I’m sitting here waiting for Jamie Hartman to show up at his initial spot.
I took the easy route, foregoing the 20-minute run to put in close by.
Hartman, obviously, has the upper hand going into today. But as we’ve seen as recently as the Bassmaster Classic, the upper hand means nothing.
A lot of things can happen today. You’ve got guys like Jason Christie trailing behind. Christie has become known as the breaker of dreams for final day leaders when he makes the final 12. Then you have John Murray, one of the best anglers ever, who has struggled the last few years, but is most certainly starving to get back to the winner’s circle. If I’m not mistaken, his last win may have come right here on Toledo Bend.
Hartman, on the other hand, has kind of quietly burst on the scene. He’s in familiar territory having been near the top of the leaderboard in the first event this season. He finished second there and is ready to cross the threshold to champion of an event.
There’s lots of potential drama today. For Hartman it may come down to how he answers some simple questions. He spent the first two days fishing out, or off the shoreline. But yesterday, he filled his limit by sight fishing.
We know he will start off shore this morning. We are sitting here waiting for him. But how much of that off shore structure he fishes, and how much he bed fishes and if it’s the right mixture will be the key.
He likely has to assume Murray or one of the other contenders will bust a big sack. Which means dealing with a lot of pressure he’s not had the last few days, while making sure every move he makes is the right one.