Shryock jumps out to Day 1 lead in Bassmaster Elite Series event at Smith Lake

Tennessee’s Hunter Shryock leads Day 1 of the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake with a five-bass limit weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces .

Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

June 27, 2024

Shryock jumps out to Day 1 lead in Bassmaster Elite Series event at Smith Lake

CULLMAN, Ala. — As predicted, catching a big bag on Day 1 of the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake wasn’t the easiest proposition.

But a handful of competitors gutted out a tough day on the 21,000-acre fishery and gave themselves a slim edge on opening day of this derby in north-central Alabama.

Hunter Shryock, a 35-year-old resident of Ooltewah, Tenn., caught a five-bass limit weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces to take the Day 1 lead. He’s just ahead of Canada’s Cory Johnston, who’s second with 14-12, and Ohio’s Alex Redwine, in third with 14-8.

In all, 76 of the 98 competitors are within 6 pounds of Shryock’s lead – underscoring not only how tough the fishing was on Smith, but also the unlikelihood anyone will run away with the lead.

Shryock did all he could, however, to put some distance between himself and the field on Day 1. Like most, he weighed spotted bass, but he added a trio of heftier largemouth to his catch, which isn’t exactly common on Smith Lake in June. One of them was a 4-7, earning Shryock $1,000 for having the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day.

With the leaderboard as close as it is, Shryock wasn’t sharing much after he weighed in the day’s best bag.

“There’s not a lot of bites, obviously, and I’m kinda playing with fire,” he said. “But I learned some stuff today. I only had two fish at 11 a.m. and then I went on a little run. Sunshine helps me, so I think the cloud cover earlier today messed me up a lot. But honestly, I’m not sure. I’m still trying to figure it all out.”

Despite having only two bass by the lunch hour, Shryock said he probably couldn’t have asked for a much better start on Smith.

“I qualified for the Elites here (in a 2017 Southern Open), so I’ve fished here quite a bit,” he said. “One thing I learned then is that however you catch them one day, you can pretty much forget about it the next day. Just start over. Every time I’ve fished here it’s been like that. You take the days one by one and don’t fight it.”

Johnston shared that sentiment on Day 1, when he pulled five spotted bass from different locations and on different lures.

“This place is extremely hard to find the better-than-average size fish right now,” Johnston said.

“I’m covering a lot of water, using the LiveScope, looking for a lot of individual fish,” he continued. “I caught a few on a jig, a few on a minnow, a few on drop shots. They’re biting pretty short, but when you see them on the LiveScope, you get a pretty good idea if they’re big or not. You just have to cover water and hope the bigger ones bite.”

Johnston said he just missed some bigger bass Thursday, and that gives him some confidence heading into Day 2 and, perhaps, the weekend.

“It was a good day,” he said, “and I think I figured a few things out. But you never know with this place. You could catch 8 pounds tomorrow or it could be 16 pounds. I’m just trying to get in the right area and cast in front of the right ones.”

Redwine, 24 and from Blue Ash, Ohio, said Day 1 was a study in patience.

“It was a decent one here, a decent one there,” he said. “I felt like I was catching slightly above-average fish all day.”

But it wasn’t much more than that, he said.

“There are qualify fish out here, bigger than the ones it seems like everyone’s catching,” Redwine noted. “You can see them on the electronics. I think they’re a little bit smarter, a little bit older. It might take a little more time and better execution to catch them, but those are the ones you need to win.”

Bryan New, of Leesville, S.C., is in fourth place with a 14-3 total. Steve Kennedy, of Auburn, Ala., is fifth with 14-2. All but six of the 98 Elites caught a limit on Thursday.

The Alabama summer wasn’t nearly as unrelenting as it could have been on Day 1, with temperatures hovering in the mid-80s and intermittent rain showers throughout the morning. Friday’s forecast calls for highs near 90 with mostly sunny skies and a slim chance for scattered showers.

