Cory’s predictions

“You won’t be able to go out on the lake, pull up on a deep hole, and catch 25 pounds and leave,” Johnston said. “That means time management will be crucial. You won’t have a lot of time to run around from one spot to the next before it’s time to come back.”

Cory Johnston shared some predictions on how the week might shake out. Not surprising at all is he went to his comfort zone, which is Lake Ontario.

“It’s fishing different from how I’ve ever seen it,” Johnston said. “There are smallmouth in every stage of the spawning cycle”

Specifically, the spawn is underway in the lake; it’s wrapping up and leaning toward postspawn in the river.

“You won’t be able to go out on the lake, pull up on a deep hole, and catch 25 pounds and leave,” Johnston said.

On Bassmaster LIVE, we’ve already seen Chris Johnston fishing for bedding smallmouth. Maybe that validates Cory’s comment.

Either way, time management will be crucial if there are no massive schools of big smallmouth to be caught in one area, like there were last year, when the bass were settled into their summertime areas.

“There will be places where they group up but not out in those 35-foot-deep holes like we had last year,” Johnston said. “There will be a mixed bag of things going on.”