I’m lucky 13 again

Day 1 of the 2017 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods is in the books, and I’m still in the hunt. I didn’t have the day I wanted to have, but it wasn’t terrible … and I’m optimistic that I can make something good happen on Day 2. All I need are a couple of quality fish.

I had a chance to put together a better day, but things didn’t work out, and I finished with a limit weighing 18-3. That puts me exactly 5 pounds behind Brent Ehrler, the leader. His catch was anchored by a giant largemouth weighing 9-12.

Brent’s big fish is a sample of what’s out here. He was able to capitalize with a lunker. As a result, he’s the leader and the rest of us are playing catch-up.

On the first day, I caught fish as shallow as 3 feet and as deep as 15 feet. What I was missing was a couple of kickers. The weather was tough on a lot of guys. Half the lake was blown out. You just couldn’t fish it because of the wind and the waves. That made things muddy, too.

I caught eight keepers and was surprised at the number of bites I got. I thought the action would be quite a bit faster.

Tomorrow, I’m going to see what the weather holds, and I’m going to fish the weather. I’ll need to step things up to be in a really good position going into the final day. I’m hoping for 21-22 pounds. I’m expecting weights to be up on Saturday. Overall, the fishing was pretty challenging today. 

One thing I have on my side is my lucky number. Kevin VanDam has lucky cookies; I have a lucky number. When I played football in high school, I was number 13, and I liked it. Other guys didn’t want it because of superstition, but it never bothered me. Thirteen was lucky for me.

Last year at the Bassmaster Classic, at the end of Day 1 I was in 13th place. I had a better Day 2 and moved into third. On the final day, I was fortunate to catch a great bag and win the tournament.

This year at the end of Day 1, I’m in 13th again.

Coincidence? I hope not, but we’re about to find out.

Finally, if you’re in Houston for the Classic, I hope you’ll have a chance to stop by the Edwin Evers Pecans booth (#950) in the Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods. I’m really proud of our products and our booth. Our spot on the floor is a little out of the way, but we’re worth finding. Not only do we have the world’s best pecans, but we’re giving away some great prizes — like one of my tournament jerseys, a Pelican cooler and more.

We even have a life-size cutout figure of me in the booth, so you can look for me there even when I’m on the water! We hope to see you at the Expo. It should be really busy there this weekend.