How those conditions help, or hurt, competitors is anyone’s guess – fitting for this summer showdown on Smith.

Carbondale, Ill., rookie Trey McKinney continues to lead the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings with 634 points. Alabama’s Justin Hamner, winner of the 2024 Classic, is second with 599 points, followed by Missouri’s Cody Huff in third with 571, Tennessee’s John Garrett in fourth with 552 and Wisconsin’s Jay Przekurat in fifth with 543.

McKinney also leads the Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Rookie of the Year standings with 634 points, followed by Garrett in second with 552 points and Alabama’s Wesley Gore in third with 537.

Day 2 of the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake will begin with a 6 a.m. CT take-off from Smith Lake Park. Weigh-in is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. The Top 50 anglers after Friday’s weigh-in will advance to fish on Day 3 while the Top 10 will make the cut to compete on Championship Sunday.

The winning angler will take home a top prize of $100,000 and valuable points in the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings.

Bassmaster LIVE coverage begins Friday at 8 a.m. on Bassmaster.com. Saturday’s coverage begins at 8 a.m. on FS1 and runs through 11 a.m. Saturday’s LIVE coverage will continue on Bassmaster.com at 11 a.m. Sunday’s coverage begins at 8 a.m. on FS1 and runs through 1 p.m. Sunday’s LIVE coverage will continue on Bassmaster.com at 1 p.m. All coverage times are ET.

The tournament is being hosted by Visit Cullman.

2024 TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake 6/27-6/30Smith Lake, Cullman  AL.(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 1

