Calling Jody Gardner “hardheaded” would be neither insulting nor incorrect. In fact, that mentality delivered a limit of 18 pounds, 3 ounces that leads Day 1 of the Bassmaster Northern Open on the Upper Chesapeake Bay in Maryland.
On a tough day that saw only 44 limits on the pro side and 23 for co-anglers, Gardner found himself faring far better than he’d expected.
“These days usually don’t happen to me,” said the pro from Tippecanoe, Ohio.
Gardner said the key to his success was focusing on hard cover. Writing off the bay’s vast acreage of submerged grass, he devoted his day to docks and shallow wood.
“I practiced in the grass, but I couldn’t locate them and it just didn’t work,” he said. “I caught two off of one tree and the rest of them came within a quarter mile of each other.
“I covered a lot of water. I made a run and fished a couple of creeks because I think the fresh water coming in (from recent rains) stirred them up a little bit.”
Finding only six keeper bites, Gardner anchored his bag with a 4-14 that bit around midday. That fish, he said, exemplified the persistence his lead required.
“Today, I really fished slow,” Gardner said. “I soaked the bait and threw three or four times to the same spot.
“For the big one, I actually threw 10 times to the same dock post and he finally grabbed it.”
Gardner caught all of his bass on Texas-rigged plastics. He had multiple baits and kept rotating size and color to trigger the bites.
“The higher water in the morning was a little better for me and when the bottom fell out (slack low tide), I quit catching them,” Gardner said. “Then, when the tide started to come back, I got a couple more.
“I changed my baits with each area. I would throw one color for a little bit and then I’d throw another color. It seemed like sometimes I’d switch the color and get them to bite.”
Looking ahead to Day 2, Gardner said he plans to replicate his opening effort. “I don’t know if I can back it up tomorrow, but we’ll find out.”
Chris Beaudrie of Princeton, Ky., is in second place with 17-08. Making his Chesapeake Bay debut, Beaudrie stayed within 20 to 30 minutes of takeoff. Recognizing the vastness of tournament waters, he thought it best to carve out a manageable section and build on his practice findings.
“I fished a couple of different areas until about noon or 1 o’clock and came back,” Beaudrie said. “It was slow going; just here and there. I didn’t catch them in practice, so I went into today with an open mind and tried some new stuff.
“I had a few bites and they showed up in a big way. I think the weather brought them into my area. With a little cooldown and the rain, the water temperatures dropped probably four degrees since I got here for practice. I think that moved them a little bit.”
Beaudrie said he followed a run-and-gun strategy and focused his attention on wood and grass. He threw reaction baits to find fish and then slowed down to fish promising areas with plastics.
Jacob Walker of Springville, Ala., is third with 15-14. His game plan started with a 30- to 40-mile run south.
“I spent all of my time down there mostly because I felt like it was going to be unpressured,” Walker said. “I do better when I’m by myself. I can settle down and pick it apart.”
Walker started with three keepers by 10:30 a.m. After that, he ran farther south and added a 4-pounder at 1 p.m.
“I ran around a little bit and I knew I had to leave at 3 o’clock to make it back,” Walker said. “I had four fish and I had one dock I had (already) hit three times. I pulled up to it and on my first flip, I lost one that was 6 or 7 pounds. Then I caught one that was 3 and one that was close to 3.
“It was all about the tide. It was best when it was falling.”
Walker said he caught all of his bass on a jig. He used chunk and swimbait trailers, depending on where he was fishing.
Here's how the initial Top 10 stacks up:
1. Jody Gardner: 18-03
2. Chris Beaudrie: 17-08
3. Jacob Walker: 15-14
4. Tom Knee: 15-13
5. Trey Swindle: 15-12
6. Pete Gluszek: 15-09
7. (tie) Brian Mullaney: 15-00
7. (tie) Kayden Tanner: 15-00
9. Chad Pipkens: 14-06
10. Cole Drummond: 13-15
– B.A.S.S. Communications Staff
