PALATKA, Fla. — Defending St. Johns champ Edwin Evers had one thing to say when he weighed 20 pounds, 4 ounces on Thursday: “I like this place — a lot.”
At that moment — about halfway through the weigh-in — he had taken the lead. He later settled in seventh place, reminiscent of how his first day went in the 2011 event, when he also wasn’t in the Top 5 after one day.
Like most Elite Series pros, Evers isn’t one to divulge any details during a competition. He hinted that he was covering a lot of water, using baits similar to those he won on last year (Yum plastics), and he had tweaked his techniques compared to last year.
“It clicked for me the second and third days of practice. I figured out what had to be done,” he said.
The game is different this year, he said.
“Last year, you couldn’t go 10 feet without seeing one over 5 pounds. This year, it’s really hard to find a giant (on the beds),” Evers said.