ryanerb

Semi slow bite, fish have adjusted with the cold weather. Some guys are getting em, jerkbait, spinnerbait , crankbait. Wheeler is yet to get on the board...

Recently leaked and now on their website, I guess it's just the latest version with better clarity over the LVS32 https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/806410#overview

Friday may be that much more post frontal. Interesting they pushed it out a day.

Interesting two rookies made it into the championships. Dakota and Cole. Also will be fun to see Alton SR and JR in the final.

Cameras a freezing up, lots of ice on the camera lenses!! Water temps went from 61 yesterday to 47-49 today!! (from Rob Newell) I love that the top 3 guys are all using something different, this is PROOF i don't need to stress on what to throw. Spinnerbait, chatterbait, crainbait, and jerkbait! I'm very surprised fish are biting this well given the drastic drop... but I'm glad it's happenin!

Yeah, maybe he's throwing Rapala. I don't know if it matters 100%, it's probably the area he is in with the FFS he's using, etc Regarding water temps, water definitely can retain heat itself. I'm sure this storm will drop it a few degrees.... For a jerkbait bite, I don't know if that will matter much with the cold. It may just affect the attitude of the bass, etc They may have a little more lockjaw.

Good to know on the temperature gradients over 200 miles there. We can have that at times in CA but maybe a little less so. Random side question, anyone know / remember which jerkbait Wheeler has done all the damage on? Is he a megabass vision 110 aficionado?

What's weird, 85 degrees in Austin and 44 degrees in Dallas... Crazy that the front is that sharp!

Maybe this was already discussed, I'm sorry, but in the years past I've been able to rewind footage by at least a few minutes, etc. Now I can't even do that. Anyone else experiencing or notice the same?

I didn't get to watch, but when I checked the scoretracker and saw Wheeler was at the top and all fish were on a jerkbait, I knew it was the forward facing sonar (FFS) that he was glued to all morning. I mean... it is a cool technology! Those poor fish! One more advantage for the humans....

Yeah, I mean they caught some big ones, but it was SUPER tough.... but that could change when the weather warms up. I'm sure this tourney put this little lake on the radar for some people that hadn't thought much of it. Then again, it's not like some Joe like me is going to drive out there from California to fish it...

Glad Roy won! Love to see the new winners and he's at a fun stage in life. When it's your time, it's your time!

What was the line that I missed by Jordan Lee 'Lucky as a dog with two ....?' haha

Yeah, I don't know how this happens, a HUGE name like ike and he catches one fish? Over half the field had a 5 fish limit. I mean... I know sometimes it just doesn't go your way... but... obviously we seem to have higher standards for the 'pros'....

Amazing MDJ is almost in last now, and started in first. After those first 2 fish, nothing for a long long time.. dry spell... dang.

Wood and chatterbait are my worst nightmare. One reason I won't fish chatterbaits, because my home lake has so much wood and I get hung up a lot! Water color for them today is great for a chatter, but I'm not sure it's the right pick. Obviously the guys winning are doing so on flippin. HAHAH yeah... he just needs to get that first bite flipping to get the confidence. But I'm surprised he isn't doing that good today. However, thinking to all the tourney's he's won, they haven't been usually the flipping kind of deal. He loves that forward facing setup, and that thing probably isn't as useful on todays lake.

Very slow start to the morning, with very few fish caught. Some guys are ignoring the 10,000 wood targets, instead trying to find some grass, etc However, MDJ is leading, and he's finding fish on wood in 5ft of water. 10ft he got no bites. He also said bites are very soft. Water 18 inches viz, 50F. I'm not thinking pre-spawn has even fully activated yet. Should be an interesting day, very slow start, but maybe it will pick up later in the day like @GReb says.

At least there will be tons of heavy cover at bussey for the fish to hunker in if there is no wind... maybe it will all pan out?

Wheeler is doing some magic with his electronics. He's a step ahead of the rest of the field with his electronics. He knows them. Even Jordan Lee admitted he wasn't that comfortable with front facing sonar. Jacob has his front facing DIALED and understands it probably as good or better than anyone on tour. I think it's helped him win quite a bit. He probably gets local info during his research stage, I think he's just taking everything to the next level. KVD is a legend, but Wheeler sure is shining these days. What I also love is that JLEE is getting them on a ned, wheeler on a jerkbait. This proves they can be caught different ways, it's not always about the bait. It's about the location, presentation, etc etc. And maybe a little bit of luck haha

Well Jared Lintner just proved you can use a baitcaster for dropshot, or as he called it 'bubba shot' or 'power shot' during the Feb 2022 MLF in LA. He was even fishing 16lb line due to some heavier cover. Obviously lighter weights can get tough. Depends on how you drop shot. Try both, see what works best for you!

bahaha lets hope after the slow fishing at this lake. it will be a great change of scenery!!

haha well... i enjoy it, because it makes me feel better every time i go fishing and its tough, i now know the pros struggle too.... no matter if you are the top guy in the nation, you can't ALWAYS go out and rail em. Winter seems to always be the toughest, and they are just on the backside of winter with cold stained water, the conditions that most people say are the toughest, and sure enough, they are struggling. I do think the lake size for this field is a bit small. I know they are moving lakes for different rounds, but still... there just isn't enough water to hold a lot of these guys. They chose LA instead of FL, maybe FL has some bigger lakes, etc.

Just saw on one of the sonars, I think water temp is 48?! Pretty dang cold. Maybe why some of the slower presentations are working.

Yeah I think those are long gone. Stopped working a couple years ago. Maybe there is a new one floating around I don't know about

I wonder what it is about the swim jig that made it win out over a bladed jig? Perhaps more stealth? Perhaps not a negative clacking sound to the fish? Perhaps he's fishing cleaner water and the bladed jig is just too much for that clear of water?