Indeed, the pre-practice slot machine assumption had turned into a veritable crap shoot reality where, as always, Mother Nature calls the shots. This week the weather is in a state of constant flux with rain, wind, and cold air streaming into the region, creating a consistent theme to the week – change, change, and more change. 

Add to the turbulent weather the fact that the water levels have been up and down throughout the week. With the three-hour delay due to fog on Thursday, and all the other challenges the week has brought thus far, the result is a full-tilt attempt at survival for Friday’s 50-man cut. 

Kevin VanDam, who started the morning in 11th place ended Friday in third after placing 18 pounds, 6 ounces on the scales, with a two-day weight of 33 pounds and 12 ounces. Matt Herren, starting the day in 4th place, ended it the same way after weighing five bass that went 15 pounds and 7 ounces giving him 32 pounds, 8 ounces overall. 

Alton Jones fell two spots to fifth after weighing a five-bass limit of 14 pounds, 14 ounces, pushing his combined weight to 32 pounds and 3 ounces. Rounding out the Super Six was Freddy “Boom Boom” Roumbanis, with a combined weight of 32 pounds and 1 ounce, who weighed in a limit going 15 pounds and 5 ounces Friday.

The proverbial last man standing in 50th place was Pete Ponds, with a two-day total weight of 20 pounds, 15 ounces after weighing four fish that went 7 pounds and 9 ounces.

Menendez is Sticking with the Tin
While he seems to be making it look easy, Mark Menendez – one of four pros running aluminum rigs this week – pointed out that Friday was a day of adjustments. Still, regardless of the weather that looming, he’s committed to sticking with what’s brought him this far. 

“I’m going to run the tin can all week. I don’t care how hard it blows or how long it might take me to get there, I’m committed,” he allowed. “I might not get another bite in there, but that’s where I’ll be all day.”

Crossing two wing dams, and another “real rough area that would trash a fiberglass boat,” Menedez explained that while he’s had the area primarily to himself, he’s certain that it’s a local hot spot.

Still, he’s confident that about the only thing that can really hurt his water is the weather. “I just hope that the weather doesn’t get so bad that it shuts everything down,” he said. “There’s a lot of fish in there, and there’s a lot of new fish moving in there, so I think I’ll be okay.”

The water in his warmed up four to five degrees as the day progressed, which is promising for Menendez in light of the oncoming artic blast. “Hopefully the water temps won’t fall too much tonight,” he said. 

“There’s no guarantees in fishing, and today was really a lot slower than yesterday, but hopefully I’ve learned enough about what I’m fishing to keep it working. If the water cools off, it’s definitely going to make it tougher.”

Pace Continues to Surprise Himself
Cliff Pace has had great success so far this week on an unfamiliar lake that is fishing just like his home waters at Ross Barnett reservoir. He learned at Barnett that to catch quality, you have to be methodical – and it’s working for him well at Dardanelle. 

“The key to catching better quality fish in these little areas I’m fishing is to really slow way, way down and just pick it a part,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been doing so far, and it’s paying off for me.”

Despite a self-described “terrible practice” on a lake he’d never laid eyes on before this week, Pace has had a spectacular week. “The biggest surprise this week has been how well I’ve done,” he said. 

“I found this one small little area and sort of committed myself to it because it’s all that I’ve got. 

Committed to his single area, Cliff explained that he’s not planning to change anything –just continue to grind away on what’s brought him this far. “It’s one of those deals where if I were to leave, someone else will come in there behind me and start catching them,” he said. 

“So I’ve had to just work it back and forth and pounding everything out of it that will bite. I don’t know how much longer it will last, but it’s been fun either way.”

VanDam Making it Look Easy
It’s almost expected for Kevin VanDam to make a move towards the top spot as a tournament week wears on, so there are no surprises to see that he’s in third place heading to the weekend.

However, he Kevin pointed out that what looks so easy from the stage is quite the opposite in real time. “It’s looks good when you weigh in, but it was hard work to get there, I promise,” he said.

