Mixed bag of bass gives Aoki solid lead at Bassmaster Open at Kentucky Lake/Lake Barkley
March 7, 2025
PARIS, Tenn. — There’s no such thing as an insurmountable lead in a B.A.S.S. tournament, but Yui Aoki has put himself in a very enviable position after Day 2 of the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Kentucky Lake/Lake Barkley presented by SEVIIN.
Aoki, a 25-year-old native of Minamitsuru District in Japan, weighed a five-bass limit of 24 pounds, 4 ounces on Friday, which when paired with his 24-pound sack on Day 1, gives him a 48-4 total. That’s 6-1 more than Alabama’s Laker Howell, who’s in second place with 42-3.
Illinois’ Ethan Fields (40-15) and Tennessee’s Sam Hanggi (40-5) are the only other anglers in the field of 226 within 8 pounds of Aoki’s lead.
The 45-degree temperatures and bluebird skies that factored on Thursday gave way to dense cloud cover, occasional sprinkles of rain and steady winds of 10 to 15 mph on Friday. The change hardly bothered Aoki, who had nearly identical weights on the first two days of the three-day tournament.
The only noticeable difference was Aoki’s Friday bag contained three largemouth bass when Thursday’s had all smallmouths. Several pundits predicted catching a mix of bass would be the winning combination on this mammoth Kentucky/Barkley fishery, and Aoki is proving them right.
“I feel very good (about my chances of winning),” Aoki said. “Of course.”
The 6-pound lead gives him reason for confidence. Aoki is fishing flooded timber on the main channel of Kentucky Lake not far from Paris Landing, where daily takeoffs and weigh-ins are being held. He’s throwing a variety of 5- and 6-inch swimbaits (smoke, white) that mimic the shad in the lake, and he mixed in some dropshots on Friday, too.
“It was very windy, very hard to keep my bait on the fish,” he said of the Day 2 conditions. “This is my first time to fish the river channel system and it’s very different to me. But I like it very much.”
Howell, a 23-year-old from Guntersville, Ala., caught a limit of five smallmouth on Friday weighing 21-5. The young gun had only four keeper bass with less than hour of fishing time remaining, but he eventually completed his limit and gave himself the best chance (on paper, at least) of catching Aoki.
Howell was in 11th place after Day 1 with 20-14 but fished his way into Friday’s Top 10 cut with another top-notch bag. His bait of choice has been a 4 1/2-inch paddle-tail swimbait (chartreuse/blue) on a Buckeye Lures J-Will jighead.
“The current was a little bit different today (with the south wind blowing), but things really did set up pretty much the same for me,” Howell said. “I got five bites again and the Good Lord allowed me to land all five of them.”
Howell said he’s targeting a spot that is loaded with shad.
“The birds are swooping down to eat the baitfish, flying off with shad in their mouth,” he said. “It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet spot, and If I can get to it again tomorrow, I think I’ll be good.
“The main thing is getting five bites,” he continued. “If I do, I think they’ll be about the same size as what I’ve had so far. They’re all 3- to 5-pounders that are set up in this particular spot.”
Rounding out the Top 10 anglers competing Saturday are fifth, Tennessee’s Miles Burghoff, 40-1; sixth, Georgia’s Tanner Hadden, 39-14; seventh, Kentucky’s Jordan Hartman, 39-12; eighth, Kentucky’s Clint Knight, 38-13; ninth, Kentucky Elite Series pro Matt Robertson, 38-8; and 10th, Colorado’s Ty Faber, 38-1.
Nebraska’s BJ Miller maintained his lead for the Phoenix Boats Big Bass Award with an 8-3 he hooked on Day 1. The angler with the heaviest bass will net an additional $750.
A total of $334,028 cash is being split among the Top 45 competitors in the Open, including $50,305 to the winner. Top anglers also will earn valuable points toward a berth in the inaugural Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers this fall.
