Comforts Of Home: Cox Slugs 25-11

By BassFan Staff

Believe it or not, John Cox had not weighed in a limit of bass yet through two FLW Tour events this season. The reigning Forrest Wood Cup champion weighed three fish total at the Lake Guntersville season opener and managed four fish on both days he competed at Lake Travis. His 11 fish so far tipped the scales at 29-06.

He rectified all of that today with a 25-11 stringer to kick off the Harris Chain Tour stop atop the leaderboard. Whether it signals that Cox, a native of nearby Debary, Fla., is returning to the form that saw him contend for an Angler of the Year title two years ago or claim two victories in 2016, isn’t clear yet. At the very least it wipes away the frustration of the first two events.

“It felt great today,” Cox said. “I went the first 2 1/2 hours without a bite or seeing anything and I was starting to wonder what was going on. This tournament is one I’ve dreamed would come here. I remember being 12 and my mom would drop me off at Harris in a little jonboat. When it got on the schedule, I kind of didn’t believe it. Today, so many memories came back. I caught some in places I’d caught them at 20 years ago.”

Cox has plenty of company in the 20-pound club. North Carolina pro Shane Lehew sacked a career-best 23-15 and is less than two pounds back in 2nd. Jim Moynagh caught 23-09 and occupied 3rd.

Local resident Tim Frederick seized upon the opportunity to fish near home and caught 21-15, which has him in 4th. Andy Morgan, who missed the money cut at Travis, bounced back with 21-13 today to round out the top 5.

Here's a look at the top 10 after the first day of competition, with deficit margin from Cox indicated by red numbers in parentheses:

1. John Cox: 25-11
2. Shane Lehew: 23-15 (1-12)
3. Jim Moynagh: 23-09 (2-02)
4. Tim Frederick: 21-15 (3-12)
5. Andy Morgan: 21-13 (3-14)
6. Carl Jocumsen: 20-12 (4-15)
7. Bryan Thrift: 19-10 (6-01)
8. Matt Wittekiend: 18-15 (6-12)
9. Andrew Upshaw: 18-04 (7-07)
10. Rusty Trancygier: 18-02 (7-09)

Mark Rose, the winner of the first two Tour events this year, caught 12-10 today and is in 65th place. Meanwhile, Bryan Thrift, who finished 2nd to Rose at Guntersville and Travis (and then took 2nd at the Lake Seminole FLW Series last week), caught 19-10 and sits in 7th place. Out of the last 27 days of FLW Tour competition dating back to last season, Thrift has been among the top 11 on the leaderboard on 25 of them.

As expected, the sunny, calm conditions allowed many anglers to efficiently scour the canals and near-shore areas for the latest wave of spawners. There were numerous stringers in the 13- to 14-pound range that were anchored by a 6- or 7-pound bed-fish. Whether there’s enough left Friday remains to be seen, but for those check-hunters, it’ll be worth a look.

There’s a strong contingent of casters who might be picking off bedders, but aren’t necessarily looking at them. And then there are those who have discovered some willing biters in the offshore grass, particulary in Lake Griffin.

Some clouds are in the forecast for Friday, but temperatures will again rise into the mid 80s with a west wind at 5 to 10 mph.

Cox Had To ‘Grind’

> Day 1: 5, 25-11

Cox knows that just because he eclipsed the 25-pound mark today, there will be a perception that he just railed on keepers all day. Not so, he says.

“I culled two 12-inchers and it was just a grind,” he said. “I know it looks like I hammered them.”

He was growing frustrated this morning when he hadn’t had a bite before 9:45, then he caught a couple good ones off beds and he moved around a fair bit between lakes Dora, Eustice, Harris and Little Harris.

“The nice thing was it was calm and you could go anywhere today,” he added.

His kicker was a 7-09 brute caught off a bed. He also caught a few working scattered pads. Cox isn’t sure what to make of how the rest of the tournament will go. He has plenty of history there and high hopes, but he added it’s been difficult to theorize what has the fish acting as they are.

“I honestly haven’t able to figure out the fish the last month or so,” he said. “It’s been so warm for so long here and it’s like they’ve moving up in small waves, but the weird thing is they aren’t staying. You’ll pull up and see them rubbing and think you can go back and catch them the next day, but they’re gone.

“If you want to catch anything off a bed, the window is so small and there’s not many of them. I’m just hitting random stuff. There’s no rhyme or reason when or why they’ll move up or leave an hour later.”

