I’m seeing are in the grass,” he added. “My plan this week is to ‘Scope the grass the best I can, and then just go fishing. I think I can catch a lot of fish in my ‘Scope period. My goal in my ‘Scope period is to catch 20 pounds pretty quick, and then try to get a big one the rest of the day.”
Turano thinks that the winning weight to shoot for is about 74 pounds – more than a 24-pound average per day. Lane is also predicting a slugfest.
“I think the cold had ‘em off just a hair,” Lane said. “With this warm front, the water temp is just going to continue to rise. The bite is incredible; it’s going to be a slugfest. The weights in the BFL weren’t that good, 200 boats and only 22 over 20 pounds. I think you’ll see several more than that over 20 in this.”
Follow along
Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public daily at the Lake Guntersville State Park Boat Ramp at 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. CT. This event is hosted by Marshall County Tourism & Sports. You can follow along with all the coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.