By B.A.S.S. Communications Staff

CULLMAN, Ala. — With the leaderboard as tight as it’s been at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Smith Lake, the door was open for any of the 50 remaining anglers in the tournament to move up the standings.

Robert Gee was that guy.

After lurking near the lead for the first half of the tournament, the 25-year-old Knoxville, Tenn., resident grabbed the pole position on Saturday with a 14-pound, 2-ounce bag that gave him a three-day total of 41-9.

It’s the slimmest of cushions, though, with every one of the remaining 10 anglers in the field less than 4 pounds from Gee’s lead. And that’s perfectly fitting for what could be one of the most competitive final rounds in recent memory.

Taku Ito, the 38-year-old veteran from Chiba, Japan, is just behind Gee with a three-day weight of 41-7. Jay Przekurat, a 25-year-old from Stevens Point, Wis., is 3rd with 41-6.

Gee’s lead might be bigger, but he had three fish expire on Day 2 of the tournament, which resulted in a 12-ounce deduction to his daily total. In a difficult derby, when every ounce is precious, he’s hoping that unfortunate situation doesn’t come back to haunt him.

“It’s going to be a game of ounces,” Gee said. “And I might be up by a pound without that penalty. It was the heat. I guess I didn’t buy enough ice. It was just stress on the fish from being so hot.”

While many of the 98 anglers who started the tournament struggled for consistency, Gee’s steady hand has impressed. He’s fishing in the middle of the main channel within a mile or two of the Smith Lake Dam, LiveScoping for larger spotted bass chasing pods of threadfin shad and herring into 15 to 40 feet of water. He saw a 5-pound spotted bass on his electronics earlier in the week, and he’s hoping to catch that big one before the tournament ends.

“I lost a really fat one on the first day, a 4- or 5-pounder,” he said. “I’ve been using a smokey Yamamoto jighead minnow, and it’s worked so far. I don’t see myself fishing anywhere else.”

Gee said he’s confident he can catch another good bag to clinch what would be his first Bassmaster win.

“I’m only up a couple of ounces, and I usually like going into the final day being a little bit behind,” Gee said. “But I’ll be okay with the lead, too. It’s not much of one, anyway.”

Ito also has been consistent at Smith, despite the difficult bite and scorching temperatures (the heat index climbed into triple digits again on Saturday). He caught 14-2 on Day 3, the same weight posted by Gee, to compliment limits of 13-10 and 13-11 earlier in the week.

A trio of 3-pounders boosted Ito’s efforts Saturday. Though that might not stand out in a typical tournament, 3-pounders have been something of a brass ring on Smith this week when a $100,000 first prize is on the line.

“I got bites the whole day,” Ito said. “I found many schooling fish, and I used many different baits to get bites. I’m fishing about 25 feet deep on rocks and timber. There haven’t been very many big fish, but I found some this morning. I had a 3-2 and a couple of nice 2-pounders before I caught two more 3-pounders later in the day.”

Ito previously listed Smith Lake as one of his two favorite fisheries, though his best finish here was an 8th-place showing at a Southern Open in 2019. He expressed the same affection for Smith on Saturday.

“I love it here,” he said. “It’s very deep and there aren’t many largemouth, which is fine. I’m a spotted bass fan.”

Kyoya Fujita won $1,000 for the 4-9 he caught Saturday, which was the Phoenix Big Bass of the Day. The catch also put him in the lead for the $2,000 award for the tournament.

The event's final day will begin with a 6 am. CT take-off from Smith Lake Park. Weigh-in is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.



