2024 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Lake Okeechobee Day 1: Scott Martin Drops 30 Plus Limit!

Martin mashes 33 pounds, 2 ounces to take Day 1 lead at Okeechobee

Clewiston resident Scott Martin smashes 33-02lbs to grab
leaded on Day 1. (Photo Andy Crawford/BASS)

David A. Brown

BASS Press Release 

CLEWISTON, Fla. — Local knowledge certainly helped, but Bassmaster Elite Series pro Scott Martin said patience was the key to his massive limit of 33 pounds, 2 ounces, which leads Day 1 of the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Lake Okeechobee presented by SEVIIN.
Martin, who grew up fishing Florida’s largest lake, heads into Day 2 with a lead of 5-12 over Tucker Smith of Birmingham, Ala.
“When you fish in Florida, you have to be slow and methodical and make accurate casts and pitches,” Martin said. “That’s the only reason I caught ’em — I stayed very patient.”
Noting that he did not fish the same places he targeted during the 2023 Elite Series opener on his home lake, Martin said he dialed in his main area late Wednesday afternoon. Knowing how to exploit what he found was the difference maker.

Costa FLW Series Lake Okeechobee Day 1: Cherkas Lands Lead!

Canadian Chris Johnson Sitting 8th!
by Kyle Wood
FLW PRESS RELEASE

Huge 250 Pro field fishing this event. (Photo FLW)

The opening day of competition for the Costa FLW Series Southeastern Division event on Lake Okeechobee – which is presented by Power-Pole and hosted by Okeechobee County Tourism – was a textbook example of what a cold front does to Florida bass.  Catching a limit wasn’t the issue, however, connecting with 4- and 5-pound bites was. Peter Cherkas of Des Moines, Iowa, was able to scrounge out a strong limit worth 20 pounds to take a narrow lead over Zach Crider of Tunnel Hill, Ga., by a mere 12 ounces.
With so much water to fish on Okeechobee that virtually all looks like it should hold a 10-pounder, settling in on a certain area and combing it thoroughly can be the best bet for success. Most anglers find an area roughly the size of a few football fields to pick through during tournament hours, while Cherkas dialed in an area big enough to cover with his Power-Poles down.
“When I pulled into my area this morning there were some other boats around it so I stayed off,” says Cherkas. “When the other boats moved out enough that is when I moved in. I dropped my Power-Poles and didn’t touch my trolling motor until 10 a.m.”
Cherkas bucked the trend of fishing slow and worked one area thoroughly to rack up the bulk of his weight by 11 a.m. Due to how tough the tournament is you can understand why he opted to remain tight-lipped about his presentation and type of area he is fishing.
The Iowa pro did unveil that the area he is fishing is something you can pattern. He got one bite from the specific area in practice – an 8-pounder – and spent more time just searching for other places like it. While he succeeded in doing so, he also isn’t too sure if they are as good because he didn’t want to burn his areas up by checking them today.
“I have been down [in Florida] for almost three weeks now,” explains Cherkas. “The fish have moved around so much from day to day and that is my biggest concern. I think I know where they may move to if they pull off of my primary area. It shouldn’t take long to find out if they are still there come tomorrow morning.”
Top 10 Below

ULTRA TUNGSTEN's New Arky Jig

Smaller is better with ULTRA TUNGSTEN's New Arky Jig
By Luigi De Rose

Ultra TUNGSTEN has just released it's new Arky style bass jig. Its compact size, due to a pure tungsten head, makes it ideal for punching or where a compact bait is needed. With direct input from Canadian Pro-Angler Dave Chong, this jig focuses on the minor details. Each jig is wire tied, large XX strong Mustad hook, chip resistant paint and features a duel rattle chamber.

 Here's a run down on its features:

• available in 3/8oz and 1/2oz sizes
• 4 colour combinations: black, black/blue, black/purple & blue/okeechobee craw
• environmentally friendly/lead-free 
• super compact, 97% Tungsten head
• MSRP $6.99

2016 FLW Tour Schedule Announced!

FLW announced the 2016 Walmart FLW Tour regular-season schedule today in a live press conference held at the 2015 ICAST show in Orlando, Fla. With the help of six veteran Tour pros, the company unveiled each of the six events, one-by-one, to a crowd of observers gathered around the FLW booth.

Here are the details.

2016 Walmart FLW Tour Regular-Season Schedule

• February 4-7     Lake Okeechobee         Clewiston, Fla.

Hosted by Roland and Mary Ann Martin’s Marina & Resort and the Hendry County Tourism Development Council

Brett Hite Wins FLW on Okeechobee

Evergreen Pro Brett Hite goes wire to wire to win the 2014 FLW Opener.
Details and full report tomorrow. 

