Welcher slams 24-09 to take 1-pound lead into weekend

Alabama pro seeking second Elite Series win

February 06, 2026 By Staff Report

Two days into the season opening Bassmaster Elite Series and one thing is clear – a 24-pound, 9-ounce stringer is a lock to put you in the lead at Lake Guntersville.

After Cory Johnston caught that on day 1 to set the early pace, Kyle Welcher matched it today and now sits atop the leaderboard with a two-day total of 45-00. Welcher, the 2023 Elite Series Angler of the Year is one pound clear of Jamie Hartman, who is seeking his second career Elite Series win at Guntersville.

Hunter Shryock tallied 20-13 and sits in third with 41-14 while Stetson Blaylock caught 22-14 and has 41-10 in fourth. Caleb Kuphall, who won the most recent Guntersville Elite Series in 2021, is fifth with 41-07 after sacking 20-00 today.

Johnston managed 16-01 and dropped to 10th with 40-10.

Welcher leapt to the lead from 18th after day 1 by being patient today.

“It’s the hardest thing for me to do; it goes against everything that I want to do,” Welcher said. “But when it’s tough and it’s hard to run around and get bites, sometimes that’s the best thing to do.

“That’s something I’ve had to learn by fishing on the Elites. I didn’t have the patience whenever I first started out here.”

Welcher said he fished south of the takeoff site at Goose Pond and focused on a 3-acre stretch. He tried the same area he fished on Day 1, but when the bites failed to materialize, he repositioned and relocated his fish.

“They had slid 150 yards away and I caught them there today,” Welcher said. “The majority of what I’m fishing is eelgrass, but every now and then, I’ll pull up some coontail or some hydrilla, but it’s 90 percent eel grass.”

Welcher stuck with the same lipless bait/bladed jig combo that much of the field has been throwing. His choice was a 1/2-ounce Rapala Snare and an unnamed bladed jig with a Crush City Freeloader trailer.

Describing his presentations, Welcher said: “It was early-slow and late-fast. That was the biggest adjustment I’d make throughout the day. I think they get up higher in the water column as the sun gets up.”

BassFan caught up Wes Logan (7th, 41-01) and Keith Combs (26th, 37-14) to get their perspective on day 2.

Logan: “Definitely where I started. I started on a different section yesterday and didn’t get a bite until about 11. I caught them pretty good in the afternoon after moving to a different spot, so I started there and they were biting pretty good right away. I think if you’re getting eight to 12 bites per day here you’re doing okay. I had 10 or 12 bites and left everything around 12:30 to look for other places.”

Combs: “I was treading water all morning where I’d had some bites. I got to thinking I’d fished everything from day 1 a second time and nothing was replenishing. I went to another area and they were there so that was a good decision.”

What is the one factor that will determine your success the rest of this tournament?

Logan: “The direction of the wind. There’s a certain wind that was key for the place I caught them today and it looks like it’s going to do a 180-degree switch tomorrow. A north wind is not good in general but you need some kind of water movement with as clear as this place is right now.”

Combs: “For me, I have to stay away from the crowds. As clear as the water is and as shallow as the fish are, I think it’s best to stay on fish that are moving in and those areas that are full of boats, I don’t think they’re moving into there.”