> What: Bassmaster Eastern Open
> Where: Harris Chain of Lakes (Leesburg, Fla.)
> When: Thursday through Saturday (Jan. 24-26)
> At stake: Cash prizes and berth in 2020 Bassmaster Classic
> Expected field size: 226 boats
> Last Open at Harris Chain: Jan. 19-21, 2017
> Winner: Jesse Wiggins (59-04) – Click here to read about Wiggins' Winning Pattern.
> What they’re saying: “It’s going to be warm by tournament time, but it’s not going to be a warming trend leading up to the event; it’s actually going to be an event starting on the tail end of a cold front,” said South Carolina Elite Series pro Jason Williamson. “My outlook is that there are going to be a lot of big fish caught — it’s Florida, it’s the Harris Chain — but I don’t know if it’s going to warm up quickly enough to bring sight fishing into play.”
“Florida is all about finding an area,” said Michigan pro Chad Pipkens, another Elite Series regular. “Those fish move up and down so much throughout the day, it’s not a place where you run and gun. It’s a place where you need to find your area, mill around and change with the conditions.
“My plan is to see which areas can funnel fish in to spawn and then pay attention to the details in front of those areas — the offshore grass lines, points and humps. I don’t want to have to run from one lake to another to another, but I’d like to find an area or two with the right habitat.”
Some of the information above was taken from a B.A.S.S. press release.
