MLF Bass Pro Tour Report: Ish Monroe Takes Lead in MLF Competition

On a day that had most competitors dressed as though they were going ice fishing in Minnesota rather than casting for bass in central Florida, Californian Ish Monroe took the lead, besting 39 other Group A bass anglers in the MLF inaugural tournament. The MLF Bass Pro Tour on the Kissimmee Chain produced some dramatic changes on the lower half of the winner board Thursday. The tournament is a made-for-TV event and the promoters were not disappointed in the action.

Ish Monroe continued to lead Group A, punching his way to 20 pounds, 7 ounces for a two-day total of 61-4 and the Daily Leader award. “Punching” is a popular tactic in his home waters on the California Delta, using heavily-weighted soft plastics to puncture mats of floating weeds and reach the bass hiding below.

Tennessee angler Ott DeFoe was second with a total of 60-08 for 25 fish over his two competition days, Zack Birge third with 57-09 for 21 fish.

Fighting to Make the Cut

But the most frenetic action happened further down the standings on Day 3 of the week-long, made-for-TV competition:

--Kelly Jordon, who started the day in 36th place with 3 pounds, 13 ounces, stacked 42 pounds, 7 ounces on SCORETRACKER to leap into sixth place.

--Andy Montgomery, who had a miserable Shotgun Round with only one fish for 1-14, put together 12 fish and 32-1 to battle his way over the Elimination Line and into the Top 20, ending with a two-day total of 33-15.

--Takahiro Omori, Jared Lintner, Edwin Evers and Brett Hite significantly improved their Shotgun Round weights to climb well above the elimination line. Omori put 32-9 on the board, Lintner had 25-12, Evers weighed 24-11 and Hite added 22-10.

How They Fished & the Lures They Used

“I found a spot in Kissimmee on Google Earth the night after I got my butt kicked in the first round,” Andy Montgomery admitted. “I had never seen that spot in my life, but I got two bites right when I got in there. I didn’t land either of those fish, but that helped my confidence, so I just stayed there, and picked the area apart with a Strike King Rodent.”

Montgomery leaned heavily on quality fish, going back-to-back-to-back on a 4-6, a 5-6, and a 4-13 in a 35-minute span that officially pushed him into the Top 20.

Going for Numbers

Jordon Lee, on the other hand, played the numbers game. The MLF veteran recorded 26 fish for 42-7 after making some quick adjustments to his overall approach.

“I knew where some good areas were, and just really tried to force it the first day,” Jordon said. “It’s the first tournament of the year, and you might be way more hard-headed than you should be. I went back and did the same kind of stuff today, started catching them right off the bat and got back in it.”

Angler Reports

Jordan Lee (20th/30-12) – “I spent the majority of the day today where I caught my fish on the first day and didn’t catch (much of) anything. I had about 45 minutes left, only had one fish the whole day, and just made a switch to a different area. I caught a 4 right off the bat, then another, and then a 2 with 2 minutes left. It was just crazy, but it just shows you that you’re never out of it.”

Brett Hite (18th/33-7) – “I flip-flopped my day, which worked out really well. I started the morning where I ended the day yesterday, and started catching them right off the bat. The conditions today were a little bit better for what I like to do. Hopefully we get a little rain or it gets a little warmer. I’ve had 24 pounds here on five fish; it could happen real quick if those big females move up. We could see some fireworks in the Knockout Round.”

Jared Lintner (12th/39-9) – “I was in the cut, then out of the cut, then in … then out, all day long. It’s just a different game. It’s exciting, but I’m fried. All the decisions that add up based on SCORETRACKER are just a totally different dynamic. I threw a reaction bait, just going, going, going, covered a lot of water. I can’t even think right now. My wife was like “What are you going to have for dinner?” I don’t even know what I’m doing to do in the next 20 minutes.”

Where/How to View Today’s Round

Live, official scoring via SCORETRACKER begins every morning of competition with lines in at 7:30 a.m. EST. The MLF NOW! live stream begins at 10 a.m. daily, continuing through the day until lines out at 3:30 p.m. The Berkley Postgame Show starts at 5 p.m. daily.

All of the above can be viewed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and on the MLF app on your smart device.