Day 3 Standings

1. Robert Gee -- Knoxville, TN -- 15, 41-09 -- 103
Day 1: 5, 13-07 -- Day 2: 5, 14-00 -- Day 3: 5, 14-02

2. Taku Ito -- Dalton, GA -- 15, 41-07 -- 102
Day 1: 5, 13-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-11 -- Day 3: 5, 14-02

3. Jay Przekurat -- Plover, WI -- 15, 41-06 -- 101
Day 1: 5, 13-11 -- Day 2: 5, 14-08 -- Day 3: 5, 13-03

4. Cory Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 15, 40-11 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 14-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-10 -- Day 3: 5, 13-05

5. Cody Huff -- Ava, MO -- 15, 40-05 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 13-13 -- Day 2: 5, 15-04 -- Day 3: 5, 11-04

6. Kyle Patrick -- Cooperstown, NY -- 15, 40-02 -- 98
Day 1: 5, 13-08 -- Day 2: 5, 13-03 -- Day 3: 5, 13-07

7. Cooper Gallant -- Bowmanville, ON -- 15, 38-14 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 11-13 -- Day 2: 5, 14-04 -- Day 3: 5, 12-13

8. JT Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 15, 38-07 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-15 -- Day 3: 5, 11-14

9. Justin Hamner -- Northport, AL -- 15, 38-05 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 14-01 -- Day 2: 5, 12-10 -- Day 3: 5, 11-10

10. Tyler Williams -- Belgrade, ME -- 15, 37-14 -- 94
Day 1: 5, 12-14 -- Day 2: 5, 11-04 -- Day 3: 5, 13-12

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on Day 4

11. John Garrett -- Union City, TN -- 15, 37-13 -- 93 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-08 -- Day 2: 5, 12-07 -- Day 3: 5, 11-14

12. Justin Atkins -- Florence, AL -- 15, 37-11 -- 92 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-02 -- Day 2: 5, 12-12 -- Day 3: 5, 12-13

13. Kyoya Fujita -- Yamanashi, JAPAN -- 15, 37-10 -- 91 -- $11,000
Day 1: 5, 12-13 -- Day 2: 5, 10-03 -- Day 3: 5, 14-10

14. Bob Downey -- Detroit Lakes, MN -- 15, 37-10 -- 90 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-07 -- Day 2: 5, 12-06 -- Day 3: 5, 12-13

15. Cole Sands -- Calhoun , TN -- 15, 37-09 -- 89 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-04 -- Day 3: 5, 11-11

16. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 15, 37-09 -- 88 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-02 -- Day 2: 5, 12-12 -- Day 3: 5, 12-11

17. Luke Palmer -- Coalgate, OK -- 15, 37-08 -- 87 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-04 -- Day 2: 5, 13-05 -- Day 3: 5, 11-15

18. Chris Johnston -- Otonabee, ON -- 15 -- 37-04 -- 86 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-01 -- Day 2: 5, 12-10 -- Day 3: 5, 12-09

19. Bryan New -- Leesville, SC -- 15, 37-02 -- 85 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 14-03 -- Day 2: 5, 12-01 -- Day 3: 5, 10-14

20. Matt Robertson -- Kuttawa, KY -- 15, 36-14 -- 84 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 12-01 -- Day 3: 5, 13-13

21. Jacob Foutz -- Charleston, TN -- 15, 36-07 -- 83 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-07 -- Day 2: 5, 13-03 -- Day 3: 5, 11-13

22. Wes Logan -- Springville, AL -- 15, 36-03 -- 82 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-08 -- Day 2: 5, 13-04 -- Day 3: 5, 11-07

23. Bryant Smith -- Roseville, CA -- 15, 36-03 -- 81 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-06 -- Day 2: 5, 12-00 -- Day 3: 5, 11-13

24. Carl Jocumsen -- Queensland, AUS -- 15, 36-02 -- 80 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 12-02 -- Day 3: 5, 13-00

25. Kyle Welcher -- Valley, AL -- 15, 36-02 -- 79 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-14 -- Day 2: 5, 12-05 -- Day 3: 5, 11-15

26. Brandon Palaniuk -- Rathdrum, ID -- 15, 36-01 -- 78 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-02 -- Day 3: 5, 10-03

