Drew Cook has been trying to break his slow-starting habit for a while now. He’s tired of having to be the “comeback kid.” In the Elite Series season-opener at the St. Johns River last month, Cook was 84th on Day 1 and rallied to finish 9th in the tournament. He won’t need to rally Friday at the Santee Cooper Lakes. It took him little more than half a day to catch 31 pounds, 13 ounces and take the lead in the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite.
“It was so important,” said Cook of the hot start. “Obviously, I’ve never won one of these before, and I’ve really never had a good start to an event.”
The 27-year-old Cairo, Ga., resident is in his fourth season on the Elite Series. He was the 2019 Rookie of the Year.
“It was an awesome morning,” Cook said. “We were done by about 11:00. Then I put the trolling motor on a hundred and hit the bank. It was like a practice day. I found a couple more for (Friday).”
Cook found water surface temperatures as high as 66.9 degrees, adding with a smile, “That’s enough.” All his bass were caught sight-fishing. His day was so good that he declined to fish for a 7-plus-pounder on a bed when the smallest fish in his livewell was 5 ½ pounds by mid-day. He may need that one another day.
It’s not like Cook distanced himself from the rest of the field. Caleb Kuphall is only 2-3 back in second place and Greg Hackney is third, 3-15 behind Cook. Fourteen anglers weighed over 20 pounds Thursday. With temperatures expected to stay warm through the weekend, more and more bass should move shallow to spawn.
“I expect that,” said Hackney. “I’m so afraid it’s going to get better in other places. It’s funny, but every time I’ve been here it’s been cold in practice, then it warms up and the fish just start showing up everywhere.”
This one is just getting started.