Championship Saturday is scheduled to begin at 6:15 a.m. CT from Paris Landing State Park, with weigh-in set to start at 2:15 p.m. Bassmaster LIVE will stream the final day’s action on Bassmaster.com and the Roku Sports Channel will air coverage from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. ET and from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Stay up-to-date on all tournament coverage at Bassmaster.com/how-to-
The City of Paris is hosting the event.
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: St. Croix
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Presenting Sponsor: SEVIIN
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2025 Bassmaster Opens 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 Opens Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew’s, Lowrance, Marathon, Triton Boats, VMC
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 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, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Team Championship, Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, 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.
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2025 2025 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Kentucky Lake/Lake Barkley presented by SEVIIN 3/6-3/8
Kentucky Lake, Paris TN.
Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Yui Aoki Minamitsurugun JAPAN 10 48-04 200
Day 1: 5 24-00 Day 2: 5 24-04
2. Laker Howell Guntersville, AL 10 42-03 199
Day 1: 5 20-14 Day 2: 5 21-05
3. Ethan Fields Breese, IL 10 40-15 198
Day 1: 5 20-12 Day 2: 5 20-03
4. Sam Hanggi Knoxville, TN 10 40-05 197
Day 1: 5 18-14 Day 2: 5 21-07
5. Miles Burghoff Dayton, TN 10 40-01 196
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 25-06
6. Tanner Hadden Appling, GA 10 39-14 195
Day 1: 5 20-03 Day 2: 5 19-11
7. Jordan Hartman Benton, KY 10 39-12 194
Day 1: 5 25-04 Day 2: 5 14-08
8. Clint Knight Russellville, KY 9 38-13 193
Day 1: 5 22-15 Day 2: 4 15-14
9. Matt Robertson Kuttawa, KY 10 38-08 192
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 24-05
10. Ty Faber Pagosa Springs, CO 10 38-01 191
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 20-05
11. Fisher Anaya Eva, AL 10 37-07 190
Day 1: 5 23-00 Day 2: 5 14-07
12. Rylan Hamlin Jackson, MI 10 36-15 189
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 19-14
13. Darold Gleason Leesville, LA 9 36-14 188
Day 1: 4 16-08 Day 2: 5 20-06
14. Brock Reinkemeyer Warsaw, MO 10 36-11 187
Day 1: 5 21-12 Day 2: 5 14-15
15. Brennan Flick West Monroe, LA 10 36-07 186
Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 5 18-01
16. Jack Dice Lynchburg, VA 10 35-06 185
Day 1: 5 19-08 Day 2: 5 15-14
17. Brett Hite Phoenix, AZ 10 35-03 184
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 18-12
18. Austin Cranford Norman, OK 10 34-15 183
Day 1: 5 21-10 Day 2: 5 13-05
19. Nic Rand Paw Paw, MI 9 34-01 182
Day 1: 4 13-06 Day 2: 5 20-11
20. Cole Breeden Lebanon, MO 10 33-10 181
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 18-01
21. Chris Hellebuyck White Lake, MI 10 33-06 180
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 5 16-02
22. Brad Jelinek Lincoln, MO 8 32-13 179
