Brett Hite Takes Day Two Lead at Elite Seminole

Bassmaster Elite Series Seminole Day Two Leader Brett Hite – photo by Gary Tramontina – Bassmaster

BAINBRIDGE, Ga. — Brett Hite’s first catch Friday was a 4-pounder. On his next cast, a largemouth just as big came back to the boat.

“That got things rolling and gave me a lot of confidence in what I’m doing,” said Hite, the Bassmaster Elite Series rookie who moved up from fourth place into Friday’s catbird seat in the Dick Cepek Tires Bassmaster Elite at Lake Seminole presented by Hardee’s.

The Phoenix, Ariz., pro ended his day with 20 pounds, 11 ounces. Added to his 24-11 already on the board, Hite had the lead in his first Elite appearance. His 45-6 total gave him a 14-ounce jump on Bernie Schultz of Gainesville, Fla.

Schultz held fast to his second-place standing achieved the first day, when a 10-pound, 10-ounce behemoth made his weigh-in bag sag. His 17-10 of Friday brought his weight to 44-8.

Kevin Short of Mayflower, Ark., owned third place — for the second consecutive day — with his 43-3 total.

A rookie like the leader, Justin Lucas of Guntersville, Ala. catapulted from 27th place into fourth place with the day’s largest bag, 25-9. In fifth was yet another rookie, Chad Morgenthaler of Coulterville, Ill., with 43-0.

Day 1 leader Shaw Grigsby of Gainesville, Fla., slipped to sixth place after bringing in 12-5.

Hite, unlike some pros in the field, is not banking on the bank. In this case, “the bank” means focusing on bedding bass.

“I’m targeting prespawn fish,” said Hite. “Water temperature is not really at the point where enough fish are going to the bank. I wanted to key in on the fish that are replenishing, that are going to be there day after day.”

After the two 4-pounders that set him in the right direction, Hite’s day got better.

“I ran to a secondary spot, and there were a lot more fish there than I realized. I had quite a few bites — then got out of there,” he said.

That was at about 1 o’clock. Hite backed off his fish and hunted for new water in hopes he could develop alternate plans for the two remaining competition days.

“In a four-day event, fish management is huge,” Hite said.

For Schultz, the obvious difference between his two competition days was a 10-10 lunker taken from a spawning bed on the first, but nothing near that weight on the second. His two largest bass were in the 4-pound range, he said.

Schultz said the fog delay of an hour and 20 minutes Friday morning changed his game plan. He decided to not make one of his spawning hotspots the first stop of the morning.

“Because of the delay, I went to my open-water pattern first. Then I went to sight fish, but never really saw any big fish at all,” he said.

Short also was affected by the delay.

“I think it made a lot more difference than I thought it would,” he said.

On Friday, Short said, he had caught 17 to 18 pounds by the time he made his first cast on Saturday.

He turned his slow day around when he boated a 6-3 and a 5-plus-pounder. That happened only a few minutes before he had to head back to shore and check in.

Hite won the Livingston Lures Leader Award of $500 for his second-day domination of the field.

The big fish of the day, a 7-12, was by James Niggemeyer of Van, Texas. But the 10-10 of Thursday by Schultz remains the largest so far. The big bass over four days is worth the Carhartt Big Bass bonus of up to $1,500.

Lucas won a $250 bonus from Rigid Industries for being the participating angler who achieved a 25-pound or heavier bag. The same award went to Short on Thursday.

The field was cut to the Top 50 for Saturday’s round. The pros will begin Day 3 at 7:30 a.m. from Earle May Boat Basin, 100 Boat Basin Circle, Bainbridge, Ga. The weigh-in will begin at 4 p.m. at the same location.

By Sunday, only the Top 12 will remain in the competition for a first-place prize of $100,000 and an automatic berth in the 2015 Bassmaster Classic. Pros also earn points that count toward the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year award and a Classic qualification.

Continuing through Sunday, the 11th annual Bainbridge River Town Days will offer many kids activities, plus vendors and Flames on the Flint, a barbecue cook-off. Town Days also will include many free concerts, including Chris Cagle, Saturday’s headliner.

Opening at noon Saturday and Sunday, the Bassmaster Elite Series Expo presents the products of Elite Series sponsors. The Expo includes free demo rides in Nitro, Skeeter and Triton boats powered by Mercury ProXS and Yamaha SHO engines. Saturday’s Expo also will feature the premier of GEOBASS, a new video adventure series from Costa. More GEOBASS episodes will be shown in conjunction with subsequent 2014 Elite Series events.

There’s no admission charge to any Bassmaster event, and parking is free.

The local host of the Elite event is the Bainbridge-Decatur County Chamber of Commerce (http://www.bainbridgegachamber.com).

On ESPN2 on Sunday, March 20, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET, The Bassmasters will present a show covering the Lake Seminole event. The episode will reair on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 13, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET, and again on The Outdoor Channel on May 12.

