вЂњHe never told me until later, and I said, вЂњThatвЂ™s OK, but my wife is going to be really mad at you.вЂ™вЂќ It turned out to be a 2ВЅ pounder, Walker said. There was some confusion earlier in the day when WalkerвЂ™s on-boat marshal punched in a 7-pound, 2-ounce bass into BASSTrakk and it went up on the leaderboard in the media center. вЂњIвЂ™m here to contend, and there is a lot of fishing left,вЂќ Walker said. The 46-year-old Sevierville, Tenn., angler believes this is his time. He has two back-to-back third-place finishes in the Classic, at the Louisiana Delta in 2001 and Lay Lake in 2002. Of the leaders who havenвЂ™t won a Classic, and that includes the top 13 on the leaderboard, the one guy who may be fishing under the radar and the most dangerous is David Walker. Good thing it hit soft and didnвЂ™t fin me.вЂќ I swung on it and it came right back and hit me square in the head, knocked my hat off. вЂњI missed eight to 10 fish in the morning,вЂќ Martens said. Still, Martens called it one of his top-10 worst fishing days ever. Martens is tied for 14th with Takahiro Omori, the 2004 Classic winner at Lake Wylie. Iaconelli is inside that 8-pound mark of the leaders, right at 7 pounds, 6 ounces.ДЄaron Martens weighed in five bass totaling 13 pounds, 14 ounces and is just under 4 pounds from the lead, certainly within the 8-pound barrier Iaconelli talked about. But if youвЂ™re 4- to 5 pounds back after the first day, you can catch a good limit and really move up. вЂњIf youвЂ™re 8 pounds back, thatвЂ™s too far. He was asked how far back is too far back to win. вЂњMost likely, IвЂ™ll try and take a gamble,вЂќ Iaconelli said. He said heвЂ™d rather try and win it if heвЂ™s in 30th place or so, and thatвЂ™s where he ended up. Iaconelli said heвЂ™d decide upon strategy after he saw where he placed.

вЂњI thought I would get a couple of females, but they were all males.

angler caught a limit of five bass, but they were all males and only totaled 10 pounds, 7 ounces, good enough for 31st place. вЂњI feel itвЂ™s a three-day derby,вЂќ Hite said. He has one Classic win and feels confident going into Day Two. Van DamвЂ™s good friend and road roommate, Davy Hite of Ninety Six, S.C., is in 18th place with 13 pounds, 8 ounces. I just hope I make a little better choice tomorrow.вЂќ I dug myself a bit of a hole, so I have to move tomorrow. I know what is out there and what I have to do. вЂњI have a lot of confidence in what I can do. вЂњEvery one of the fishermen here is good, really good fishermen,вЂќ Van Dam said. Van Dam was asked if he has a bit more confidence knowing that the top anglers on the leaderboard have never hoisted a Classic trophy. The big thing I learned is how the wind and the mud is affecting the bite. вЂњI fished a community spot, everyone knew it today,вЂќ he said. The leaderboard will really change tomorrow.вЂќДЄ true pro, Van Dam said he learned a ton Friday that could be useful on Day Two. вЂњThese river fish are very sensitive to temperature,вЂќ he said. вЂњIt just wasnвЂ™t happening for me today.вЂќД«ut Van Dam made a prediction, maybe a warning to the no-name anglers at the top. вЂњI went to an area and fished in a lot of dirty water,вЂќ Van Dam said. Kevin Van Dam has won four Classics, two in a row and not only is looking for a three-peat, but one for the thumb. He joined other big-name anglers who struggled. Rojas certainly wasnвЂ™t alone in misery on Friday. вЂњIвЂ™m in an area with big fish, but I just didnвЂ™t get the bites,вЂќ Rojas said. Rojas is going to have to catch a good limit in the 15- to 16-pound range to make the cut. Right now, the 25th-place angler has 11 pounds, 3 ounces. But in the next breath he already was talking about making the cut, improving from his 43rd place with 6 pounds and getting inside the top-25 to fish on Sunday.

Stars beyond reach classic