3rd: Three Big Ones For Moynagh

> Day 1: 5, 23-09

Moynagh doesn’t have the best track record in Florida, but he could be on his way to changing that this week as today’s stringer was the biggest of his 20-year FLW Tour career.

“It feels really good because I’ve gotten so used to being disappointed in Florida,” he said. “I’ve done all rright at Toho and the Kissimmee Chain a few times, but Okeechobee has been just evil to me. This is my first time here ever and all I remember about this place is Mike Folkestad winning a Bassmaster event here [in 1992] with like 14 pounds.”

Moynagh said sight-fishing didn’t produce any of his fish today, but he certainly won’t bypass the chance to try for a bed-fish later in the event.

He said practice was a mixed bag, but he came into today with some confidence. Today far exceeded any of his expectations, though.

“With fishing, you never know, especially in Florida around the spawn,” he said. “They move quickly and their moods flip-flop around. I caught a few nice ones in practice, but this was better than any day in practice, obviously.”

He focused primarily on two different lakes – he declined to divulge which ones – and had three fish in the 5 1/2- to 6-pound class anchoring his bag, the third of which was a pleasant surprise.

“The first two big ones came out of stuff I was targeting and the third one came when I had nothing to throw at so I just threw it out there and caught a 5 1/2,” he said. “It was a case of total dumb luck."

4th: Frederick Stressing Patience

> Day 1: 5, 21-15

Frederick says patience is an important aspect of his approach this week, a tough task for someone fishing at home in front of friends, family and sponsors. He stuck to the patience plan today and it paid off handsomely. He’s hoping to ride the wave one more day.

“My goal was pretty simple – I just want to make the weekend,” he said. “I want to be able to fish the Chain with just 20 guys out there. There are so many boats in areas we want to fish, but I don’t want to get caught up in the cluster.”

He had a flurry of bites between 10 a.m. and noon today, including a 6 1/2-pounder that surprised him.

“I was in a canal and there was another guy on the other side of the dock from me working on a 3-pounder,” he said. “I pitched in there blind and my line started to swim off. It was a 6 1/2-pounder. That was my highlight today. My goal was 15 1/2 and I knew that fish gave me that.”

He didn’t sight-fish today, but knows those opportunities are available. He’s hoping he can hold off on looking until the weekend.

“You just have to be patient and trust what you’re doing,” he added. “If I can have 15 pounds (Friday), I’ll be happy. Anything after that, I’ll have an easy stomach. I’m going to stay close tomorrow. I want to maximize fishing time and hope for the best.”

5th: Morgan Caught Two Looking

> Day 1: 5, 21-13

Morgan’s streak of eight straight checks in full-field Tour events came to an end last month at Lake Travis. He’s on track to start a new streak this week.

“Today went way better than I had anticipated,” he said. “It’s not like I caught that many fish. Everything I picked up, I caught one on it.”

With the wind barely noticeable at times, Morgan said it was the first time this week he’d been able to see bottom. That allowed him to pick off two bedding fish late in the day that pumped up his weight. Both fish were in the 6-pound class.

“I had no idea where they were,” he said. “I just ran across them today. Typically, I don’t try to bed-fish, but I keep my eyes open. If you move around a lot, you’re going to run across a few and those two fish were within 20 yards of each other.”

He scoped out the rest of the area, but didn’t locate any other spawners.

He hit three lakes today and will likely keep with the same program Friday. The key will be not getting hung up in one place for too long as he anticipates the weights regressing somewhat on day 2.

“I need to keep my foot on the pedal and don’t let up,” he said. “I have to keep covering water. Who knows, I might catch them a totally different way tomorrow.”

8th: Wittekiend’s Plan Held Up

> Day 1: 5, 18-15

Matt Wittekiend was understandably excited on stage today. After zeroing at Lake Guntersville and finishing 112th at Lake Travis, he caught the biggest bag of his brief FLW Tour career. He was so juiced that he weighed the wrong fish for the daily big-bass contest. No matter, he laughed it off and is already looking ahead to tomorrow.

“I don’t want to jinx myself,” Wittekiend said. “I had a really good day and I didn’t use all of my water. I still have stuff left for tomorrow.”

He sampled three different lakes today and focused mostly on offshore grass. Sight-fishing was not part of his game plan at all.

“It’s my first time here and I spent half a day looking for an area to sight-fish and couldn’t find any clean water,” he said. “I abandoned that and did what I know how to do.”

He culled eight times and liked how the game plan he devised in practice held up.

