By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

None of the 40 anglers in Group A managed to catch 10 scoreable fish (2 pounds or heavier) on the first day of the Lake Okeechobee Bass Pro Tour. Seven of them didn't catch any at all.

On a day when the famed Florida hawg factory was as tough as many veteran anglers had ever seen it, Michael Neal registered 25-09 on nine fish to sit atop the standings. Only two other competitors topped the 20-pound mark – Ott DeFoe had 21-03 (seven fish) and Cody Meyer logged 20-15 (six fish).

A 25-mph north wind blew constantly throughout the round and it was accompanied by some rain early on as a minor cold front gripped the Big O. Florida bass are renowned for developing lock-jaw under such conditions and they certainly lived up to that billing.

Neal did his work with a vibrating jig and a swimjig along a 10- to 15-mile stretch. Most of his weight came over the final 2 1/2 hours as he had only three scoreable fish to his credit over the first two periods.

He was a bit surprised by the number of quality fish he connected with.

"The key for me was how much water I covered in practice and then keeping moving baits in my hand today and never trying to slow down," he said. "You can get bites doing a lot of stuff, but catching scoreable fish isn't easy.

"I prepared for the wind and I was able to run around to the places I wanted to go without beating myself up too bad in the waves."

Meyer and David Dudley (4th with 18-15 on five fish) tied for big-bass honors at 6-03 as the Okeechobee giants – the 7- to 9-pounders that are the basis of the lake's longstanding reputation – were nowhere to be found.

Jason Lambert, who's looking to advance to the Knockout Round for the first time in the 10 BPT outings to date, settled into 5th with 16-09 (five fish). The remainder of the initial top 10 consists of Adrian Avena (15-04 on just three fish), longtime Okeechobee ace Randall Tharp (15-02, seven), Takahiro Omori (13-12, five), Dustin Connell (12-05, five) and Kevin VanDam (12-02, four).

The 20th-place slot, which is where the cut will fall after Sunday's second Group A qualifying round, is occupied by Shaw Grigsby with 7-03. Therefore, even the anglers who had the worst of it today will have a shot at redemption.

Anglers were allowed to launch their boats from the ramp of their choosing. Without that option, the day likely would've been canceled as making long runs on the big, bowl-shaped lake in such powerful winds is notoriously hazardous.

Group B will get its first crack at the lake on Friday and the bite is likely to be just as stingy. The air temperature is forecast to climb 4 degrees to 71, but strong winds are predicted again, with their direction shifting slightly to the northeast.

Some unexpected names were among the contingent of anglers who zeroed, the most surprising of which was Florida resident Bobby Lane. Jason Christie was also in that group – the Oklahoman has yet to tally a scoreable fish in more than 22 hours on the water across the first two events.

The others were Brett Hite (the winner of an FLW Tour event at Okeechobee in 2014), Casey Ashley, Mark Davis, Russ Lane and Zack Birge.

"Those were about the toughest conditions I've ever fished in, ever," Lane said. "We had the sustained wind, and then the gusts would come and just be horrid – bows in the line and all kinds of stuff.

"I lost a really nice fish right at the end so at least I have something to go toward on Sunday. I learned a few things and I'm excited to get back out there."

Weather Forecast

> Sat., Feb. 22 – Partly Cloudy - 73°/58°
- Wind: From the NNE at 17 mph

> Sun., Feb. 23 – Mostly Sunny - 75°/56°
- Wind: From the ENE at 11 mph

> Mon., Feb. 24 – Partly Cloudy - 81°/61°
- Wind: From the SE at 10 mph

> Tues., Feb. 25 – Partly Cloudy - 86°/67°
- Wind: From the S at 12 mph

> Weds., Feb. 26 – Scattered T-Storms - 85°/57°
- Wind: From the SSW at 15 mph

Group A – Qualifying Round 1

1. Michael Neal -- 9, 25-09

2. Ott DeFoe -- 7, 21-03

3. Cody Meyer -- 6, 20-15

4. David Dudley -- 5, 18-15

5. Jason Lambert -- 5, 16-09

6. Adrian Avena -- 3, 15-04

7. Randall Tharp -- 7, 15-02

8. Takahiro Omori -- 5, 13-12

9. Dustin Connell -- 5, 12-05

10. Kevin VanDam -- 4, 12-02

11. Fletcher Shryock -- 5, 11-07

12. James Watson -- 3, 10-10

13. Justin Lucas -- 3, 10-03

14. Wesley Strader -- 4, 9-05

15. Dave Lefebre -- 3, 8-12

16. Jonathon VanDam -- 2, 8-07

17. Luke Clausen -- 3, 8-01

18. Jacob Wheeler -- 2, 7-15

19. Edwin Evers -- 2, 7-10

20. Shaw Grigsby -- 3, 7-03

21. Fred Roumbanis -- 3, 6-13

22. Mike McClelland -- 2, 5-15

23. Bradley Roy -- 2, 5-11

24. Kelly Jordon -- 2, 4-12

25. David Walker -- 2, 4-09

26. Skeet Reese -- 1, 4-09

27. Ish Monroe -- 2, 4-03

28. Jesse Wiggins -- 1, 3-02

29. Justin Atkins -- 1, 3-01

30. Keith Poche -- 1, 2-03

31. Mike Iaconelli -- 1, 2-03

32. Gerald Spohrer -- 1, 2-02

33. Cliff Crochet -- 1, 2-01

34. Bobby Lane -- 0, 0-00

34. Brett Hite -- 0, 0-00

34. Casey Ashley -- 0, 0-00

34. Jason Christie -- 0, 0-00

34. Mark Davis -- 0, 0-00

34. Russ Lane -- 0, 0-00

34. Zack Birge -- 0, 0-00