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

1.  Hunter Shryock         Ooltewah, TN             5  15-15  103   $1,000.00  Day 1: 5   15-15   2.  Cory Johnston          Otonabee CANADA          5  14-12  102  Day 1: 5   14-12   3.  Alex Redwine           Blue Ash, OH             5  14-08  101  Day 1: 5   14-08   4.  Bryan New              Leesville, SC            5  14-03  100  Day 1: 5   14-03   5.  Steve Kennedy          Auburn, AL               5  14-02   99  Day 1: 5   14-02   6.  Justin Hamner          Northport, AL            5  14-01   98  Day 1: 5   14-01   7.  Cody Huff              Ava, MO                  5  13-13   97  Day 1: 5   13-13   8.  Brandon Palaniuk       Rathdrum, ID             5  13-12   96  Day 1: 5   13-12   9.  Jay Przekurat          Plover, WI               5  13-11   95  Day 1: 5   13-11   10. Taku Ito               Dalton GA JAPAN          5  13-10   94  Day 1: 5   13-10   11. Kyle Patrick           Cooperstown, NY          5  13-08   93  Day 1: 5   13-08   12. John Garrett           Union City, TN           5  13-08   92  Day 1: 5   13-08   13. Robert Gee             Knoxville, TN            5  13-07   91  Day 1: 5   13-07   14. Gregory DiPalma        Millville, NJ            5  13-06   90  Day 1: 5   13-06   15. Marc Frazier           Newnan, GA               5  13-05   89  Day 1: 5   13-05   16. Drew Benton            Panama City, FL          5  13-04   88  Day 1: 5   13-04   17. Ben Milliken           New Caney, TX            5  12-15   87  Day 1: 5   12-15   18. Brandon Lester         Fayetteville, TN         5  12-14   86  Day 1: 5   12-14   18. Tyler Williams         Belgrade, ME             5  12-14   86  Day 1: 5   12-14   20. Kyoya Fujita           Yamanashi CA JAPAN       5  12-13   84  Day 1: 5   12-13   21. Clifford Pirch         Payson, AZ               5  12-12   83  Day 1: 5   12-12   22. Kenta Kimura           Osaka OK JAPAN           5  12-11   82  Day 1: 5   12-11   23. JT Thompkins           Myrtle Beach, SC         5  12-10   81  Day 1: 5   12-10   24. Cole Sands             Calhoun , TN             5  12-10   80  Day 1: 5   12-10   25. Bob Downey             Detroit Lakes, MN        5  12-07   79  Day 1: 5   12-07   25. Paul Mueller           Naugatuck, CT            5  12-07   79  Day 1: 5   12-07   27. Wesley Gore            Clanton, AL              5  12-07   77  Day 1: 5   12-07   28. Bryant Smith           Roseville, CA            5  12-06   76  Day 1: 5   12-06   29. Luke Palmer            Coalgate, OK             5  12-04   75  Day 1: 5   12-04   30. Matt Arey              Shelby, NC               5  12-02   74  Day 1: 5   12-02   30. Justin Atkins          Florence, AL             5  12-02   74  Day 1: 5   12-02   30. Trey McKinney          Carbondale, IL           5  12-02   74  Day 1: 5   12-02   33. Chris Johnston         Otonabee Ontario CANADA  5  12-01   71  Day 1: 5   12-01   34. Stetson Blaylock       Benton, AR               5  12-00   70  Day 1: 5   12-00   34. Jason Williamson       Aiken, SC                5  12-00   70  Day 1: 5   12-00   36. Timothy Dube           Nashua , NH              5  11-14   68  Day 1: 5   11-14   36. Kyle Welcher           Valley, AL               5  11-14   68  Day 1: 5   11-14   38. Joey Cifuentes III     Clinton, AR              5  11-14   66  Day 1: 5   11-14   39. Cooper Gallant         Bowmanville Ontario CAN  5  11-13   65  Day 1: 5   11-13   39. Logan Parks            Auburn, AL               5  11-13   65  Day 1: 5   11-13   39. Joseph Webster         Hamilton, AL             5  11-13   65  Day 1: 5   11-13   42. David Gaston           Sylacauga, AL            5  11-12   62  Day 1: 5   11-12   43. Caleb Sumrall          New Iberia, LA           5  11-11   61  Day 1: 5   11-11   43. Matty Wong             Honolulu, HI             5  11-11   61  Day 1: 5   11-11   45. Wes Logan              Springville, AL          5  11-08   59  Day 1: 5   11-08   46. Jacob Foutz            Charleston, TN           5  11-07   58  Day 1: 5   11-07   47. Jordan Lee             Cullman, AL              5  11-06   57  Day 1: 5   11-06   47. Lee Livesay            Longview, TX             5  11-06   57  Day 1: 5   11-06   47. Pat Schlapper          Eleva, WI                5  11-06   57  Day 1: 5   11-06   50. Gerald Swindle         Guntersville, AL         5  11-06   54  Day 1: 5   11-06   51. Patrick Walters        Eutawville, SC           5  11-05   53  Day 1: 5   11-05   51. Chris