“It was just one of those days,” he said. “I had a plan and followed it to a T. I didn’t have to change or adapt. The fish are still where they were three days ago in the wind. I just caught better fish today than when it was blowing 100 miles per hour.”

107th: Gustafson Bummin’

> Day 1: 5, 10-02

Jeff Gustafson has his work cut out for him Friday if he plans to hold onto his top-5 spot in the points standings. After a decent practice, he found himself running around too much today.

“I love fishing in Florida, but it’s not my favorite place to fish tournaments,” he said. “I went back to some decent stretches, but they weren’t any good today. Later in the day, I found an area that had some fish cruising around so hopefully that’ll be a starting point for me tomorrow.

“I jumped around lakes today and I probably should’ve stayed in one of the lakes where I was catching them today.”

Even before the season, he had this one circled as a potential pitfall. After posting two top-25 finishes to start the year, he’ll continue beating the bank tomorrow in hopes of salvaging as many points as possible.

“It’s pretty disappointing,” he said. “I wanted to grind out a decent finish in this one because the rest of the schedule I really like. This one made me nervous more than the others.”

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 163 anglers, 142 limits, 7 fours, 7 threes, 4 twos, 2 ones, 1 zero.

Weather Forecast

> Fri., March 10 – Partly Cloudy – 85°/60°
- Wind: From the WNW at 5 to 10 mph

> Sat., March 11 – Clear – 83°/63°
- Wind: From the ENE at 5 to 10 mph

> Sun., March 12 – Partly Cloudy – 82°/62°
- Wind: From the SW at 10 to 20 mph

Day 1 Standings

1. John Cox -- Debary, Fl -- 25-11 (5)

2. Shane Lehew -- Catawba, NC -- 23-15 (5)

3. Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Mn -- 23-9 (5)

4. Tim Frederick -- Leesburg, Fl -- 21-15 (5)

5. Andy Morgan -- Dayton, Tn -- 21-13 (5)

6. Carl Jocumsen -- Frisco, Tx -- 20-12 (5)

7. Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, NC -- 19-10 (5)

8. Matt Wittekiend -- Angleton, Tx -- 18-15 (5)

9. Andrew Upshaw -- Tulsa, Ok -- 18-4 (5)

10. Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga -- 18-2 (5)

11. Brandon McMillan -- Clewiston, Fl -- 17-14 (5)

12. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, Md -- 17-12 (5)

13. Peter Thliveros -- Saint Augustine, Fl -- 17-9 (5)

14. Kurt Dove -- Del Rio, Tx -- 17-6 (5)

15. Jimmy Reese -- Witter Springs, Ca -- 17-4 (5)

16. Jeff Dobson -- Bartlesville, Ok -- 17-0 (5)

17. Tom Redington -- Royse City, Tx -- 16-15 (5)

18. Chris Whitson -- Louisville, Tn -- 16-14 (5)

19. Jay Kendrick -- Grant, Al -- 16-14 (5)

20. Jt Kenney -- Palm Bay, Fl -- 16-12 (5)

21. Clark Wendlandt -- Leander, Tx -- 16-12 (5)

22. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, Tx -- 16-6 (5)

23. Cody Bird -- Granbury, Tx -- 16-3 (5)

24. Casey Scanlon -- Lenexa, Ks -- 16-2 (5)

25. Jamie Horton -- Centerville, Al -- 15-11 (5)

26. Michael Neal -- Dayton, Tn -- 15-9 (5)

27. Evan Barnes -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 15-8 (5)

28. Kurt Mitchell -- Milford, De -- 15-5 (5)

29. Scott Wiley -- Bay Minette, Al -- 15-4 (5)

30. Bradley Dortch -- Atmore, Al -- 15-4 (5)

31. Christopher Brasher -- Longview, Tx -- 15-2 (5)

32. Charlie Evans -- Berea, Ky -- 15-0 (5)

33. Scott Ashmore -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 14-14 (5)

34. Joshua Weaver -- Macon, Ga -- 14-9 (5)

35. Clayton Batts -- Macon, Ga -- 14-8 (5)

36. Michael Wooley -- Collierville, Tn -- 14-7 (5)

37. Terry Bolton -- Paducah, Ky -- 14-3 (5)

38. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, Tn -- 14-1 (5)

39. Joey Cifuentes -- Clinton, Ar -- 14-1 (5)

40. Jeff Sprague -- Point, Tx -- 14-0 (5)

41. Robert Behrle -- Hoover, Al -- 13-15 (5)

42. Braxton Setzer -- Montgomery, Al -- 13-14 (5)

43. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 13-14 (5)

