Bass Fishing Apr - May 2021 | Page 45

8 .

ROUNDING OUT THE REDCREST TOP 10
ANTHONY GAGLIARDI
PROSPERITY , SC
CHAMPIONSHIP WEIGHT 8-1
PHOTO BY GARRICK DIXON PHOTO BY PHOENIX MOORE
Anthony Gagliardi was the model of consistency his first three competition days of REDCREST and was actually one of a handful of anglers whose patterns seemed to be improving steadily as the week wore on . Gagliardi started with 12-5 on Day 1 and boosted his total with 14-15 on Day 2 to land in 12th place after the qualifying days .
He bumped that up even more with 18-6 in the Knockout Round , catching a 4-13 on a shaky head in the final 30 minutes of the day to jump past Jordan Lee and Edwin Evers for the coveted No . 5 spot and a final-day berth . Gagliardi ’ s upward trend faltered in the Championship Round , though , as he landed only three scoreable bass for 8-1 . Still , REDCREST was his seventh final-day appearance in major tour-level championships .

9 .

BRYAN THRIFT
SHELBY , NC
CHAMPIONSHIP WEIGHT 6-15
If there was one angler with a bigger target on his back entering RED- CREST than Jacob Wheeler , it was Bryan Thrift . Thrift was described by his former club-tournament teammate Andy Montgomery as “ never finishing lower than second on Lake Eufaula ” – not exactly accurate , but the North Carolina pro ’ s resume on the Chattahoochee River is indeed impressive ( he won at Eufaula as a co-angler in 2005 and on the then FLW Tour in 2015 ).
And Thrift seemed destined to prove everybody right . He bludgeoned the field with 45-0 on Day 1 , spent all of Day 2 practicing , and then dominated his Knockout Round by nearly 17 pounds with 40-8 . Thrift ’ s threeday total of 90-12 equated to a runaway of epic proportions .
But the “ one day for all the marbles ” format of REDCREST giveth and it also taketh away . Thrift ’ s pattern petered out as local tournament traffic and changing water conditions took their toll . Thrift , nonetheless , added to his legendary status on Eufaula , earning his fifth tour-level top 10 .

10 .

MARK DAVIS
MOUNT IDA , AR
CHAMPIONSHIP WEIGHT 2-15
PHOTO BY PHOENIX MOORE
Arkansas pro Mark Davis built his Bass Fishing Hall of Fame resume the old-fashioned way : He fished his way into nearly as many major championship appearances as Birge and Neal have years on this Earth ( RED- CREST 2021 was Davis ’ 24th championship event ; Birge and Neal are both 30 ). And while the majority of the anglers who made their way through the first three days on Lake Eufaula did so offshore , Davis went about his business flipping , swimming and winding various styles of jigs on the bank .
He capitalized on over 20 pounds on Day 1 , slipped into the Knockout Round with 6-0 on Day 2 , and then flipped his way into the final day with a 5-3 that anchored his three-fish day in knockout competition . The final day was unfortunately the end of a string of diminishing returns as Davis landed only one scoreable bass for 2-15 . Still , REDCREST 2021 was Davis ’ fifth top 10 in a championship event in his storied career .
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