Kentucky Lake Gang

Twenty years of competition, camaraderie have made them ones to beat on Kentucky Lake

BENTON, Ky. – Tournament bass fishing is an unpredictable business, but here is one thing you can take to the bank: If there is a summertime tournament on Kentucky Lake, locals will be getting their share of the payout pie.

As EverStart Series Tournament Director Chris Jones called out the top 20 pros’ names and hometowns during launch ceremonies Friday morning of the Central Division event, the states Kentucky and Tennessee were noticeably redundant.

In all, 15 of the top 20 pros are from Kentucky or Tennessee and 10 of the top 20 are from the Paducah-Benton area.

Before takeoff this morning, Kentuckians Terry Bolton and Dan Morehead of Paducah, Shawn Penn of Eddyville, and Britt Cone of Benton shared a few laughs reminiscing about the good and bad times of the Kentucky Lake Gang.

“We’ve all been fishing together out here since we were teenagers,” Bolton said. “Sometimes we fished with each other and sometimes we fished against each other.”

“These guys were fishing a few years before I came along,” Morehead chimed in. “I got so tired of them kicking my butt that I had to become friends with them.”

“Well, I’ll tell you how long we’ve been fishing together,” Bolton joked as he pointed to a pair of reading glasses in Cone’s boat. “I can remember when Britt could tie on a lure without using those.”

For the better part of 20 years, these pros have scoured the bottom of Kentucky Lake with crankbaits and Carolina rigs discovering the lake’s hidden treasures: underwater features that hold schools of big bass.

But you don’t have to be a member of the Kentucky Lake Gang to get the job done here.

With a lake that is nearly 90 miles long, the term “home water” can mean different things to different people.

Tournament leader Sam Lashlee, for example, calls Kentucky Lake his home lake, but his “home water” is quite a bit farther south.

Lashlee hails from Camden, Tenn., about 75 miles from Benton, and he has been commuting an hour and a half south every day to fish his home water.

“I know that part of the lake much better,” Lashlee said. “That’s where I grew up. We have a lot more river islands up there and the river ledges are shallower. I’m fishing both deep and shallow each day.”

Kentucky Lake Gang or not, all the pros and co-anglers start from zero today. And since many pros have claimed to be staying off their best water the last two days, there could be quite a show at the weigh-in today.

The day-three weigh-in will be held at the Benton Wal-Mart at 3:30 p.m. Central.

Friday’s conditions:

Air temperature: 57 degrees

Water temperature: 75 degrees

Wind: from the north at 5 to 10 mph

Day’s outlook: sunny, high near 80 degrees