Day 1: 5 23-01 Day 2: 3 09-12
23. Pake South Winnsboro, TX 10 32-10 178
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 19-00
24. Kollin Crawford Broken Bow, OK 8 32-04 177
Day 1: 3 10-02 Day 2: 5 22-02
25. Cameron Mattison Benton, LA 9 32-01 176
Day 1: 4 12-12 Day 2: 5 19-05
26. Tristan McCormick Bon Aqua, TN 8 31-13 175
Day 1: 5 22-15 Day 2: 3 08-14
27. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 31-13 174
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 16-14
28. Dillon Harrell New Caney, TX 10 31-06 173
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 5 15-02
29. Andy Newcomb Camdenton, MO 8 31-00 172
Day 1: 5 23-06 Day 2: 3 07-10
30. Brad Leuthner Victoria, MN 8 30-14 171
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 3 12-03
31. Bryan Partak Marseilles, IL 9 30-13 170
Day 1: 4 08-14 Day 2: 5 21-15
32. Tyler Campbell Martin, GA 8 30-09 169
Day 1: 5 17-00 Day 2: 3 13-09
33. Michael Corbishley Raleigh, NC 10 30-02 168
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 16-08
34. Evan Cox-VanVliet Loveland, CO 9 29-02 167
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 4 11-13
35. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 8 28-14 166
Day 1: 3 10-07 Day 2: 5 18-07
36. Trevor McKinney Noble, IL 10 28-13 165
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 13-08
37. Wyatt Marler Oldfield, MO 8 28-12 164
Day 1: 5 20-01 Day 2: 3 08-11
38. Joey Nania Cropwell, AL 9 28-10 163
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 4 10-10
39. Aaron Yavorsky Palm Harbor, FL 8 27-07 162
Day 1: 4 15-08 Day 2: 4 11-15
40. Trent Palmer Cumming, GA 8 26-14 161
Day 1: 3 11-08 Day 2: 5 15-06
41. Jimmy Washam Stantonville, TN 9 26-14 160
Day 1: 4 11-15 Day 2: 5 14-15
42. Jay Nyce Rogers, AR 10 26-13 159
Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 5 12-00
43. Garrett Paquette Canton, MI 9 26-12 158
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 4 09-07
44. Bailey Bleser Burlington, WI 10 26-10 157
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 11-05
45. Christian Ostrander Turlock, CA 7 26-09 156
Day 1: 5 21-02 Day 2: 2 05-07
46. Michael Harlin Gravois Mills, MO 10 26-09 155
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 10-08
47. Lane Olson Forest Grove, OR 7 26-08 154
Day 1: 2 09-11 Day 2: 5 16-13
48. Nick Trim Galesville, WI 9 26-08 153
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 4 13-06
49. Riley Nielsen Salt Lake City, UT 8 26-03 152
Day 1: 3 10-04 Day 2: 5 15-15
50. Blake Smith Lakeland, FL 8 25-15 151
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 3 08-10
51. Clark Reehm Elm Grove, LA 7 25-13 150
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 2 06-07
52. Casey Scanlon Eldon, MO 9 25-12 149
Day 1: 4 11-06 Day 2: 5 14-06
53. Beau Browning Hot Springs National Pa 9 25-11 148
Day 1: 4 09-15 Day 2: 5 15-12
54. Bailey Gay Union, KY 8 25-04 147
Day 1: 3 09-05 Day 2: 5 15-15
55. Tim Sprouse Clarksville, TN 9 25-04 146
Day 1: 5 14-04 Day 2: 4 11-00
56. Greg Bohannan Bentonville, AR 9 24-09 145
Day 1: 4 09-12 Day 2: 5 14-13
57. Jonathan Pimentel Camdenton, MO 8 24-06 144
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 3 07-13
58. Matt Wieteha Port St Lucie, FL 9 24-06 143
