Pros’ Picks: Kentucky Lake

FLW Tour pros counter the pundits with their own picks for the Kentucky Lake FLW Outdoors Fishing Challenge

While Gerald Swindle earned the right open this month’s round of Pros’ Picks, he did it by proxy. Since Swindle was unavailable to make picks at FLW Beaver Lake last month, Clark Wendlandt’s 9-year-old daughter, Emily, was kind enough to fill in for him. Not only did she post the top pro score, 800 points, she placed third among all eight pros and pundits.

So it was Ms. Wendlandt who actually earned the right to open these picks, and, gentleman that he is, Swindle graciously yielded the honor to her.

Faced with the prospect of entering the maelstrom of smack talk that tends to dominate these little introductions, Ms. Wendlandt once again displayed wisdom beyond her years. She recapped her stunning upset in the Beaver Lake picks with four poignant little words against which there is simply no argument:

“Girls rule, boys drool.”

Hot picks

Not surprisingly, returning champ and hometown favorite Dan Morehead leads all contenders with six top-five nods from the pros and pundits. Right behind him is Wesley Strader with five votes and Koby Kreiger with four. David Dudley, Andy Morgan and Craig Powers each garnered three picks. Also ringing in with multiple picks are Tommy Biffle, David Fritts, Gary Klein and Clark Wendlandt, who each claimed two votes. In short, when in doubt about your Kentucky Lake FLW Fishing Challenge picks, go with the flippers and pitchers.
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Wal-Mart FLW Tour stop No. 5
Kentucky Lake, Gilbertsville, Ky.
May 14-17

Gerald Swindle
FLW pro, Warrior, Ala.
Previous tournament score (Beaver Lake): 800 (by pinch picker Emily Wendlandt)
Yearly total: 2,878

1) Terry Bolton. Has superior lake knowledge with both the shallow and the deep bite.
2) Tommy Biffle. Excellent flipper.
3) Gary Klein. With almost two weeks of practice, he will have a good understanding of what’s going on.
4) Andy Morgan. Tennessee River guru and excellent flipper.
5) Gerald Swindle. I just want it!

Clark Wendlandt
FLW pro, Cedar Park, Texas
Previous tournament score: 774
Yearly total: 3,086

1) John Sappington. John is primed and ready for another win. I think sight-fishing could dominate this tournament, and John is very good at catching fish shallow and on the beds.
2) Koby Kreiger. Koby has won an EverStart on Kentucky Lake in early May and he is an excellent sight-fisherman. Spawn or no spawn, he will be strong.
3) Clark Wendlandt. This tournament lines up on the full moon in May. Locals would say that mid-May is too late for the spawn, but remember that it has been a late spring. I am looking forward to this tournament.
4) Carl Svebek III. The lake is at full pool and should rise, if anything. Svebek has fared very well on Kentucky Lake in the Everstarts. Look for the Gambler “Sweebo” to rake in heavy dividends this week.
5) Dan Morehead. Dan’s streak is not surprising at all to me. He is a great fisherman, and he has everything together right now. I never like picking guys on their home lake, but this pick can be summed up in one long word: M-O-M-E-N-T-U-M!

Randy Blaukat
FLW pro, Lamar, Mo.
Previous tournament score: 722
Yearly total: 2,643

1) Wesley Strader. This event is a tough one to pick, since the techniques that dominate here will largely depend upon the ever-changing water level at Kentucky Lake. Strader has been fishing well, has some background on this water and is capable of doing well here at any water level that might occur during the tournament.
2) Rick Clunn. Rick is another angler who is fishing well, and he also has all his focus on the FLW Tour right now. He has had an inconsistent past history on Kentucky Lake, but always seems to do well in postspawn events, especially if the water is low.
3) David Fritts. I’m including Fritts as a top contender here in the event there is a deep bite going on. I think it might be a little too early for the tournament to be dominated by offshore fishing, but anglers like Fritts who commit to it might surprise everyone.
4) Tom Burns. Burns is probably one of the most underrated anglers on the tour. He has had a lot of top-10 finishes on the national trails and fishes for big fish. I don’t really have any rational reason for picking him other than my intuition tells me he has a good chance to do well here.
5) Dion Hibdon. I am picking Dion for the simple fact that he is way overdue for a high finish. He is one of the top anglers in the world, but this season he is living proof that the cycle of highs and lows in the angling world is an undeniable reality in our universe. I think the slump he is in will end at Kentucky Lake.

Koby Kreiger
FLW pro, Osceola, Ind.
Previous tournament score: 714
Yearly total: 3,052

1) David Dudley. He’s been trying really hard to win the points race. Plus, he’s been down at Kentucky Lake forever.
2) Dan Morehead. He might not win, but he’s going to do well.
3) Tommy Biffle. Because it’s going to be a flipping tournament.
4) Craig Powers. Because he’s C.P.
5) Koby Kreiger. I don’t like picking myself, but I’ve got to catch them. So I’ve got to bear down, I guess.

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Pundits’ Picks: Kentucky Lake
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