Fantasy Fishing: Back to business

Written by

Coy Greathouse

For a big group of these anglers, the last few weeks have been exhausting. Long hours on the water and metric tons of pressure on their shoulders from media attention and fans at the Bassmaster Classic had them ready for a little break.

The other group unfortunately had to spend their days off the water at the expo.

Both groups now should have had a few decent nights of sleep and should be laser focused on the Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Harris Chain in Florida.

Bass in Fla. lakes are effectively the first in the country to start spawning which means that by now, when most of the rest of the south is starting to fire off, Florida is at the tail end.

The Harris chain is a special Florida fishery. It has a wide variety of grasses and bank cover, but what separates this fishery from other shallow grassy lakes in that region is the abundance of offshore structure in 8-12 foot of water that tends to start getting good once the spawn in over. Brush piles, shell beds, and offshore grass beds are all likely targets for the Elite field.

While we are likely to see a few stragglers being caught off the beds, the bulk of the action will be found around postspawn fish.

We’ve had a few events in a row where forward-facing sonar has played a major role in the winner’s strategy, but this fishery should give us a good opportunity to see fish being caught a variety of ways.

I’m expecting to see most of the anglers fishing shallow grass, but also catching a few outside of the visible cover as more and more head out of the spawning grounds.

BUCKET A: LEE

Jordan Lee is starting to get back in his groove. He started the year off with a bang at Toledo, finishing ninth and followed that up with a 15th place finish on Lake Fork. This one should suit him as well, but that momentum alone is worth its weight in gold.

Don’t Forget About: Tyler Rivet

If you just took the last two years’ results, you might think Tyler Rivet is a forward-facing stud. While he can definitely hang with those guys, he cut his teeth as a river rat fishing shallow. That two-edged sword is dangerous on a venue like this where it will probably take fish from both depth ranges to do well.

BUCKET B: PALANIUK

It’s been obvious for the last few seasons that something has changed in the relationship between Brandon Palaniuk and Florida. His ability to get around fish consistently has allowed him to finish strong. The thing that I like most is that he tends to junk fish his way into a solid finish. If the weather isn’t stable or the fish move, he will have the ability to stay on top of them more than most.

Don’t Forget About: Bryan New

Bryan New is always a factor, but tends to show up big at some point in the first half of the season. His two wins with Bassmaster both came in Florida.

BUCKET C: COOK

If there are any spawning fish left, Drew Cook will find them. Overall, he just tends to do well on grass fisheries. He has a handful of Top 10s in Florida and his win came on a lake that fishes very similarly to a Florida lake in Santee Cooper.

Don’t Forget About: Kyle Welcher

Kyle Welcher has a ton of eyes on him for this event, which is evident by his nearly 30 % player percentage in Bucket C. He made his presence known to us in 2020 when he caught a giant 10-pounder on the St. Johns River. 2022 was not a great year for him overall and he finished 80th on the Harris Chain that season. However, in 2019 he finished 3rd in the Open here on his way to qualifying for the Elites. That tournament is likely more indicative of his skills that his rough event in 2022.

BUCKET D: LIVESAY

It could just be wishful thinking, but I really hope there is a frog bite. Frogs are known to catch bigger than average fish and Lee Livesay is known to throw a frog – sounds like a successful recipe to me. Lake Fork was a dismal event for him. It could have been pressure or just bad luck, but I’m sure he is mad at them and ready to stick a few donkeys.

Don’t Forget About: Buddy Gross

There is a surprising lack of fanfare around Buddy Gross. He won the last event on the Harris Chain, albeit it was in February. He fished areas where bass were coming and going on their way to the spawn. This one should be identical except the fish are heading out to their post-spawn haunts instead of coming in.

BUCKET E: DAVIS JR.

Mark my words, some giants will be caught on a swimjig for this tournament. Will Davis Jr. has a unique obsession with this particular technique, so any time we are around fish that will eat it, he will be on my short list. He has had a below-average start this year and the Florida swing will be a great opportunity for him to turn it around.

Don’t Forget About: Matt Robertson

If for no other reason other than to get him on screen more for my own entertainment, I hope Matt Robertson does well. He loves throwing topwaters and big swimbaits, both of which I expect to show up.