Zaldain          Fort Worth, TX           5  11-05   53  Day 1: 5   11-05   53. Jeff Gustafson         Kenora, ON Ontario CANA  5  11-05   51  Day 1: 5   11-05   54. Caleb Kuphall          Mukwonago, WI            5  11-03   50  Day 1: 5   11-03   55. Austin Felix           Eden Prairie, MN         5  11-00   49  Day 1: 5   11-00   55. Carl Jocumsen          Queensland TN AUSTRALIA  5  11-00   49  Day 1: 5   11-00   55. Matt Robertson         Kuttawa, KY              5  11-00   49  Day 1: 5   11-00   58. KJ Queen               Catawba, NC              5  10-15   46  Day 1: 5   10-15   59. Kyle Norsetter         Cottage Grove, WI        5  10-11   45  Day 1: 5   10-11   59. John Soukup            Sapulpa, OK              5  10-11   45  Day 1: 5   10-11   61. John Cox               Debary, FL               5  10-10   43  Day 1: 5   10-10   62. Todd Auten             Clover, SC               5  10-10   42  Day 1: 5   10-10   63. Brandon Cobb           Greenwood, SC            5  10-09   41  Day 1: 5   10-09   63. Keith Combs            Huntington, TX           5  10-09   41  Day 1: 5   10-09   65. Jake Whitaker          Hendersonville, NC       5  10-08   39  Day 1: 5   10-08   66. Hank Cherry Jr         Lincolnton, NC           5  10-07   38  Day 1: 5   10-07   66. Brad Whatley           Bivins, TX               5  10-07   38  Day 1: 5   10-07   68. Brock Mosley           Collinsville, MS         5  10-05   36  Day 1: 5   10-05   69. Ray Hanselman Jr       Del Rio, TX              5  10-04   35  Day 1: 5   10-04   69. Bill Lowen             Brookville, IN           5  10-04   35  Day 1: 5   10-04   69. Chad Pipkens           Dewitt, MI               5  10-04   35  Day 1: 5   10-04   72. Jacob Powroznik        North Prince George, VA  5  10-04   32  Day 1: 5   10-04   73. Mike Huff              London, KY               5  10-04   31  Day 1: 5   10-04   74. Scott Canterbury       Odenville, AL            5  10-03   30  Day 1: 5   10-03   75. Will Davis Jr          Sylacauga, AL            5  10-02   29  Day 1: 5   10-02   76. Shane LeHew            Catawba, NC              5  10-02   28  Day 1: 5   10-02   77. Greg Hackney           Gonzales, LA             5  09-15   27  Day 1: 5   09-15   78. Scott Martin           Clewiston, FL            5  09-14   26  Day 1: 5   09-14   78. Alex Wetherell         Middletown, CT           5  09-14   26  Day 1: 5   09-14   80. Logan Latuso           Gonzales, LA             5  09-13   24  Day 1: 5   09-13   81. Frank Talley           Belton, TX               5  09-12   23  Day 1: 5   09-12   82. David Mullins          Mt Carmel, TN            5  09-10   22  Day 1: 5   09-10   82. Bryan Schmitt          Deale, MD                5  09-10   22  Day 1: 5   09-10   84. Drew Cook              Cairo, GA                5  09-07   20  Day 1: 5   09-07   85. Seth Feider            New Market, MN           5  09-05   19  Day 1: 5   09-05   86. Jason Christie         Dry Creek, OK            5  09-00   18  Day 1: 5   09-00   87. John Crews Jr          Salem, VA                5  08-15   17  Day 1: 5   08-15   87. Clark Wendlandt        Leander, TX              5  08-15   17  Day 1: 5   08-15   89. Matt Herren            Ashville, AL             5  08-14   15  Day 1: 5   08-14   90. Cliff Prince           Palatka, FL              5  08-12   14  Day 1: 5   08-12   91. Rick Clunn             Ava, MO                  3  08-09   13  Day 1: 3   08-09   92. Brandon Card           Salisbury, NC            5  08-05   12  Day 1: 5   08-05   93. Buddy Gross            Chattanooga, TN          4  08-04   11  Day 1: 4   08-04   94. Tyler Rivet            Raceland, LA             5  07-15   10  Day 1: 5   07-15   95. Jonathan Kelley        Old Forge, PA            3  07-03    9  Day 1: 3   07-03   96. Michael Iaconelli      Pitts Grove, NJ          4  06-13    8  Day 1: 4   06-13   96. Mark Menendez          Paducah, KY              4  06-13    8  Day 1: 4   06-13   98. Bernie Schultz         Gainesville, FL          2  03-02    6  Day 1: 2   03-02   99. Koby Kreiger           Alva, FL                 0  00-00    0  Day 1: 0   00-00   ———————————————————————–

PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS Day 1   Hunter Shryock           Ooltewah, TN        04-07      $1,000.00

———————————————————————–TotalsDay   #Limits    #Fish      Weight 1        92       480      1098-15———————————-          92       480      1098-15

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