2014 Bassmaster Elite Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha

2014 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Booyah, Carhartt, Diet Mountain Dew, Livingston Lures, Lowrance, Plano, Power-Pole, Rigid Industries, Shimano

About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 500,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2), social media programs and events. For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series presented by Allstate, B.A.S.S. Nation events, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, Bassmaster High School Series, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro.

2014 Bassmaster Elite Series Lake Seminole Presented by Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels 3/13-3/16

Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, Ga.

(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2

Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Brett Hite             Phoenix, AZ             10  45-06  100     $500.00

Day 1: 5   24-11     Day 2: 5   20-11

2.  Bernie Schultz         Gainesville, FL         10  44-08   99

Day 1: 5   26-14     Day 2: 5   17-10

3.  Kevin Short            Mayflower, AR           10  43-03   98

Day 1: 5   25-09     Day 2: 5   17-10

4.  Justin Lucas           Guntersville, AL        10  43-01   97

Day 1: 5   17-08     Day 2: 5   25-09

5.  Chad Morgenthaler      Coulterville, IL        10  43-00   96

Day 1: 5   20-10     Day 2: 5   22a-06

6.  Shaw Grigsby Jr.       Gainesville, FL         10  42-10   95

Day 1: 5   30-05     Day 2: 5   12-05  a

7.  Mark Davis             Mount Ida, AR           10  41-13   94

Day 1: 5   21-00     Day 2: 5   20-13

8.  Hank Cherry Jr         Maiden, NC              10  37-13   93

Day 1: 5   23-03     Day 2: 5   14-10

9.  James Niggemeyer       Van, TX                  9  37-09   92

Day 1: 5   19-07     Day 2: 4   18-02

10. Randall Tharp          Port Saint Joe, FL      10  37-07   91

Day 1: 5   17-00     Day 2: 5   20-07

11. Nate Wellman           Newaygo, MI             10  36-10   90

Day 1: 5   15-05     Day 2: 5   21-05

12. Morizo Shimizu         Osaka JAPAN             10  36-08   89

Day 1: 5   19-02     Day 2: 5   17-06

13. Brandon Lester         Fayetteville, TN        10  35-15   88

Day 1: 5   18-06     Day 2: 5   17-09

14. Jared Lintner          Arroyo Grande, CA       10  35-14   87

Day 1: 5   14-09     Day 2: 5   21-05

15. Charlie Hartley        Grove City, OH          10  35-08   86

Day 1: 5   19-07     Day 2: 5   16-01

16. Gerald Swindle         Warrior, AL             10  35-01   85

Day 1: 5   16-15     Day 2: 5   18-02

17. Brian Snowden          Reeds Spring, MO        10  34-10   84

Day 1: 5   20-03     Day 2: 5   14-07

18. Takahiro Omori         Emory, TX               10  34-10   83

Day 1: 5   19-11     Day 2: 5   14-15

19. Alton Jones            Lorena, TX              10  34-00   82

Day 1: 5   14-09     Day 2: 5   19-07

20. Ott DeFoe              Knoxville, TN           10  33-15   81

Day 1: 5   17-11     Day 2: 5   16-04

21. Byron Velvick          Boenre, TX               9  33-11   80

Day 1: 5   16-07     Day 2: 4   17-04

22. David Walker           Sevierville, TN         10  33-09   79

Day 1: 5   21-04     Day 2: 5   12-05

23. Todd Faircloth         Jasper, TX              10  33-03   78

Day 1: 5   20-15     Day 2: 5   12-04

24. Kelly Jordon           Palestine, TX            9  32-15   77

Day 1: 5   15-05     Day 2: 4   17-10

25. Jason Christie         Park Hill, OK           10  32-10   76

Day 1: 5   14-05     Day 2: 5   18-05

26. Kevin VanDam           Kalamazoo, MI           10  32-01   75

Day 1: 5   17-09     Day 2: 5   14-08

27. Ish Monroe             Hughson, CA             10  32-00   74

Day 1: 5   12-03     Day 2: 5   19-13

28. Dean Rojas             Lake Havasu City, AZ    10  31-13   73

Day 1: 5   18-09     Day 2: 5   13-04

29. Andy Montgomery        Blacksburg, SC          10  31-05   72

Day 1: 5   15-10     Day 2: 5   15-11

30. Josh Bertrand          Gilbert, AZ             10  31-02   71

Day 1: 5   17-08     Day 2: 5   13-10