Day 1: 4 10-01 Day 2: 5 14-05
59. Jace Lindsay Beckville, TX 7 24-05 142
Day 1: 5 17-08 Day 2: 2 06-13
60. Chad Grigsby Maple Grove, MN 9 23-15 141
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 4 11-08
61. Joe Wieberg Freeburg, MO 8 23-12 140
Day 1: 3 07-02 Day 2: 5 16-10
62. Doc Wootton Collierville, TN 8 23-06 139
Day 1: 4 11-04 Day 2: 4 12-02
63. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 23-05 138
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 11-01
64. Chris Groh Spring Grove, IL 10 23-02 137
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 13-02
65. Kyle Metzger Pearl River, LA 8 23-01 136
Day 1: 3 07-08 Day 2: 5 15-09
66. Connor Jacob Peoria, IL 9 22-10 135
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 4 09-14
67. Tommy Wood Peregian Springs AUSTRA 7 22-08 134
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 2 05-02
68. Brandon Ackerson Afton, OK 7 22-05 133
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 2 06-01
69. Dave Parsons Yantis, TX 6 21-10 132
Day 1: 3 11-01 Day 2: 3 10-09
70. Matt Baker Glenwood, AR 7 21-05 131
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 2 06-06
71. Jack York Emory, TX 6 20-14 130
Day 1: 3 11-11 Day 2: 3 09-03
72. Buddy Benson Dahlonega, GA 6 20-12 129
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 1 02-04
73. Denny Fiedler Wabasha, MN 7 20-11 128
Day 1: 4 11-02 Day 2: 3 09-09
74. Bj Miller Adams, NE 6 20-10 127
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 1 02-02
75. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 7 20-06 126
Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 2 07-09
76. Blaine Bunney Claremore, OK 7 20-04 125
Day 1: 4 09-05 Day 2: 3 10-15
77. Adam Rasmussen Sturgeon Bay, WI 7 20-01 124
Day 1: 3 09-02 Day 2: 4 10-15
78. Mike McClelland Blue Eye, MO 6 19-13 123
Day 1: 4 14-12 Day 2: 2 05-01
79. John Murray Spring City, TN 7 19-05 122
Day 1: 3 08-09 Day 2: 4 10-12
80. Tai Au Glendale, AZ 6 19-00 121
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 1 02-02
81. Dalton Smith Taylorsville, KY 5 18-12 120
Day 1: 2 09-15 Day 2: 3 08-13
82. Isaac Peavyhouse Monroe, TN 6 18-11 119
Day 1: 4 10-06 Day 2: 2 08-05
83. Brent Anderson Kingston Springs, TN 5 18-09 118
Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 0 00-00
83. Dewayne French Mammoth Spring, AR 5 18-09 118
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 18-09
85. Andrew Behnke Fond Du Lac, WI 5 18-08 116
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
86. Seiji Kato Los Alamitos CA JAPAN 7 17-15 115
Day 1: 3 09-01 Day 2: 4 08-14
87. Evan Poroznik Nestleton Station Ontar 5 17-13 114
Day 1: 4 13-11 Day 2: 1 04-02
88. Chris Beaudrie Princeton, KY 7 17-13 113
Day 1: 4 10-14 Day 2: 3 06-15
89. Dillon Falardeau Hixson, TN 6 17-10 112
Day 1: 4 11-09 Day 2: 2 06-01
90. Billy Gilbert Hamburg, NY 6 17-10 111
Day 1: 2 08-11 Day 2: 4 08-15
91. Julius Mazy Phoenix, AZ 5 17-09 110
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 0 00-00
92. Josh Butler Hayden, AL 5 16-14 109
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 0 00-00
93. Jaden Parrish Liberty, TX 5 16-08 108
Day 1: 4 11-10 Day 2: 1 04-14
94. Colby Dark West Monroe, LA 5 15-15 107
Day 1: 3 08-05 Day 2: 2 07-10
