By B.A.S.S. Communications Staff
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – Big Florida bass are notorious for making you wait for their feeding windows. Brandon Palaniuk knows the game, and his patience paid huge dividends with a phenomenal day that moved him atop the leaderboard in the Bassmaster Elite Series event at Lake Okeechobee with a two-day total of 58 pounds, 1 ounce.
Palaniuk, the five-time Elite Series winner and two-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year from Rathdrum, Idaho, placed third on Day 1 with 23-7. Following a 90-minute Day-2 fog delay, Palaniuk returned to the canal spillway he fished a day earlier and sacked up 34-10 — his personal best and the heaviest bag weighed in a Bassmaster Elite at Lake Okeechobee.
Palaniuk heads into Saturday with a lead of 9-12 over Day-1 leader Greg DiPalma.
“This is the most epic day I’ve ever had – pure insanity,” Palaniuk said. “I caught seven bass today.”
Palaniuk’s mega-sack comprised two bass over 9 pounds, along with a 7 1/2, a 4 and one nearly 3 1/2.
“It was an absolute incredible day,” Palaniuk said. “It’s not like I caught a bunch. I had seven bites all day; I just had the right ones. All week I’ve been saying, ‘High hopes, low expectations.’
“That’s kinda carried me through, and I may live and die by that this week. Tomorrow, it’ll be the same thing. I’m in an area that has big ones, but it depends on if they show up or not.”
Returning to a Day-1 hotspot is nothing new, but Palaniuk’s tale defined persistence and confidence. Repeating the first day’s scenario, Palaniuk shared a key stretch with DiPalma, Will Davis Jr. and Tim Dube.
The difference – a much slower start. Palaniuk caught a 4-pounder at 9 a.m. on a Megabass Kanata jerkbait, but the next two hours were lean.
Late morning found Palaniuk’s neighbors exploring other sections of the spillway canal and ultimately relocating, but he was too impressed with what he saw on his sonar screen. All alone when the late-morning light switch flipped, Palaniuk amassed the majority of his weight in about an hour and a half.
“Patience was a big thing,” Palaniuk said. “I knew I was inside the (Top-50) cut and I didn’t have anything else on this body of water that compared to that.
“I think having as tough of a practice as I did made it easier to stay. What else am I gonna do? I stuck it out and I was able to cycle through baits and figure out some different things that I didn’t figure out yesterday.”
On a day when many anglers opted for slower, coaxing techniques, Palaniuk stepped on the gas and challenged the fish to catch his moving baits. Going big and bold, he also caught fish on a prototype Megabass crankbait and a Megabass Big M 4.0.
Coming off the worst season of his professional career, in which he missed qualification for the 2025 Bassmaster Classic, Palaniuk said this week’s success has brought much-needed encouragement.
“The thing I’ve learned in life is that a lot of my greatest moments come after my hardest times,” said Palaniuk. “The hardest times are usually followed by the greatest moments if you’re willing to push through.
“When I won my first Angler of the Year title in 2017, I finished 105th on (Lake Okeechobee), so to have the first two days that I’ve had now is pretty special. There’s definitely a little fire to make it happen this week.”
DiPalma, who hails from Millville, N.J., is in second place with 48-5. After topping the Day-1 standings with 29-12 – the event’s second largest bag – he added a Day-2 bag of 18-9.
DiPalma caught a 5-pounder on the spillway spot around 10 a.m. and, after enduring a dry spell, he relocated to a spot on the lake’s southwest side. Targeting hyacinth mats, he flipped a Texas-rigged Senko with a 1/4-ounce weight.
“Around 12:30, I had hardly anything, and I decided to make a 30-mile run and I caught (most of my weight),” DiPalma said. “I decided, ‘It’s really important to get a limit.’
“It’s funny, the area I ran to, all I caught in practice was 12-inchers, but today, every one I caught was 3 to 3 1/2 pounds. It’s like the females pulled in. I’m super excited to have what I had, but tomorrow, I’m digging in and locking down in that area.”
Davis, of Sylacauga, Ala., is in third place with 39-5. His daily weights were 26-2 and 13-3.
After catching only a 2-4 on the spillway spot, Davis left and fished a creek mouth not far from his starting area. On that second location, Davis caught two of his keepers on a swim jig and a jerkbait.
Returning to the spillway around 1 p.m., he added three more keepers – two on a jerkbait and one on a large crankbait. Looking ahead to Day 3, Davis said he may look at other areas of the spillway, but he may leave the main spot to Palaniuk.
“If I had caught 20 pounds there today, it would be different, but I’m going to respect the leaders,” he said. “If the roles were reversed, they would do the same for me.”
David Gaston of Sylacauga, Ala., is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with an 11-8. Gaston’s catch is the largest fish caught at Lake Okeechobee in Elite Series history. That fish also ranks as the 10th biggest and the 75th double-digit bass in Elite Series history.
