ESPN Women's Tour

Boater Standings | Non-Boater Standings

MADISON, Tenn. — Cheryl Bowden said the bite Thursday on Old Hickory Lake was light, but she landed enough timid bass to end up with 11 pounds, 0 ounces, and the first-day lead at the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Women's Tour.

A pro from Plano, Texas, Bowden was two pounds in front of Heather Broom of Sylva, N.C., who was second with 9-0 on the first day of the competition that rounds out the WBT's regular season.

"The bite was light, you could hardly feel it," said Bowden, who declined to give many details on her pattern this early in the game.

She did say she worked a Gambler Mega Daddy most of the day in five areas she had pinpointed in practice. The soft craw produced most of her five-fish limit, which were all largemouth bass.

"I had a great practice," said Bowden, "and once I found my fish, I left them alone, didn't go back to them. Today, I kept thinking, 'are they going to be there,' and they were."

Unlike most other competitors, Bowden said she did not spend her time measuring fish to adhere to the length limits of 12 inches for spotted bass, 14 inches for largemouths and 18 inches for smallmouth bass.

"I hardly caught any short fish" said Bowden. "Almost all the fish I hooked were big fish."

Broom said she used two types of lures to get her limit, and stayed in one area, having faith the bite would turn on again after a lull.

"I fished all day for five fish," she said, adding that her fifth fish for a limit went into the livewell at about 1:30 p.m., 45 minutes before check-in with tournament officials.

Third after Day One with 7-14 was Judy Wong, the Many, La., pro who won the WBT Championship in February 2008 on South Carolina's Lake Keowee. Wong managed three fish, all largemouths.

"I was fortunate to get the big bite, I just couldn't get my limit, but I caught big numbers," she said.

Wong pulled in front of Emily Shaffer of Mount Juliet, Tenn., who considers Old Hickory one of her home lakes. Shaffer had 7-7.

Much is at stake for all the competitors in the pro division. They are competing for money and prizes — the first prize is $1,000 cash and a boat rig valued at $55,000 — and for enough points to qualify for the Oct. 16-18 Academy Sports + Outdoors WBT Championship on the Red River out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La.

Only the top 20 in the points standings after Old Hickory will advance to the championship, where the newly crowned Toyota Tundra WBT Angler of the Year will claim her qualification for the 2010 Classic. She'll follow pioneer Kim Bain-Moore, who as the 2008 AOY was the first woman to qualify for a Classic.

Besides a Classic qualification, the new AOY will score a 2010 Toyota Tundra.

Leading this year's race is Pam Martin-Wells of Bainbridge, Ga., who had 850 points going into Old Hickory. The full standings can be found on Bassmaster.com. Just nine points behind is Juanita Robinson of Highlands, Texas. Martin-Wells was 23rd place after the first day of the Tennessee tournament with 3-14. Robinson was fifth with 7-2.

In the co-angler division, where the first prize is $500 and a boat rig valued at $25,000, Monica Altman of Angier, N.C., picked up the Day One lead with 6 pounds, 8 ounces. In second place was Colleen McKay of Worcester, Mass., with 6-7. Third was Jada Tidmore of Union Grove, Ala., who bagged 6 pounds, 0 ounces.

Co-anglers are competing for qualifying points for the championship as well. Only the top 20 will go to the Louisiana event.

The Old Hickory competition will resume Friday at 6:15 a.m. CT, when the full field launches from Sanders Ferry Park, 100 Sanders Ferry Road in Hendersonville, Tenn. The weigh-in is scheduled for 2:45 p.m. CT at the Academy Sports + Outdoors store, 2350 Gallatin Pike N., Madison.

All WBT events are free and open to the public.

The local sponsor is Sumner County Convention and Visitors Bureau (www.sumnercvb.com).

Media Contact: Doug Grassian; doug.grassian@espn.com; 407-566-2216.

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