Here's what some of the anglers who didn't make the Top 25 cut at the Bassmaster Classic had to say about day 2.
26th: Stone Not Unhappy
After a 16-10 bag on day 1, Marty Stone caught less than half that today. He fell eight places and was the first angler out of the cut. Still, he wasn't upset with himself because of the way he fished or the decisions he made.
"The only real difference between those bags was one 7-pound bite,"
he said in reference to the hawg that anchored his day 1 bag. "I've got to be pleased – I fished clean except for one lost fish. I gambled and gave myself some opportunities, and I can't beat myself up over that.
He started day 2 in Kissimmee, them came back to Toho and "fished around in the parade of locals." He didn't catch a fish in the area that gave up his solid day 1 bag.
"I knew I was going to need one good bite each day, and possibly two on one day. (On day 2) I didn't get any."
28th: Brauer Disappointed
Chad Brauer ended the Classic with a day 2 catch of 14-08 and a total of 24-04.
"I'm a little disappointed," he said. "But I really wasn't on anything from practice, so I didn't have high expectations. I knew most of my tournament would be spent looking for productive water.
"I flipped all day (on day 1), and started out that way (on day 2) and caught one in the first 5 minutes. At about 10:00 I picked up a spinnerbait and caught the rest on that."
29th: Reynolds Has No Regrets
California's Mike Reynolds caught 13-04 on day 2, which included a 5-pounder, and ended his Classic with 24-03 total.
"I feel like I started fishing poor, then got a couple bites and got it together," he said. "I don't know what it was. It wasn't execution – I did that. Sometimes you just get that gut feeling, and it felt like I was in the wrong area.
"I finally slowed down like I needed to and flipped a Reaction Innovations tube again to little willow trees. I have no regrets."
30th: Snowden Fell Short
Brian Snowden moved up three spots on day 2 with a 12-02 bag, but it wasn't nearly enough to put him on today's finale.
"It's a little disappointing," he said. "I really wanted to do better. I was familiar with the body of water this time and I knew how to get around and what to expect."
There was one bonus: "I learned how to fish a (Yum) Buzz Frog. It's a blast. I was throwing it into a little pocket, and the bite seemed to get better in the afternoon when the water warmed up."
He also caught a few fish on a worm.
Randy Howell was frustrated that he couldn't find enough bedding fish.
32nd: Howell Frustrated
Randy Howell caught eight keepers on day 2. His 10-12 sack contained none bigger than 2 1/2 pounds.
"It's a little frustrating and disappointing," he said. "Sight-fishing is my favorite way to fish and I feel I can find them and catch them as well as anybody, but I didn't find enough to be successful in a tournament like this. That's all it boiled down to."
He thought he had several pegged down for day 2, but they weren't there when he arrived. "Maybe they laid their eggs and moved off (Friday) night. And some of the other ones I had, the wind blew and muddied those banks up."
33rd: Menendez Tumbles
Mark Menendez didn't catch a fish under 3 pounds on day 1, when he weighed in a 17-00 sack. He caught just one of that size on day 2, and just three keepers total for 5-08.
Still, he said the same thing he did after day 1 – that he was just happy to be here after last year's bout with near-fatal viral meningitis. "I'm thrilled to be standing up and fishing again. I fished for big fish to try to win the tournament, and I just came up on the wrong side."
He didn't second-guess that strategy. "As fishing goes, I wouldn't change anything. There weren't a lot of fish in that area (on day 1), but the quality was definitely there."
35th: Reynolds Ran Around
Jeff Reynolds dropped six places on day 2 with a 9-09 bag. None of his five topped the 3-pound mark.
"I tried to catch some on a worm this morning, and then I went sight-fishing," he said. "I caught a few, but I didn't find any big ones."
He was all over Toho. "I fished it from one end to the other, just like I was pre-fishing."
37th: No Big Bite For Mize
Jimmy Mize had no trouble catching fish on day 2, but could manage only a 9-03 bag.
"I probably caught 12 to 15 keepers, but they were just keepers. I started in Toho and then ran down to Cypress for about 3 hours. My biggest fish probably wasn't 3 pounds.
"It's a disappointment because I thought I would do real well. But there's been a lot of local pressure, and maybe a lot of fish got caught between the time I found them and the actual tournament days. I went to my first spot and there were four (non-tournament) boats there. I didn't even stop."
38th: Soley Had Company
Two-time ederation qualifier Bob Soley of Trenton, N.J. was in cut contention with a 13-15 bag after day 1, but caught just 7-08 today.
He spent most of the day in Kissimmee, then fished Toho for awhile in the afternoon. "I fished this tournament to win, and I went to all new water today," he said.
What will be his best memory of the tournament? "Some friends brought their boat down all the way from New Jersey and followed me around. I thought that was pretty cool."
42nd: Kennedy Missed Chances
Federation qualifier James Kennedy of Lacombe, La. got 12 bites on day 2, but boated just half of those. "I lost two big fish," he said. "When that happens, you have to be able to regain your composure as fast as you can. I'll admit it probably took me a half-hour or 45 minutes to get it back, and the rest of the day I was scrambling to find fish."
He said he had a tremendous time in his first Classic. "I enjoyed the experience and I learned a lot," he said. "This is just going to make me drive harder to get myself back. It was phenomenal."
43rd: McClelland Learned A Lot
Mike McClelland's 10-02 bag on day 1 was more than half a pound bigger than his day 1 sack, but he remained in 43rd place.
"The big-fish bite eluded me on both days," he said. "I can't even say that I lost one. I never got around them."
He said he should have realized something when he was the only angler in his area. "If you're fishing by yourself in Florida, you're not around the right fish," he said.
Still, it was a beneficial experience. "I had a great time, and I probably learned more on this trip than on any other trip to Florida. There are some things I can take forward to future tournaments."
48th: King Discouraged
Stacey King's 10-05 bag on day 2 was nearly double what he caught on day 1, but that was little consolation.
"I'm discouraged because of the fact that I caught them good in pre-practice, and on the practice day I got a lot of bites and I thought I had them wired. But those fish were super-shallow and they went back outside and I couldn't get back on them again."
It was his 12th Classic, and maybe his last, since he's not fishing he Bassmaster Elite Series this year. "I'm going to miss a lot of the people associated with it, but it's almost like a weight off my shoulders," he said. "I'm ready to turn the page and start a new chapter in my career."