Saturday’s takeoff is scheduled for 7 a.m. ET at C. Scott Driver Park. The weigh-in will be held at the park at 3 p.m.
Day 2 Standings
1. Brandon Palaniuk -- Rathdrum, ID -- 10, 58-01 -- 104
Day 1: 5, 23-07 -- Day 2: 5, 34-10
2. Gregory DiPalma -- Millville, NJ -- 10, 48-05 -- 103
Day 1: 5, 29-12 -- Day 2: 5, 18-09
3. Will Davis Jr -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 39-05 -- 102
Day 1: 5, 26-02 -- Day 2: 5, 13-03
4. Beau Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 10, 38-12 -- 101
Day 1: 5, 13-00 -- Day 2: 5, 25-12
5. David Gaston -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 38-09 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 14-11 -- Day 2: 5, 23-14
6. John Cox -- Debary, FL -- 10, 37-10 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 12-06 -- Day 2: 5, 25-04
7. Trey McKinney -- Carbondale, IL -- 10, 35-07 -- 98
Day 1: 5, 21-00 -- Day 2: 5, 14-07
8. Jason Christie -- Dry Creek, OK -- 10, 34-04 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 13-08 -- Day 2: 5, 20-12
9. Bob Downey -- Detroit Lakes, MN -- 10, 33-12 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 11-15 -- Day 2: 5, 21-13
10. Paul Mueller -- Naugatuck, CT -- 10, 33-10 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 19-15 -- Day 2: 5, 13-11
11. Timothy Dube -- Nashua , NH -- 9, 33-00 -- 94
Day 1: 5, 18-03 -- Day 2: 4, 14-13
12. John Garrett -- Union City, TN -- 10, 32-15 -- 93
Day 1: 5, 10-08 -- Day 2: 5, 22-07
13. Jacob Foutz -- Charleston, TN -- 10, 32-12 -- 92
Day 1: 5, 13-11 -- Day 2: 5, 19-01
14. Hank Cherry Jr -- Lincolnton, NC -- 10, 32-03 -- 91
Day 1: 5, 13-12 -- Day 2: 5, 18-07
15. Cliff Pace -- Ovett, MS -- 10, 31-13 -- 90
Day 1: 5, 10-09 -- Day 2: 5, 21-04
16. Tyler Williams -- Belgrade, ME -- 10, 31-05 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 14-06 -- Day 2: 5, 16-15
17. Jake Whitaker -- Hendersonville, NC -- 10, 31-03 -- 88
Day 1: 5, 13-15 -- Day 2: 5, 17-04
18. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 10, 30-02 -- 87
Day 1: 5, 20-12 -- Day 2: 5, 09-06
19. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 10, 29-15 -- 86
Day 1: 5, 09-01 -- Day 2: 5, 20-14
20. Kyoya Fujita -- Yamanashi, JAPAN -- 10, 29-15 -- 85
Day 1: 5, 18-00 -- Day 2: 5, 11-15
21. Chris Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 10, 29-11 -- 84
Day 1: 5, 16-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-15
22. Bryant Smith -- Roseville, CA -- 10, 29-10 -- 83
Day 1: 5, 08-03 -- Day 2: 5, 21-07
23. Lee Livesay -- Longview, TX -- 10, 29-09 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 09-12 -- Day 2: 5, 19-13
24. Patrick Walters -- Eutawville, SC -- 10, 29-09 -- 81
Day 1: 5, 16-13 -- Day 2: 5, 12-12
25. Jordan Lee -- Cullman, AL -- 10, 29-09 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 15-04 -- Day 2: 5, 14-05
26. Kyle Welcher -- Valley, AL -- 10, 29-03 -- 79
Day 1: 5, 17-06 -- Day 2: 5, 11-13
27. Cody Meyer -- Eagle, ID -- 10, 28-15 -- 78
Day 1: 5, 20-03 -- Day 2: 5, 08-12
28. Wes Logan -- Springville, AL -- 10, 28-15 -- 77
Day 1: 5, 15-03 -- Day 2: 5, 13-12
29. Cody Huff -- Ava, MO -- 10, 28-07 -- 76
Day 1: 5, 14-14 -- Day 2: 5, 13-09
30. Matty Wong -- Honolulu, HI -- 8, 28-01 -- 75
Day 1: 5, 19-07 -- Day 2: 3, 08-10
31. Caleb Kuphall -- Mukwonago, WI -- 10, 27-15 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 14-08 -- Day 2: 5, 13-07
32. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 10, 27-05 -- 73
Day 1: 5, 16-11 -- Day 2: 5, 10-10
33. Paul Marks -- Cumming, GA -- 10, 26-15 -- 72
