WTBY - Kentucky Lake

Kentucky Lake, or better known as the fabled fishery has been a major hot spot for tournament fishing for years and for good reasons. As for the kayak scene this lake has been host of many Hobie Bass Open Series events as well as other major trail schedule stops. This legendary lake has undergone some big changes over the last 5 years that have generated some new challenges for anglers, but none the less Kentucky Lake is capable of shelling out some big bags. Largemouth and smallmouth have co exsisted in these waters over the years with largemouth being the primary species; however, as of late the smallmouth have really made a big presence with more being taken than usual. 
The WTBY crew heads to KY Lake to throw down in the June heat and battle it out for the next stop on the 2021 schedule. Will we see ledges come into play or will our anglers utilize their abilities to access difficult to reach areas in kayaks and catch them shallow? Either way you can be rest assured this will be an interesting tournament. 

Tournament Results:
1st Place - Mark Davis

So, I started my day by arriving at my location at 3:30 am, and the first thought that came to mind was I may have made a mistake because I was the only Kayak angler there. I shook off the doubt and left out at launch time and as soon as I arrived at my spot I went to turn into the wind and broke my rudder cable. Well that makes this a little more difficult steering now has become a handicap. So continued with my peddles and steering with my paddle.
At lines in and caught my first fish at 5:21 a 12.50, second fish at 5:57 a 20.50, third fish at 6:14 a 15.00, then started upgrading, upgraded the 12.50 with a 14.75 at 6:36 then an upgraded that with a 16 at 6:59, then upgraded the 15 with a 16.50 at 8:50. Now that was the last fish that was larger than 15 inches. The bite died off around 10:30 and I never found any more upgrades.
 The pattern I found was wood that was submerged and was in water between a foot or less and 12 feet deep. I used a rage craw Texas Rigged with the weight pegged and a long shank hook. During last year’s Hobie Event on Kentucky Lake I lost a couple of good fish and this year I not only changed from a wide gap hook to a long shank hook but I also upgraded my flouro from 12lbs to 20lbs. I had the confidence to drag it and not worry about braking off. I will say that my big fish was an amazing sorry. Last year I caught that same fish at the Hobie event. How do I know? She has a very distinctive back and tail. The greatest part is she has grown .50 inches in a year. I am very happy with the way my day went and how well the event was run. WTBY always does a great job of hosting an event and whether you left with a check or left in last place you have to feel good after the great conversation and socializing that we get to do at checking.

2nd Place - Brandon Davis

I owe my finish to my good buddy Trent Harris. He said they were biting a toad and ended up giving me one to throw around. That ole toad crawled around the grass all day long finding 50.25 inches for me and a 2nd place finish. The trick was pulling the toad with the wind through the shallow grass. They wouldn't touch it if I pulled it against the wind. They were pushed up against the outside edge waiting for anything the wind blew their way. 

3rd Place -  David Best 

I caught most of my fish in 1-3 feet of water dragging my Primary Tackle claw bug in green pumpkin and 10" worm in Green pumpkin/ June Bug red laminate. I was targeting a choke point with wind blowing the bait around. There was a big mayfly hatch going on as well that had the smaller bait fish fired up which in turn brought the bass to the area. 
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