31. Mike Kernan            Wylie, TX               10  31-00   70

Day 1: 5   14-08     Day 2: 5   16-08

32. Clifford Pirch         Payson, AZ              10  30-14   69

Day 1: 5   18-07     Day 2: 5   12-07

33. Stephen Browning       Hot Springs, AR         10  30-08   68

Day 1: 5   14-11     Day 2: 5   15-13

34. Russ Lane              Prattville, AL          10  30-07   67

Day 1: 5   12-08     Day 2: 5   17-15

35. Jacob Powroznik        Port Haywood, VA        10  30-07   66

Day 1: 5   14-12     Day 2: 5   15-11

36. Tommy Biffle           Wagoner, OK              9  30-05   65

Day 1: 5   23-13     Day 2: 4   06-08

37. Aaron Martens          Leeds, AL               10  30-05   64

Day 1: 5   17-05     Day 2: 5   13-00

38. Bill Lowen             Brookville, IN          10  30-02   63

Day 1: 5   13-03     Day 2: 5   16-15

39. Matt Herren            Trussville, AL          10  30-01   62

Day 1: 5   15-04     Day 2: 5   14-13

40. Davy Hite              Ninety Six, SC          10  29-03   61

Day 1: 5   18-08     Day 2: 5   10-11

41. Kelley Jaye            Dadeville, AL           10  29-03   60

Day 1: 5   15-03     Day 2: 5   14-00

42. Greg Hackney           Gonzales, LA             7  28-15   59

Day 1: 2   05-00     Day 2: 5   23-15

43. Jeremy Starks          Scott Depot, WV          9  28-11   58

Day 1: 5   16-00     Day 2: 4   12-11

44. Cliff Prince           Palatka, FL              9  28-05   57

Day 1: 5   13-08     Day 2: 4   14-13

45. Chris Lane             Guntersville, AL        10  28-00   56

Day 1: 5   18-06     Day 2: 5   09-10

46. Kotaro Kiriyama        Moody, AL               10  28-00   55

Day 1: 5   12-03     Day 2: 5   15-13

47. Tim Horton             Muscle Shoals, AL        9  27-11   54

Day 1: 4   10-07     Day 2: 5   17-04

48. Skeet Reese            Auburn, CA              10  27-08   53

Day 1: 5   16-07     Day 2: 5   11-01

49. J Todd Tucker          Moultrie, GA             6  27-04   52

Day 1: 4   18-14     Day 2: 2   08-06

50. Kurt Dove              Del Rio, TX             10  27-04   51

Day 1: 5   17-00     Day 2: 5   10-04

51. Gary Klein             Weatherford, TX         10  27-01   50

Day 1: 5   12-12     Day 2: 5   14-05

52. Brent Chapman          Lake Quivira, KS        10  27-00   49

Day 1: 5   12-13     Day 2: 5   14-03

53. Mike McClelland        Bella Vista, AR          8  26-09   48

Day 1: 3   07-04     Day 2: 5   19-05

54. Scott Rook             Little Rock, AR         10  26-08   47

Day 1: 5   15-02     Day 2: 5   11-06

55. Terry Scroggins        San Mateo, FL            9  25-07   46

Day 1: 5   11-11     Day 2: 4   13-12

56. Brandon Card           Caryville, TN            8  25-01   45

Day 1: 5   16-10     Day 2: 3   08-07

57. Cliff Crochet          Pierre Part, LA          8  24-14   44

Day 1: 5   19-07     Day 2: 3   05-07

58. John Crews Jr          Salem, VA               10  24-10   43

Day 1: 5   14-00     Day 2: 5   10-10

59. Bobby Lane             Lakeland, FL             9  24-08   42

Day 1: 5   14-05     Day 2: 4   10-03

60. Glenn Browne           Ocala, FL               10  24-02   41

Day 1: 5   08-13     Day 2: 5   15-05

61. Casey Scanlon          Shawnee Mission, KS      9  23-15   40

Day 1: 5   13-01     Day 2: 4   10-14

62. Britt Myers            Lake Wylie, SC           6  23-14   39

Day 1: 5   19-03     Day 2: 1   04-11

63. Boyd Duckett           Guntersville, AL         8  23-11   38

Day 1: 3   09-12     Day 2: 5   13-15

64. Boo Woods              Oneida, KY               9  22-14   37

Day 1: 5   16-06     Day 2: 4   06-08

65. Brandon Palaniuk       Hayden, ID               9  22-09   36

Day 1: 5   09-00     Day 2: 4   13-09

66. Zell Rowland           Montgomery, TX          10  22-04   35

Day 1: 5   12-15     Day 2: 5   09-05

67. Chad Pipkens           Holt, MI                10  21-15   34

Day 1: 5   14-04     Day 2: 5   07-11

68. Rick Morris            Lake Gaston, VA          7  21-14   33

Day 1: 5   15-09     Day 2: 2   06-05

69. Keith Combs            Huntington, TX           9  21-13   32

Day 1: 5   11-03     Day 2: 4   10-10