Day 1: 5, 14-15 -- Day 2: 5, 12-00
34. KJ Queen -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 26-14 -- 71
Day 1: 5, 14-00 -- Day 2: 5, 12-14
35. Kyle Patrick -- Cooperstown, NY -- 10, 26-11 -- 70
Day 1: 5, 16-09 -- Day 2: 5, 10-02
36. Drew Cook -- Cairo, GA -- 10, 25-12 -- 69
Day 1: 5, 13-11 -- Day 2: 5, 12-01
37. JT Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 10, 25-11 -- 68
Day 1: 5, 14-15 -- Day 2: 5, 10-12
38. Scott Canterbury -- Odenville, AL -- 10, 25-00 -- 67
Day 1: 5, 17-12 -- Day 2: 5, 07-04
39. Ray Hanselman Jr -- Del Rio, TX -- 10, 24-14 -- 66
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04
40. Jay Przekurat -- Plover, WI -- 10, 24-12 -- 65
Day 1: 5, 17-04 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08
41. Hunter Shryock -- Ooltewah, TN -- 10, 24-11 -- 64
Day 1: 5, 11-11 -- Day 2: 5, 13-00
42. Cooper Gallant -- Bowmanville, ON -- 8, 24-09 -- 63
Day 1: 5, 19-15 -- Day 2: 3, 04-10
43. Bryan New -- Leesville, SC -- 8, 24-09 -- 62
Day 1: 3, 06-00 -- Day 2: 5, 18-09
44. Tyler Rivet -- Raceland, LA -- 10, 24-04 -- 61
Day 1: 5, 13-05 -- Day 2: 5, 10-15
45. Taku Ito -- Dalton GA -- 10, 24-02 -- 60
Day 1: 5, 13-13 -- Day 2: 5, 10-05
46. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 10, 24-02 -- 59
Day 1: 5, 13-11 -- Day 2: 5, 10-07
47. David Mullins -- Mt Carmel, TN -- 10, 24-02 -- 58
Day 1: 5, 11-05 -- Day 2: 5, 12-13
48. Logan Parks -- Auburn, AL -- 10, 23-13 -- 57
Day 1: 5, 11-14 -- Day 2: 5, 11-15
49. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, MD -- 10, 23-10 -- 56
Day 1: 5, 09-08 -- Day 2: 5, 14-02
50. Buddy Gross -- Chattanooga, TN -- 10, 23-06 -- 55
Day 1: 5, 08-15 -- Day 2: 5, 14-07
The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on Day 3.
51. Evan Kung -- Pickering, ON -- 10, 23-06 -- 54
Day 1: 5, 13-07 -- Day 2: 5, 09-15
52. Alex Redwine -- Blue Ash, OH -- 10, 23-05 -- 53
Day 1: 5, 13-03 -- Day 2: 5, 10-02
53. Shane LeHew -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 23-04 -- 52
Day 1: 5, 14-01 -- Day 2: 5, 09-03
54. Dakota Ebare -- Brookeland, TX -- 10, 22-12 -- 51
Day 1: 5, 08-14 -- Day 2: 5, 13-14
55. Cole Sands -- Johnson City, TN -- 10, 22-12 -- 50
Day 1: 5, 11-11 -- Day 2: 5, 11-01
56. Kyle Norsetter -- Cottage Grove, WI -- 10, 22-11 -- 49
Day 1: 5, 13-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-12
57. Randy Howell -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 22-09 -- 48
Day 1: 5, 11-05 -- Day 2: 5, 11-04
58. Brad Whatley -- Bivins, TX -- 10, 22-04 -- 47
Day 1: 5, 09-02 -- Day 2: 5, 13-02
59. Justin Atkins -- Florence, AL -- 10, 22-02 -- 46
Day 1: 5, 09-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-06
60. Ben Milliken -- Omaha, NE -- 10, 21-15 -- 45
Day 1: 5, 13-06 -- Day 2: 5, 08-09
61. Blake Capps -- Muskogee, OK -- 10, 21-15 -- 44
Day 1: 5, 12-08 -- Day 2: 5, 09-07
62. Jonathan Kelley -- Old Forge, PA -- 10, 21-14 -- 43
Day 1: 5, 09-10 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04
63. Tucker Smith -- Birmingham, AL -- 10, 21-07 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 13-01 -- Day 2: 5, 08-06
64. Robert Gee -- Knoxville, TN -- 10, 21-05 -- 41
Day 1: 5, 05-07 -- Day 2: 5, 15-14
65. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 8, 21-05 -- 40
Day 1: 5, 13-02 -- Day 2: 3, 08-03
66. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 10, 21-03 -- 39
Day 1: 5, 11-06 -- Day 2: 5, 09-13
67. Wesley Gore -- Clanton, AL -- 10, 21-00 -- 38
Day 1: 5, 12-11 -- Day 2: 5, 08-05