27. Ben Milliken -- New Caney, TX -- 15, 35-15 -- 77 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-15 -- Day 2: 5, 10-03 -- Day 3: 5, 12-13

28. Kenta Kimura -- Osaka, JAPAN -- 15, 35-09 -- 76 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-11 -- Day 2: 5, 11-00 -- Day 3: 5, 11-14

29. Alex Redwine -- Blue Ash, OH -- 15, 35-07 -- 75 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 14-08 -- Day 2: 5, 12-08 -- Day 3: 5, 08-07

30. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 14, 35-06 -- 74 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-04 -- Day 2: 5, 13-04 -- Day 3: 4, 08-14

31. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 15, 35-03 -- 73 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-00 -- Day 2: 5, 11-03 -- Day 3: 5, 12-00

32. Paul Mueller -- Naugatuck, CT -- 15, 35-02 -- 72 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-07 -- Day 2: 5, 10-14 -- Day 3: 5, 11-13

33. Wesley Gore -- Clanton, AL -- 15, 35-01 -- 71 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-07 -- Day 2: 5, 11-08 -- Day 3: 5, 11-02

34. Chris Zaldain -- Fort Worth, TX -- 15, 35-00 -- 70 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-05 -- Day 2: 5, 12-14 -- Day 3: 5, 10-13

35. Kyle Norsetter -- Cottage Grove, WI -- 15, 34-10 -- 69 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 10-11 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04 -- Day 3: 5, 11-11

36. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 15, 34-10 -- 68 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-00 -- Day 2: 5, 11-10 -- Day 3: 5, 11-00

37. Pat Schlapper -- Eleva, WI -- 15, 34-08 -- 67 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-06 -- Day 2: 5, 12-08 -- Day 3: 5, 10-10

38. Logan Parks -- Auburn, AL -- 15, 34-07 -- 66 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-13 -- Day 2: 5, 11-03 -- Day 3: 5, 11-07

39. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 14, 34-06 -- 65 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-12 -- Day 2: 5, 10-08 -- Day 3: 4, 11-02

40. Jeff Gustafson -- Kenora, ON -- 15, 33-14 -- 64 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-05 -- Day 2: 5, 12-00 -- Day 3: 5, 10-09

41. Jordan Lee -- Cullman, AL -- 15, 33-13 -- 63 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 11-06 -- Day 2: 5, 12-10 -- Day 3: 5, 09-13

42. Gregory DiPalma -- Millville, NJ -- 15, 33-11 -- 62 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-06 -- Day 2: 5, 09-12 -- Day 3: 5, 10-09

43. Seth Feider -- New Market, MN -- 14, 32-14 -- 61 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 09-05 -- Day 2: 5, 14-07 -- Day 3: 4, 09-02

44. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 14, 32-12 -- 60 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 12-14 -- Day 2: 5, 12-11 -- Day 3: 4, 07-03

45. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 13, 32-06 -- 59 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 14-02 -- Day 2: 5, 13-08 -- Day 3: 3, 04-12

46. Caleb Kuphall -- Mukwonago, WI -- 14, 32-01 -- 58 -- $11,000
Day 1: 5, 11-03 -- Day 2: 5, 13-02 -- Day 3: 4, 07-12

47. Todd Auten -- Clover, SC -- 12, 29-13 -- 57 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 10-10 -- Day 2: 5, 16-00 -- Day 3: 2, 03-03

48. Hunter Shryock -- Ooltewah, TN -- 12, 28-13 -- 56 -- $11,000
Day 1: 5, 15-15 -- Day 2: 5, 10-04 -- Day 3: 2, 02-10

49. Marc Frazier -- Newnan, GA -- 12, 27-12 -- 55 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-05 -- Day 2: 5, 10-07 -- Day 3: 2, 04-00

50. Mike Huff -- London, KY -- 10, 23-01 -- 54 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 10-04 -- Day 2: 5, 12-13 -- Day 3: 0, 00-00