44. Scott Canterbury -- Springville, Al -- 13-14 (5)

45. Jason Lambert -- Pickwick Dam, Tn -- 13-14 (5)

46. Shawn Murphy -- Nicholasville, Ky -- 13-13 (5)

47. Clark Reehm -- Huntington, Tx -- 13-12 (5)

48. Keith Bryan -- Novato, Ca -- 13-12 (5)

49. Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, SC -- 13-10 (5)

50. Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Ok -- 13-9 (5)

51. Cody Meyer -- Auburn, Ca -- 13-8 (5)

52. Brad Knight -- Lancing, Tn -- 13-6 (5)

53. Cory Johnston -- Cavan, On -- 13-6 (5)

54. Dean Alexander -- Georgetown, Tx -- 13-3 (5)

55. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 13-2 (5)

56. Timmy Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 13-2 (5)

57. Joseph Webster -- Fulton, Ms -- 13-2 (5)

58. Dylan Hays -- Sheridan, Ar -- 13-0 (5)

59. Rex Huff -- Corbin, Ky -- 12-14 (5)

60. Stephen Patek -- Garland, Tx -- 12-14 (5)

61. Billy Hines -- Vacaville, Ca -- 12-14 (5)

62. Matt Greenblatt -- Port St Lucie, Fl -- 12-14 (5)

63. Todd Hollowell -- Fishers, In -- 12-13 (5)

64. Barry Wilson -- Birmingham, Al -- 12-10 (5)

65. Mark Rose -- West Memphis, Ar -- 12-10 (5)

66. Brian Latimer -- Belton, SC -- 12-10 (5)

67. Andy Young -- Mound, Mn -- 12-9 (5)

68. Jason Abram -- Piney Flats, Tn -- 12-8 (5)

69. Matthew Stefan -- Junction City, Wi -- 12-8 (5)

70. Zell Rowland -- Montgomery, Tx -- 12-7 (5)

71. Dan Morehead -- Paducah, Ky -- 12-7 (5)

72. Alex Davis -- Albertville, Al -- 12-5 (5)

73. Grae Buck -- Harleysville, Pa -- 12-3 (5)

74. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, Mn -- 12-0 (5)

75. Chad Randles -- Elkhorn, Ne -- 11-15 (5)

76. Lendell Martin Jr -- Nacogdoches, Tx -- 11-14 (5)

77. Billy McCaghren -- Mayflower, Ar -- 11-13 (5)

78. John Devere -- Berea, Ky -- 11-9 (5)

79. Robert Pearson -- Herndon, Va -- 11-8 (5)

80. Randy Blaukat -- Joplin, Mo -- 11-8 (5)

81. Richard Lowitzki -- Hampshire, Il -- 11-7 (5)

82. Peter Cherkas -- Des Moines, Ia -- 11-6 (5)

83. Eric Jackson -- Walling, Tn -- 11-6 (5)

84. Kenneth (Boo) Woods -- London, Ky -- 11-6 (5)

85. Zack Birge -- Blanchard, Ok -- 11-5 (5)

86. Jeremy Lawyer -- Sarcoxie, Mo -- 11-5 (5)

87. Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fl -- 11-3 (5)

88. Johnny McCombs -- Morris, Al -- 11-2 (5)

89. Jim Jones -- Big Bend, Wi -- 11-2 (4)

90. Josh Douglas -- Mound, Mn -- 11-2 (5)

91. Mike Kernan -- Wylie, Tx -- 11-0 (5)

92. Bradley Hallman -- Norman, Ok -- 10-15 (5)

93. Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ar -- 10-15 (5)

94. William(Billy) Shelton Iii -- La Crosse, Va -- 10-14 (5)

95. Blake Nick -- Trussville, Al -- 10-14 (5)

96. Ron Farrow -- Rock Hill, SC -- 10-12 (5)

97. Shinichi Fukae -- Palestine, Tx -- 10-12 (5)

98. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fl -- 10-11 (5)