68. Jacob Powroznik -- North Prince George, VA 10 -- 20-14 -- 37
Day 1: 5, 10-00 -- Day 2: 5, 10-14
69. Emil Wagner -- Marietta, GA -- 9, 20-12 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 13-12 -- Day 2: 4, 07-00
70. Brock Mosley -- Collinsville, MS -- 10, 20-11 -- 35
Day 1: 5, 09-12 -- Day 2: 5, 10-15
71. John Crews Jr -- Salem, VA -- 10, 20-10 -- 34
Day 1: 5, 08-06 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04
72. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 10, 20-09 -- 33
Day 1: 5, 10-00 -- Day 2: 5, 10-09
73. Seth Feider -- Elko New Market, MN -- 9, 20-08 -- 32
Day 1: 4, 06-13 -- Day 2: 5, 13-11
74. Luke Palmer -- Coalgate, OK -- 10, 20-07 -- 31
Day 1: 5, 11-09 -- Day 2: 5, 08-14
75. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 10, 20-06 -- 30
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 09-06
76. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 10, 20-04 -- 29
Day 1: 5, 05-04 -- Day 2: 5, 15-00
77. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 10, 20-03 -- 28
Day 1: 5, 09-10 -- Day 2: 5, 10-09
78. Brandon Card -- Salisbury, NC -- 10, 19-15 -- 27
Day 1: 5, 07-07 -- Day 2: 5, 12-08
79. Matt Robertson -- Kuttawa, KY -- 10, 19-13 -- 26
Day 1: 5, 12-03 -- Day 2: 5, 07-10
80. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 10, 19-03 -- 25
Day 1: 5, 10-02 -- Day 2: 5, 09-01
81. Jeff Gustafson -- Kenora, ON -- 10, 19-00 -- 24
Day 1: 5, 09-13 -- Day 2: 5, 09-03
82. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 10, 18-15 -- 23
Day 1: 5, 09-14 -- Day 2: 5, 09-01
83. Joey Cifuentes III -- Clinton, AR -- 9, 18-11 -- 22
Day 1: 4, 05-07 -- Day 2: 5, 13-04
84. Caleb Sumrall -- New Iberia, LA -- 10, 18-11 -- 21
Day 1: 5, 08-10 -- Day 2: 5, 10-01
85. Carl Jocumsen -- Queensland, AUS -- 9, 18-04 -- 20
Day 1: 4, 11-07 -- Day 2: 5, 06-13
86. Cory Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 10, 18-02 -- 19
Day 1: 5, 09-06 -- Day 2: 5, 08-12
87. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, KY -- 10, 17-15 -- 18
Day 1: 5, 08-03 -- Day 2: 5, 09-12
88. Andrew Loberg -- Guntersville, AL -- 9, 17-13 -- 17
Day 1: 4, 07-06 -- Day 2: 5, 10-07
89. Chad Pipkens -- Dewitt, MI -- 10, 17-13 -- 16
Day 1: 5, 10-05 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08
90. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 10, 16-13 -- 15
Day 1: 5, 08-10 -- Day 2: 5, 08-03
91. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, MN -- 10, 16-10 -- 14
Day 1: 5, 07-04 -- Day 2: 5, 09-06
92. Ed Loughran III -- Richmond, VA -- 10, 16-08 -- 13
Day 1: 5, 07-07 -- Day 2: 5, 09-01
93. Easton Fothergill -- Grand Rapids , MN -- 10, 16-07 -- 12
Day 1: 5, 08-11 -- Day 2: 5, 07-12
94. Jamie Hartman -- Newport, NY -- 8, 16-00 -- 11
Day 1: 3, 06-00 -- Day 2: 5, 10-00
95. Kenta Kimura -- Osaka, JAPAN -- 10, 15-15 -- 10
Day 1: 5, 09-13 -- Day 2: 5, 06-02
96. Justin Hamner -- Northport, AL -- 8, 15-08 -- 9
Day 1: 3, 04-15 -- Day 2: 5, 10-09
97. Marc Frazier -- Newnan, GA -- 10, 15-08 -- 8
Day 1: 5, 06-01 -- Day 2: 5, 09-07
98. Pat Schlapper -- Eleva, WI -- 9, 15-04 -- 7
Day 1: 4, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 07-08
99. Logan Latuso -- Gonzales, LA -- 8, 14-15 -- 6
Day 1: 5, 12-01 -- Day 2: 3, 02-14
100. Gerald Swindle -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 14-09 -- 5
Day 1: 5, 08-08 -- Day 2: 5, 06-01
101. Alex Wetherell -- Middletown, CT -- 9, 13-15 -- 4
Day 1: 4, 05-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-00
102. Chris Zaldain -- Boyd, TX -- 7, 13-02 -- 3
Day 1: 5, 10-08 -- Day 2: 2, 02-10
