Lay Lake may have been chosen for political reasons as well. With all the BS going on with BASS in the last year or so, maybe ESPN felt it was a good move to have the Classic back in the area where the whole thing started. Who knows.

One thing I do know is that I dont really like Lay Lake. I used to work on that reservoir, and spent 3 years fishing it. It can be a very tough lake, but if the timing is right you can get some good bags in the twenties.