2014 FLW Lake Okeechobee Day 2: Hite Remains on Top with 12 Pound Lead!

Brett Halfway Home on Season Opener

07.Feb.2014 by Kyle Wood

CLEWISTON, Fla. – Brett Hite has found success on Okeechobee in the past but never to the extent he is experiencing this week. The Phoenix, Ariz., pro is keeping the momentum rolling as he busted 23 pounds, 8 ounces today to take a commanding lead to the tune of 12-9 that he will carry into day three.

Hite adds 23 pound Day 2 bag to distance himself
from the field. He and many leaders are focused
on grass flats.
(Photo: FLW)

While his day-two limit was substantially less than yesterday – over 10 pounds less – Hite is comfortable and confident with his pattern.

“Things have been going right for me this week,” said Hite. “I’m feeling relaxed and fishing the way I like. Nothing has really bothered me. I have a lot of boats fishing near me but I just tune them out.”

For years Hite has spent his time on the water watching media boats fly by in search of the Randall Tharps and JT Kenneys paying little respect to him. He knew that one day his pattern would produce when the time is right, and that time is now.

“There are a lot of people not fishing the same style or pattern that I am,” continued Hite. “I’m really keying in on a specific thing that I think is helping me get those bigger bites.

“I still have some spots saved that I haven’t fished. I’m not saying they are my best spots, but I have caught some of my bigger fish from areas I didn’t think were that good. But I’m looking for places I call a salad bowl which is just a big clump of all different kinds of grass. When you find one there are big numbers of fish in it.”

Hite says these “salad bowls” consist of anything from eel grass to hydrilla and anything else you can find on Okeechobee. He has waypoints in these certain areas that he focuses on but hasn’t quite figured out what is holding the bass on the particular spot.

2014 FLW Lake Okeechobee Day 1: Hite Smashed Monster Bag on First Tournament of the Year

Arizona pro catches second-largest bag in Walmart FLW Tour history to take lead

06.Feb.2014 by Kyle Wood

CLEWISTON, Fla. – The question that lingered around the stage before weigh-in for day one of the Walmart FLW Tour on Lake Okeechobee was which Big O would we see? Would it be the monster-bag beast it can be or would the stingy side be shown. It didn’t take long to find out the answer as 17 pros threw bags of over 20 pounds on the scales today – including Brett Hite’s personal-best limit of 34 pounds, 15 ounces to take a comfortable lead.

Foggy morning and hazy day provides a winning day for
Evergreen Pro Brett Hite.
(Photo:FLW) 

“Everything went right for me today,” smiled the Phoenix, Ariz., pro. “I didn’t lose any fish and I caught a 6 ½-pounder first thing in the morning – what more could you ask for?”

Hite and Florida just seem to get along. In fact, one of his three victories in his career came from an FLW Tour event on Lake Toho. Recently, Hite has been on good terms with Okeechobee as he has cashed checks in the past few Tour stops here.

“Florida and myself just seem to get along,” said Hite. “I like to try and mix it up down here and I’ve got burned before trying them. I have also cashed some checks trying some different things and through the years I have learned some things that I kept in mind which has helped me out this week.”

2013 FLW Lake Okeechobee Day 3: Huge Flip Flop Lands Benton in Lead

By Luigi De Rose

Strong north wind wrecks havoc with the Top 20 anglers on day 3 of the first stop of the 2013 FLW tour. Day 2 leader Rick Cotton, only lands 3 bass for 7 pounds, dropping him to second. A far cry from his 30-03 bag yesterday,  Cotton remains optimistic as the wind will shift from the north to south east. He feels it will help productive areas remain sheltered and clear.

Consistency has propelled Florida angler Drew Benton into first. He only brought 15 pound to the scales today but on the back of two 23 pound days, today' limit was enough to push him pass all others. He was unsure how day 4 will unfold but is glad to be leading.

Tremendous fishing pressure and two cold fronts seemed to take their toll but on everyone except Brent Ehrler. He's sitting in 3rd with the day's best catch of 20-02 pounds. As for the rest of the Top 20, many had dismal results scattering the leader board. Brent is sharing his main area with Chad Grigsby might succumb to over fishing. Chad's catch of 10 pounds dropped him all the way to 8th place.  Wade Henricks and Mike Neil, both of Tennessee round out the rest of the top 5.

Sunday, the last day, will be very interesting. A wind switch, more large spawning bass advancing toward top anglers and a limited field should make for a nail biting final weigh-in.

2013 FLW Lake Okeechobee Tournament