TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — On a lake where the only constant seems to be change, Andrew Loberg took advantage of the conditions on Day 1 of the Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller.

The California native caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 9 ounces to lead the field after one day of competition on the eastern Oklahoma reservoir. He holds an 8-ounce advantage over second-place Trey McKinney. Wisconsin’s Bob Downey is third with 16-2.

Lake Tenkiller has fluctuated greatly thanks to heavy rains that spread over the area ahead of official practice. From the final day of practice on Tuesday to the start of Day 1, the water fell several feet and anglers were forced to scramble to adjust.

The field of 101 anglers adjusted well, however, as each pro landed a limit, with 90 of those limits weighing over 10 pounds. Mixed bags of smallmouth and largemouth crossed the scales, but it was Loberg’s bag of largemouth that led the way.

“I think the conditions played really well for me,” he said. “I think the low pressure system helped the big largemouth eat a little bit better than other stuff going on.”

While this is his first tournament at Lake Tenkiller, Loberg has shown early in his Bassmaster career he’s comfortable in Oklahoma. During the 2024 St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by SEVIIN season, Loberg notched a second-place finish down the road at Lake Eufaula.

Loberg isn’t dialed in necessarily. He has 30 rods on the front deck of his bass boat and is testing both offshore and shallow patterns. On Day 1, the shallows won out as he caught all largemouth.

“It was 50/50 between shallow and deep,” he said. “It is a timing thing, for sure. There are so many boats hitting the same stuff and I think I got lucky and pulled up on the right stretch at the right time. There were boats all over the place.”

The day didn’t start particularly quickly for Loberg as he felt out the lake in the morning. But as the morning progressed, he discovered a productive pattern that produced most of his final tally.

“I ran with it until I reached my limit,” Loberg said. “Honestly, all day I was really trying new stuff and seeing what was going on. With how much things are changing, I want to eliminate water and see what’s happening.”

With how much the lake is changing, Loberg said he isn’t set on doing one thing.

“I’m going to keep an open mind like I did today,” Loberg said. “This place is just changing so much. You have to have a couple things going on, because I don’t think one thing can take you four days.”

McKinney finished Day 1 with a mixed bag weighing 17-1, which included four largemouth and a smallmouth. The Carbondale, Ill., Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro started the morning shallow, but did the majority of his damage on two or three offshore areas. In about a 30 minute flurry, McKinney caught his initial limit which weighed about 15 pounds.

After testing more shallow cover, McKinney went back offshore and culled up to his final weight.

“I really didn’t even hit some of my good stuff today,” he said. “I still have some tricks up my sleeve. I left them about half way through the day. I didn’t want to be greedy. This place is tough and small, I didn’t want to catch fish I would need tomorrow. I played a little defense.”

Conditions changed around McKinney several times throughout the day. When the lake got choppy, he saw the bite improve. Thunderstorms moved through late morning, which shut down his bite for a while. Only one other angler shared water with McKinney on Day 1.

“Overall, I had a lot of stuff to myself,” he explained. “A lot of people probably fished it, but not at the same time as I did. A lot of stuff I’m fishing isn’t getting as pressured as I thought.”

On Day 2, McKinney plans on leaning on his areas a little bit harder than he did on the first day. As the tournament progresses, he believes the more consistent bite will be the offshore bite, but the shallows may produce the bigger bites.

Opelika, Ala., pro Kyle Welcher landed a 4-10 on Day 1, claiming Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day honors.

The full field of anglers will launch from Chicken Creek Boat Ramp beginning at 6:30 a.m. CT and will return for weigh-in at 2:30 p.m. The Top 50 anglers after Day 2 will advance to Semifinal Saturday in hopes of cracking the Top 10 and qualifying for Championship Sunday. Day 3 and 4 weigh-ins will be held at Cherokee Casino in Tahlequah.

Bassmaster LIVE coverage of the Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller will be available on Bassmaster.com Days 1 and 2 starting at 8 a.m. ET and ending at 3 p.m. FS1 will carry the morning action on Day 3 from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. before heading over to Bassmaster.com in the afternoon. Day 4 can be seen on FS1 from 8 a.m.-Noon with afternoon action to follow on FOX from Noon-3 p.m.

The Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller is being hosted by the Oklahoma Ozarks Tourism Association.

 

2025 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Progressive, Toyota
2025 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2025 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew’s, Lowrance, Triton Boats, VMC, Yokohama

About B.A.S.S.

B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting-edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series, St. Croix Bassmaster Opens Series presented by SEVIIN, Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier Series presented by Lowrance, Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Strike King Bassmaster High School Series, Bassmaster Junior Series, Bassmaster Team Championship, Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, Bassmaster College Kayak Series, Yamaha Bassmaster Redfish Cup Championship presented by Skeeter and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.