Menendez faces prespawners and a hill to climb

Mark Menendez is starting his final day in third place, a position that was earned after a late-day flurry during Saturday’s semi-final round. He managed back-to-back 5- and 6-pounders respectively. 

While those two big fish may have been on beds, Menendez felt as though they just moved in to where he plucked them from. His pattern has largely been effective on the middle to ends of docks extending into the St. Johns River proper, which is about a mile north of Lake George. 

“My program is not producing many bites, less than 10 per day, actually,” he said. “But, they’re the right bites. I’ve been catching a couple early, but end up culling up to the low to mid 20-pound range later in the day. The right kicker has been critical each afternoon.”

He’s facing a near 7-pound deficit behind the leader, Chris Johnston, but with completely different weather conditions today, calm, overcast with rain likely, it’s hard to say how the fish will react.

Yesterday was a very impressive day at the scales with two bags eclipsing the 32-pound mark, and several others over 25 pounds. To win, Menendez will need all of 25+, and for the leaders to stumble. 

Not necessarily likely, but possible. The St. Johns River is showing out, no question about it.