95. Matt Stefan Junction City, WI 5 15-14 106
Day 1: 4 11-13 Day 2: 1 04-01
96. Chris Whitson Louisville, TN 5 15-03 105
Day 1: 3 09-01 Day 2: 2 06-02
97. Jacob Welch Jefferson City, MO 5 15-02 104
Day 1: 1 03-02 Day 2: 4 12-00
98. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 5 14-15 103
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 0 00-00
99. Angel Rosario Kalamazoo, MI 5 14-15 102
Day 1: 1 02-10 Day 2: 4 12-05
100. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 5 14-11 101
Day 1: 2 07-05 Day 2: 3 07-06
101. Kane Weekley Davie, FL 5 14-07 100
Day 1: 2 06-10 Day 2: 3 07-13
102. Randy Millender Teague, TX 4 14-04 99
Day 1: 3 10-13 Day 2: 1 03-07
103. Freddy Palmer Estill Springs, TN 5 14-04 98
Day 1: 3 08-06 Day 2: 2 05-14
104. Matt Molitor Canton, IL 5 14-04 97
Day 1: 2 06-09 Day 2: 3 07-11
105. Brock Bila Republic, MO 5 14-03 96
Day 1: 4 11-10 Day 2: 1 02-09
106. Brian Post Janesville, WI 4 13-14 95
Day 1: 4 13-14 Day 2: 0 00-00
107. Ryan Michl Newton, IL 5 13-11 94
Day 1: 4 11-07 Day 2: 1 02-04
108. Drake Hemby Tallbot, TN 4 13-07 93
Day 1: 1 05-02 Day 2: 3 08-05
109. Rick Harris Jr Carlsbad, NM 5 13-04 92
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 0 00-00
110. Joseph Titus Bemidji, MN 4 13-03 91
Day 1: 2 04-04 Day 2: 2 08-15
111. Cole Lamb Russellville, AR 4 13-02 90
Day 1: 1 04-13 Day 2: 3 08-05
112. Jacob Thompkins Myrtle Beach, SC 4 12-15 89
Day 1: 1 03-00 Day 2: 3 09-15
113. Josh Wiesner Fon du Lac, WI 5 12-15 88
Day 1: 2 04-08 Day 2: 3 08-07
114. Jack Tindel III Orange, TX 4 12-13 87
Day 1: 2 06-05 Day 2: 2 06-08
115. Jonathon VanDam Gobles, MI 3 12-12 86
Day 1: 1 03-01 Day 2: 2 09-11
116. Josh Douglas Isle, MN 4 12-08 85
Day 1: 1 02-12 Day 2: 3 09-12
117. Caz Anderson Hayesville, NC 4 12-07 84
Day 1: 1 04-00 Day 2: 3 08-07
118. Sammy Burks Jr Joplin, MO 5 12-06 83
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 0 00-00
119. Grae Buck Green Lane, PA 5 12-06 82
Day 1: 3 08-08 Day 2: 2 03-14
120. Dylan Akins Flowery Branch, GA 5 12-05 81
Day 1: 3 07-13 Day 2: 2 04-08
121. Alex Heintze Denham Springs, LA 5 12-03 80
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 0 00-00
122. Jim Moynagh Outing, MN 3 12-03 79
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 3 12-03
123. Travis Ledford Tuttle, OK 3 12-02 78
Day 1: 3 12-02 Day 2: 0 00-00
124. Rick Pierce Mountain Home, AR 4 11-15 77
Day 1: 2 05-09 Day 2: 2 06-06
125. Tyler Conde Chepachet, RI 4 11-14 76
Day 1: 1 04-07 Day 2: 3 07-07
126. Joey Teofilo Richmond Hill Ontario C 4 11-13 75
Day 1: 4 11-13 Day 2: 0 00-00
127. Chase Clarke Virginia Beach, VA 4 11-10 74
Day 1: 3 08-12 Day 2: 1 02-14
128. Keith Brashers Rogers, AR 4 11-08 73
Day 1: 4 11-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
129. Nate Caldwell Fort Collins, CO 3 11-05 72
Day 1: 3 11-05 Day 2: 0 00-00
130. Anthony Garcia Los Angeles, CA 4 11-05 71
Day 1: 3 07-07 Day 2: 1 03-14
131. Nathan Thompson Eagan, MN 4 11-05 70
Day 1: 2 06-02 Day 2: 2 05-03
132. Brooks Anderson Marietta, GA 3 11-04 69
Day 1: 1 04-02 Day 2: 2 07-02
133. Jason Barber Gun Barrel City, TX 4 11-03 68
Day 1: 2 06-07 Day 2: 2 04-12
134. Trey Schroeder Theodosia, MO 3 10-13 67
Day 1: 3 10-13 Day 2: 0 00-00
135. Tomm