99. James Watson -- Lampe, Mo -- 10-10 (5)

100. Chase Brooks -- Iraan, Tx -- 10-8 (5)

101. Luke Dunkin -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 10-7 (5)

102. Aaron Britt -- Yuba City, Ca -- 10-7 (5)

103. Tracy Adams -- Wilkesboro, NC -- 10-7 (5)

104. Derrick Blake -- Rockwood, Tn -- 10-6 (5)

105. Bill McDonald -- Greenwood, In -- 10-5 (5)

106. Jim Moulton -- Merced, Ca -- 10-4 (5)

107. Jeff Gustafson -- Keewatin, On -- 10-2 (5)

108. Chris Johnston -- Peterborough, On -- 10-1 (5)

109. Dennis Tietje -- Roanoke, La -- 10-1 (5)

110. Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Tx -- 10-1 (5)

111. Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Ok -- 9-13 (5)

112. David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va -- 9-12 (5)

113. Jason Johnson -- Gainesville, Ga -- 9-10 (5)

114. Wade Curtiss -- Meadow Vista, Ca -- 9-9 (5)

115. Mark Fisher -- Wauconda, Il -- 9-9 (5)

116. Jeff Cannon -- Douglasville, Ga -- 9-5 (4)

117. Joe Holland -- Jefferson, Me -- 9-4 (5)

118. Rodney Thomason -- Maumelle, Ar -- 9-2 (5)

119. Tom Monsoor -- La Crosse, Wi -- 9-1 (5)

120. Jim Tutt -- Longview, Tx -- 9-0 (5)

121. Justin Atkins -- Florence, Al -- 8-15 (5)

122. Chris Gosselaar -- Fresno, Ca -- 8-14 (5)

123. Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Tx -- 8-10 (5)

124. Troy Morrow -- Eastanollee, Ga -- 8-10 (5)

125. Ramie Colson Jr -- Cadiz, Ky -- 8-7 (5)

126. Kyle Weisenburger -- Ottawa, Oh -- 8-7 (5)

127. Jonathan Henry -- Grant, Al -- 8-4 (5)

128. Daniel Kweekul -- Bryant, Ar -- 8-2 (5)

129. Chris Neau -- New Orleans, La -- 8-1 (5)

130. Buddy Gross -- Chickamauga, Ga -- 8-0 (3)

131. Drew Montgomery -- Maiden, NC -- 7-15 (5)

132. Bill Smith Jr -- Burlington, Ky -- 7-15 (5)

133. Curtis Richardson -- Belleville, On -- 7-7 (5)

134. Michael McCoy -- Mentor On The Lake, Oh -- 7-6 (5)

135. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 7-3 (3)

136. Pete Ponds -- Madison, Ms -- 7-1 (5)

137. Jim Dillard -- West Monroe, La -- 7-1 (5)

138. Scott Suggs -- Alexander, Ar -- 7-0 (5)

139. Bob Morin -- Seymour, Tn -- 7-0 (5)

140. Cody Kelley -- Conway, Ar -- 7-0 (5)

141. Chris McCall -- Palmer, Tx -- 6-14 (4)

142. Capt Blake Smith -- Lakeland, Fl -- 6-13 (5)

143. Jimmy Brewer -- Marshall, Tx -- 6-7 (5)

144. Jordan Osborne -- Longview, Tx -- 6-6 (3)

145. Rob Kilby -- Hot Springs, Ar -- 6-6 (5)

146. Alvin Shaw -- Roaring Gap, NC -- 6-5 (5)

147. Brandon Mosley -- Choctaw, Ok -- 6-3 (4)

148. Powell Kemp -- Scotland Neck, NC -- 6-2 (4)

149. Chad Warren -- Sand Springs, Ok -- 5-13 (5)

150. Jay Yelas -- Lincoln City, Or -- 5-12 (3)

151. Todd Auten -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 5-5 (5)

152. John Voyles -- Petersburg, In -- 5-2 (4)

153. Kyle Cortiana -- Broken Arrow, Ok -- 5-1 (4)

154. Brandon Medlock -- Lake Placid, Fl -- 5-0 (2)

155. Bill Day -- Frankfort, Ky -- 4-14 (2)

156. Jason Meninger -- Gainesville, Ga -- 4-4 (2)

157. Greg Bohannan -- Bentonville, Ar -- 4-0 (3)

158. Tim McDonald -- Prestonsburg, Ky -- 3-5 (3)

159. Nick Gainey -- Charleston, SC -- 3-5 (3)

160. Kerry Milner -- Bono, Ar -- 3-0 (1)

161. Bill Hutchison -- Bessemer, Al -- 2-10 (2)

162. Jamey Caldwell -- Carthage, NC -- 2-5 (1)

163. Daryl Biron -- South Windsor, Ct -- 0-0 (0)