Ellis Leads Seminole Slugfest
With limited practice on a body of water like Lake Seminole, you’d think that would handicap an angler. But, if you have years of local experience, then that hurdle can easily be overcome. DJ Ellis is a prime example of that as he dropped 25 pounds, 15 ounces on the scale on Day 1 of the Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. Southern Division finale to take a narrow lead.
Living a little over an hour down the road in Florida, Ellis has seen as much of Seminole as anyone in the field. He also has a lot of knowledge of key areas fish pull to in their transition from spawn to postspawn. Those would be key for him to get right after a so-so day and a half of practice.
“This is my home lake,” Ellis says. “I know the lake pretty well. The fish are still in that transition phase, and where I was fishing a lot of them are staging to recover.
“You have two weed lines and a good flat, sandy bottom between them with a lot of baitfish coming in and out. There’s a flat behind where I’m fishing and as those fish are done spawning they’re moving out to stage and feed before moving to the main channel.”
Ellis knew that the spot he wanted to check would have boats around him, but he also knew none of them would likely be on the juice. Despite a late boat draw, Ellis was able to get right on it and go to work.
“I was boat 144, so I knew consistently I could go to that spot and catch fish,” Ellis adds. “I never left it, but I did move around a bit to change the angle of my cast. Later in the day, I had to reposition on it just to try and keep people off of it, but I’m boat two tomorrow so I should be able to get back on it.”
While Ellis had plenty of rods the deck, he admits dragging a Zoom UltraVibe Speed Worm was the best producer and is a known bait for good bags on Seminole. He pegged it with a ½-ounce weight and dragged it on the bottom.
Tomorrow, Ellis plans to start back on his main spot and see how it pans out. From there, he’s got a few more places in mind if he needs to move around.
“If I can get back there tomorrow I feel pretty good about getting at least 15 pounds,” he says. “Those fish sit on the edge of the grass and come out every once in a while to feed once the sun is up. As long as you’re throwing to that sandy bottom and dragging a worm and they see it, it’s money. It’s clockwork.
“I’ve fished this lake my whole life and this pattern is very consistent. If they do happen to move, I can move with them and follow them towards the channel.”
Top 10 Pros
1. DJ Ellis – Crestview, Fla. – 25-15 (5)
2. Anthony Ford – New Smyrna, Fla. – 24-6 (5)
3. Matt Baty – Bainbridge, Ga. – 24-3 (5)
4. Joey Cifuentes – Clinton, Ark. – 23-8 (5)
5. Lance Oligschlaeger – Gallatin, Tenn. – 21-4 (5)
6. Eric Panzironi – Longwood, Fla. – 21-1 (5)
7. Nick Thliveros – St. Augustine, Fla. – 19-11 (5)
8. Kyle Walters – Grant Valkaria, Fla. – 19-8 (5)
9. Braxton Clements – Donalsonville, Ga. – 19-5 (5)
10. Terry Segraves – Kissimmee, Fla. – 19-0 (5)
Ebbe Takes Strike King Co-angler Lead
After making a Top 10 in the Toyota Series Plains Division event on Lake of the Ozarks back in March, John Ebbe is looking to add some more – and possibly bigger – hardware to his collection this week. After catching 16 pounds, 10 ounces on Day 1, Ebbe holds just a 15-ounce lead over Joe Cifuentes heading into Friday.