Contrary to all predictions, Lake Okeechobee actually fished better Thursday, on Day 1 of the A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite, than it did on the first day of the Elite Series event in 2012.
On one hand, it’s not surprising. Lake Okeechobee has always been one of the top bass fishing lakes in the country, even when it’s not in prime shape. But the lack of water clarity and vegetation had everybody thinking the lake couldn’t possibly match the 2012 totals. It hadn’t been producing numbers like that, not just in months, but years.
The following is a comparison of Day 1 at the Elite Series event on March 22, 2012, and Day 1 of the A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmater Elite on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017.
| Day 1, 2012 | Day 1, 2017 | |
| Total anglers | 99 | 110 |
| Bass weighed-in | 481 | 534 |
| Total weight | 1,249-6 | 1,492-1 |
| Ave. bass weighed-in | 2.60 lbs. | 2.79 lbs. |
| 5-bass limits | 92 | 103 |
| Pct. catching a limit | 92.9% | 93.6% |
| Big bag | 34-5 | 31-3 |
| Big bass | 7-13 | 9-5 |
| 12th place | 18-11 | 19-9 |
| 25th place | 14-11 | 17-3 |
| 50th place | 12-1 | 13-10 |
| 75th place | 9-3 | 10-14 |