RUSSELLVILLE -- Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., seized an opportunity and the lead Friday during a fog-shortened day of fishing in the second round of the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament on Lake Dardanelle.
Bassmaster tournament director Trip Weldon delayed Friday's launch 2 hours and 21 minutes because of heavy fog. That eliminated the important early morning activity that many anglers cherish, but it didn't seem to bother Hackney, who brought five bass weighing 18 pounds, 1 ounce for a two-day total of 39-14.
That gave him a 9-ounce lead over first-round leader John Crews of Salem, Va., who caught five bass Friday weighing 16-12 for a two-day total of 39-5. Veteran fisherman Zell Rowland (5/25-5; 37-1) of Montgomery, Texas; Keith Combs (5/16-10; 36-8) of Huntington, Texas; and Rick Clunn (5/17-14; 36-3) of Ava, Mo. round the top five heading into today's third round.
None of the anglers with Arkansas ties made the top-50 cut for today's third round.
Mark Davis of Mount Ida, who came into the tournament leading the race for Bassmaster Angler of the Year by 42 points, caught four fish that weighed 9-9 to bring his two-day total to 23-6. He finished 81st.
Stephen Browning (5/8-13; 25-10) of Hot Springs finished 57th, Kevin Short (5/11-3; 25-2) of Mayflower finished 63rd Mike McClelland (5/12-0; 23-4) of Bella Vista finished 82nd and Billy McCaghren (3/5-4; 21-4) of Mayflower finished 90th.
Hackney, who was in second place entering the second round, said the fishing was slow Friday but that he fished "clean," meaning he didn't miss any bites.
"I just fished real thorough," said Hackney, who has trimmed Davis' lead for angler of the year to 17 points. "There was a lot of time between bites. I got bites this morning, but I really had to fish deliberate to get them."
Hackney said he had to fight to stay focused later in the day. Maintaining concentration was doubly important on a day when so many anglers reported losing big fish and mistiming hook sets.
"When you're not getting bit is when you really have to stay in tune, because that's when they'll get you," Hackney said.
Crews caught fish in spurts Friday. He said he started the day with a pair of 3-pound bass, followed by a dry spell that ended with a pair of 4-plus pounders.
"I went two hours without a bite in an area where I thought I would crush them," Crews said. "I scrapped that area and bounced around. I picked up one here and there, just making continual adjustments."
Rowland, whose Bassmaster career began in 1979, had by far the heaviest limit of day and the heaviest limit of the tournament. He also caught the biggest bass of the tournament, 6-10.
"This is one of my favorite lakes to fish," Rowland said. "This is my fourth trip here, and I made the top 10 twice. I just picked an area they live in. I put my trolling motor down, put my head down and just fished hard."
The short day might have actually helped Rowland by forcing him to work a smaller area. He said he made a mistake Thursday by fishing too much water.
"I had to have a big bag to catch up," Rowland said. "I figured my best odds were to go where I've caught them before."
The field will be cut again after today's round, with the top 12 moving on to the final round Sunday. The winner will receive $100,000.
Sports on 05/17/2014