Crochet and Tharp on St. Johns

We start Day 2 of the Dick Cepek Tires Bassmaster Elite Series event on the St. Johns River with Cliff Crochet. The Pierre Part, La. native was in 3rd place after Day 1 because he brought 22 pounds, 14 ounces.

Crochet already had a small keeper in the pound and a half range when we met up with him shortly after takeoff.

He was plugging around his area and covering as much water as possible during the cloudy low-light morning.

Russ Lane comes off plane and idles towards Crochetâ¦

Crochet keeps fishing and doesnât notice.

Once Lane realizes which way Crochet is fishing down the bank he decides to give him room and leave.

A couple minutes later Crochet decides to leave. He made a small run just around the corner.

Crochet gets comfortable in his new area and tells us that he caught a good one in this stretch on Day 1.

Itâs pretty picturesque on the St. Johns River with the vast types of trees and greenery that fill the area.

After missing a fish, Crochet re-rigs his bait.

Crochet said he was trying to find his groove this morning so he could get a feel for how the day was going to play out.

He utilized his Power Poles to keep him still in an area and he could quickly fan cast and cover the whole spot thoroughly.

He informs cameraman Brian Mason that when he gets to this American flag they are going to roll out to another area.

Sure enough he is ready to go and he pulls his trolling motor.

While Crochet left us in the dust we detoured and found Randall Tharp who started the day in 4th place.

He was hooked up when we pulled in.

He pulled his fourth keeper aboard and was on his way to filling his limit.

Tharp has resided in Florida for the last few years and has become one of the best anglers in this type of tournament. Itâs no surprise to see him close to the top.

He used his push pole to navigate some shallow water silently so he wouldnât unnecessarily spook any fish.

He keeps plugging away. He is still convinced that Day 1 leader Brandon Lester cleaned up a big bag in here to start this morning because Tharp is wondering where all the big fish have gone to. He said he was in this area when Lester caught a 9-pounder and a 5 on Day 1.

Tharp hooks up.

This could be keeper No. 5 if it is a bass.

It indeed is a largemouth and that fills his limit.

He joked that his five fish limit probably weighed in the 6-pound range, but he knows that it can change in a heartbeat in Florida.

So he remains confident and methodical. Plus having Bassmaster LIVE coverage is pretty sweet.

Josh Bertrand push-poles his way through a grass filled area.

While a big flock of coots hang around the shallow grass.

They donât hang around long though.

Tharp sets the hook, but doesnât even begin to fight this fish to the boat because he knows it wonât keep or help his bag.

He said he could see numerous fish on the bed in the area, but they were all this size and no use for him to waste his time to possibly try and upgrade his weight.