GROVE, Okla. — TJ Martin has had four months of stewing about the tournament that got away on his home lake. Now, he’s one good day of fishing away from redemption.
Last November, Martin finished 19th at the Toyota Series Championship on Grand Lake, which is a respectable finish. Problem is, he lost more fish than he can remember, and had he landed them, he feels like he had a real shot at winning the $200,000 grand prize.
“It happens when you fish a spinnerbait,” Martin said. “It can be downright cruel to you sometimes, and it was to me that event. But it can also be amazing.”
Well, for two days of the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Southwestern Division event on Grand this week, it’s definitely been amazing.
After catching the Day 1 big bass (an 8-1 kicker) and the tournament’s biggest bag thus far (24 pounds, 14 ounces), he and his spinnerbait were able to follow it up with another 16-6 bag on Friday to give him a tournament-leading 41-4 total. He’ll launch tomorrow with a little more than a 4-pound lead over Billy Lemon (36-15) and a handful of pros in the 34-pound range. Bill Ramsey moved from second to first on the co-angler side by bagging 12-10 on Day 2, bringing his total to 27-15.
Considering the conditions, Martin will certainly take it.
As predicted, the 30-mph wind completely switched directions on Day 2, dropping the air temperatures 40 degrees. And Mother Nature also decided to sprinkle in some rain just to add a little extra chill to the bones.
Needless to say, Martin’s rough boat ride to his main starting area prompted some colorful language. Though, not as much as seeing the water there had cleared up far more than he would’ve liked.
“It was probably too clear for a spinnerbait, to be honest,” Martin said.
The fish agreed, as he struggled until a bit of fortune. A group of fish came up schooling, allowing him to boat four on an Alabama rig.
That calmed Martin’s nerves, as did a 4.5-pounder he caught on a spinnerbait mid-morning. From there, he bounced around, catching one here and there to cull out all but one of his schooling fish and keep him in the lead.
Though, as nice a cushion as he has, he better watch out for Lemon.
The local brought in Day 2’s biggest bag with 19-15 and feels his pattern is only improving.
“The last two weeks, it’s been really tough for as warm as the water had gotten,” Lemon said. “For whatever reason, the fish had been holding out from getting on the bank, waiting for the right time. Well, just the last couple days, it started to get right, and they’ve pulled up.”
Lemon has been focusing on a specific type of bank he felt they’d be staging around, and despite not getting to his main area until late morning – he didn’t want to make the run in the rough water if he didn’t have to – today they really showed themselves. Literally, actually, as he admitted he caught a 5-pounder sight-fishing off a bed, which he took as a positive sign for tomorrow considering the calmer, sunny forecast.
Lemon will hope to run him down, but all eyes will be on Martin and whether he can go wire-to-wire to get his first big victory on his home waters.
“Oh, it has long been on my bucket list to win on Grand,” Martin said. “Honestly, something makes me feel it may finally be my turn. I haven’t lost a fish all week, and I’m a big believer if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.
“So, I really don’t feel as much pressure as yesterday. I’m just excited to do it again tomorrow.”
Top 10 pros
1. TJ Martin – 41 – 04 (10)
2. Billy Lemon – 36 – 15 (10)
3. Steven Graeber – 34 – 09 (10)
4. Chris Jones – 34 – 05 (10)
5. Denton Cooper – 34 – 02 (10)
6. Charlie Apperson – 34 – 00 (10)
7. Larry Puckett – 33 – 11 (10)
8. Rodney Copeland – 33 – 09 (10)
9. Dustn Overton – 32 – 13 (10)
10. Cody Ross – 32 – 07 (10)