Stewart breaks out on top at Invitational

LAGRANGE, Ga. – According to the locals, Day 1 of the MLF Invitational on West Point Lake went about as planned. For Dubach, Louisiana, pro Tyler Stewart, it went a lot better than he’d expected.

With 21 pounds, 5 ounces, Stewart is squarely in the lead as the only pro to crack the 20-pound barrier. Still, the event is far from over – keeping up the pace figures to be a challenge at West Point and the rest of the Top 10 is packed pretty tight.

Stewart holds a 2-2 lead over pro Derik Hudson of Concord, Virginia, who sacked 19-3 to end the day in second. Albertville, Alabama, pro Alex Davis sits in third with 18-13 and Troy Stokes of Trenton, Michigan, is fourth with 17-3. Behind them are a handful of 14- and 15-pound bags, and 12 pounds goes all the way down to 40th.

The full field of 150 anglers will conclude the two-day opening round on Saturday, with only the Top 30 pros based on their two-day cumulative weight advancing to Sunday.

Weighing three largemouth over 4 pounds, Stewart turned around a miserable practice in a big way.

“My roommates are gonna call me sandbagger so bad,” Stewart joked. “I told them yesterday that if I have 10 pounds, I’ll be pretty happy. I don’t know if they just bit really good in the rain (today), but it was a lot better than I was expecting.

“It was just one of those days where you couldn’t make a wrong decision,” he added. “I had a terrible practice and just went out with a clear mind and put my head down. I ran into a couple good areas with some big fish and got them in the boat.”

The smallest lake on the schedule, there’s not much you can do to get away from other anglers. That could be cause for concern as the week goes on as pressure might get to the fishing in a big way. Still, Stewart hopes he can replicate what worked on Day 1 (maybe not to 20 pounds again, but to some degree).

“There’s a lot of fish in the areas I’m fishing; I think they could definitely replenish, because fish are moving in and out of those areas,” he said. “I got a lot of bites today that I didn’t hook, fish just slapping the bait and stuff, so I know there’s more fish in the area.”

Worst-case scenario, Stewart thinks he’s got some backup spotted bass figured out.

“This afternoon, I went and targeted some spotted bass,” he said. “I caught four or five and some 2-pounders I had to throw back. My game plan tomorrow is to go and try to catch a few big ones, and if I have to go catch some spots, I don’t know that I will, but I feel like I can.”

Here's a look at the Top 20 after Day 1:

1st: Tyler Stewart, Dubach, La., five bass, 21-5
2nd: Derik Hudson, Concord, Va., five bass, 19-3
3rd: Alex Davis, Albertville, Ala., five bass, 18-13
4th: Troy Stokes, Trenton, Mich., five bass, 17-3
5th: Brad Jelinek, Lincoln, Mo., five bass, 15-15
6th: Brock Reinkemeyer, Warsaw, Mo., five bass, 15-8
7th: Charlie Williams, LaGrange, Ga., five bass, 15-6
8th: Keith Carson, DeBary, Fla., five bass, 15-3
9th: Colby Miller, Elmer, La., five bass, 14-15
10th: Jake Lawrence, Buchanan, Tenn., five bass, 14-13
11th: Alec Morrison, Peru, N.Y., five bass, 14-10
11th: Darrell Ivey Jr., Lebanon, Mo., five bass, 14-10
13th: Jaden Parrish, Liberty, Texas, five bass, 14-5
14th: Brian Gay, LaGrange, Ga., five bass, 13-12
15th: Matt Baty, Bainbridge, Ga., five bass, 13-8
16th: Kelly Jordon, Flint, Texas, five bass, 13-7
17th: Taylor Parker, Lake View, Ala., five bass, 13-6
17th: Kyle Cortiana, Broken Arrow, Okla., five bass, 13-6
17th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill, five bass, 13-6
20th: Ryan Armstrong, Robinson, Ill., five bass, 13-5

Baty earned Friday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass award with a largemouth that weighed 6-9.

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