As most redfish pros will attest, any team can get lucky and catch two big slot reds on any given day. But make that team do it again the next day, and the day after that, and the wheels usually come off the luck wagon.
Since the FLW Redfish Series went to a three-day format this season, day two is when the cream rises to the top before the top-five cut is made and solid patterns begin to emerge.
Day-one leaders Jeff Totten and Ozzie Lessinger fully admitted that luck was a key factor in their 13-pound catch Thursday.
Second-place anglers Wayne Fuller and Aaron Dill are dialed in to a school of fish that they have been tracking for nearly a week.
Third-place anglers Dallas Dudley and Shawn Harrell believe they have uncovered a particular lure that is more appealing to big reds suffering from lockjaw.
Fourth-place anglers Ray Van Horn and C.A. Richardson say going superslow and soaking Gulp is the key.
And fifth-place anglers Jim Armstrong and Dennis Cox accidentally discovered a school of redfish yesterday when the school attacked a hooked trout.
Given the history of Redfish Series events, chances are not all five of these teams will survive the cut after today.
Who will stay, and who will go? Who is on the right pattern to win?
Today will tell the tale when the day-two weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. Eastern at Sand Point Park in Titusville, Fla.
Friday’s conditions
Sunrise: 6:30
Temperature at takeoff: 63 degrees
Water temperature: mid-70s
Expected high temperature: 89 degrees
Wind: W at 10 to 15 mph
Day’s outlook: sunny and warmer