“I definitely learned some things yesterday, and the weather today helped too, but when this weather hits…who knows?”

Knowing that the weatherman is promising for the arctic blast to turn brutally cold, VanDam did all he could to better his chances at surviving until Sunday while the bass were biting. “I tried to catch as much as I could today just because I knew that it was going to get tougher over the next couple of days,” he said. 

“I’m definitely in a good area that has a ton of fish in it, but if it gets cold I think it’s going to hurt them. Fortunately I’ve got another little area that I think should be good if it does turn cold, so we’ll see.”

Kevin pointed out that while cold fronts aren’t at all uncommon this time of the year, he doesn’t have a wealth of experience fishing river systems in the spring to know how it will respond.

As such, tomorrow is virtually a clean slate for him. “I’ve just not had a lot of experience on a waterway like this in the spring when it does get cold,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t know exactly what to expect. 

“This is a really good fishery, so I feel like there’s plenty of fish out there. Again though, I’m not worried about anything but the weather.”

Herren’s Fish are Changing Daily
“I’m tickled to death just to be in contention heading into the weekend,” Matt Herren said when asked of how his day went. He’s still in shock, after the miserable practice he had, that he’s in contention.

However, he allowed that part of it is due to the fact that he’s able to fish just like he would back home in Alabama. “I’m doing what I’m real comfortable with,” he said. “The fish seem to be positioned where I can catch them.”

The randomness of the bite, along with the varied stages of his fish, is concerning to Herren. “They keep changing on me,” he said. “Yesterday they were doing something totally different that what they did today. 

“That’s kind of to be expected when you’re fishing fish that are all stages of the spawn.”

The rising water is assisting Herren as it’s making more areas fishable. “The water coming up is actually helping me,” he said. “The problem is, with the Corps of Engineers I’ll have to wake up in the morning and figure out what to do again.”

As for the adjustments the weekend will force Herren to make remains to be seen. “I’m just playing it by ear and will have to see what the weather’s doing in the morning,” he explained. “The weather forecast is changing every day, so who knows.

“If it rains real hard tonight, that might mess me up. It took about half the day today for it to settle out.”

Jones is Consistent Again
Alton Jones is back at his consistency again – the kind that has resulted in one of this hottest streaks he’s had in his storied career. With warmer weather than was expected, he was able to hunt new water Friday in the process of solidifying his spot inside the Top 5. 

“I had to move around and go to some water that I haven’t been to yet,” he said. “I was really disappointed in one of my areas because it cooled so much. I still managed to catch a couple of keepers in there, but it was just so cold and muddy that I didn’t stay long.”

Jones explained that he was able to catch a couple keepers site fishing this afternoon, and found one he is saving for late Saturday. “I found one around five pounds this afternoon that was actually in the process of dropping her eggs,” he said. 

“They’re usually impossible to catch when they’re doing that, so I left her alone until tomorrow. This cold front may push her off completely, but I won’t know for sure until tomorrow afternoon.”

Jones plans to mix it up some Saturday, and is prepared to roll with whatever weather-related punches are in store. “I think I know what to look for, it’s just a matter of finding an area that’s hot at the right time,” he said. “I’m going to fish some new water, as well as some of my water that I’ve been fishing.”

Roumbanis – “I know that there’s some big ones in the area that I’m fishing, and I’m a little disappointed that I wasn’t able to have a big bag today. Tomorrow, I’m going back in there and will do my best to get ‘er done.”

Brauer - “I’m fishing exactly the way that I like to fish, there’s no doubt. I’m just shocked at how shallow some of the bites that I got were. I never would have dreamt that some of the places that I’m throwing the bait to would have a fish there, but all of a sudden my line will swim off.”

Vinson - “Over the course of the day I started to figure out a way to help me get a little bit better fish. I was also able to expand on my water just a little. If it gets cold I don’t really know what they’re going to do, but I feel like with them being pre-spawn, they’re not going too far.”