70. Marty Robinson         Lyman, SC                7  21-12   31

Day 1: 5   17-01     Day 2: 2   04-11

71. Jeff Kriet             Ardmore, OK             10  21-05   30

Day 1: 5   06-01     Day 2: 5   15-04

72. BJ Haseotes            Centerville, MA         10  21-03   29

Day 1: 5   11-14     Day 2: 5   09-05

73. Jamie Horton           Centerville, AL          7  21-02   28

Day 1: 5   16-10     Day 2: 2   04-08

74. Matt Reed              Madisonville, TX         6  21-01   27

Day 1: 5   17-07     Day 2: 1   03-10

75. Michael Iaconelli      Pitts Grove, NJ          9  21-00   26

Day 1: 5   13-15     Day 2: 4   07-01

76. Chris Zaldain          San Jose, CA             8  21-00   25

Day 1: 5   10-15     Day 2: 3   10-01

77. Derek Remitz           Grant, AL                8  20-13   24

Day 1: 3   05-12     Day 2: 5   15-01

78. Rick Clunn             Ava, MO                  9  20-09   23

Day 1: 4   06-09     Day 2: 5   14-00

79. Yusuke Miyazaki        Forney, TX               8  20-04   22

Day 1: 5   15-15     Day 2: 3   04-05

80. John Murray            Phoenix, AZ              9  20-03   21

Day 1: 5   11-10     Day 2: 4   08-09

81. Dennis Tietje          Roanoke, LA              6  20-02   20

Day 1: 5   18-11     Day 2: 1   01-07

82. Greg Vinson            Wetumpka, AL             7  19-10   19

Day 1: 5   14-10     Day 2: 2   05-00

83. Bradley Roy            Lancaster, KY            8  19-10   18

Day 1: 5   12-10     Day 2: 3   07-00

84. James Elam             Tulsa, OK                7  19-08   17

Day 1: 4   13-15     Day 2: 3   05-09

85. Fletcher Shryock       New Philadelphia, OH     8  19-08   16

Day 1: 5   11-03     Day 2: 3   08-05

86. Kenyon Hill            Norman, OK               6  18-15   15

Day 1: 1   04-10     Day 2: 5   14-05

87. Billy McCaghren        Mayflower, AR            7  18-09   14

Day 1: 3   06-11     Day 2: 4   11-14

88. Trevor Romans          Plano, TX                6  18-07   13

Day 1: 5   15-14     Day 2: 1   02-09

89. Casey Ashley           Donalds, SC              6  17-06   12

Day 1: 5   14-13     Day 2: 1   02-09

90. Jared Miller           Norman, OK               6  17-04   11

Day 1: 2   02-12     Day 2: 4   14-08

91. Kevin Hawk             Guntersville, AL         4  17-04   10

Day 1: 2   10-05     Day 2: 2   06-15

92. Paul Elias             Laurel, MS               7  17-03    9

Day 1: 2   06-03     Day 2: 5   11-00

93. Jason Williamson       Aiken, SC                7  17-01    8

Day 1: 4   11-00     Day 2: 3   06-01

94. Edwin Evers            Talala, OK               6  16-14    7

Day 1: 4   09-01     Day 2: 2   07-13

95. Fred Roumbanis         Bixby, OK                6  16-05    6

Day 1: 4   11-12     Day 2: 2   04-09

96. Tracy Adams            Wilkesboro, NC           8  15-15    5

Day 1: 5   11-09     Day 2: 3   04-06

97. Jonathon VanDam        Kalamazoo, MI            6  15-02    4

Day 1: 3   06-05     Day 2: 3   08-13

98. Pete Ponds             Madison, MS              4  14-12    3

Day 1: 3   07-08     Day 2: 1   07-04

99. Keith Poche            Pike Road, AL            7  14-10    2

Day 1: 4   07-13     Day 2: 3   06-13

100. Steve Kennedy          Auburn, AL               7  13-04    1

Day 1: 5   08-09     Day 2: 2   04-11

101. Scott Ashmore          Broken Arrow, OK         4  09-10    0

Day 1: 3   07-15     Day 2: 1   01-11

102. David Mullins          Mt Carmel, TN            5  09-09    0

Day 1: 2   03-04     Day 2: 3   06-05

103. Joel Baker             Talala, OK               7  09-04    0

Day 1: 2   03-04     Day 2: 5   06-00

104. Michael Simonton       Fremont, OH              3  08-06    0

Day 1: 2   03-15     Day 2: 1   04-07

105. David Smith            Del City, OK             5  07-06    0

Day 1: 2   02-07     Day 2: 3   04-15

106. Randy Howell           Springville, AL          2  06-10    0

Day 1: 2   06-10     Day 2: 0   00-00

107. Joseph Sancho          New Windsor, NY          2  03-07    0

Day 1: 1   02-03     Day 2: 1   01-04

108. Grant Goldbeck         Boerne, TX               4  02-00    0

Day 1: 1   02-00     Day 2: 3   00-00