Keeping up in the Delta

Day 1 of the Duel in the Delta is over, and it was a tough bite. It was that way all through practice, so I knew it could be a tough event.

Day 1 of the Duel in the Delta is over, and it was a tough bite. It was that way all through practice, so I knew it could be a tough event.

However, I did expect to see some big stringers. I was surprised how tough it was when I saw the overall weights. I was boat No. 3 today, which is a good draw. When I got in I was disappointed, because I only had 13 pounds and change. When you're at the Delta, that usually won't get you too far, but today I left with my head held high and my chest out. By no means do I have a winning sack yet, but it did turn out to be a respectable weight. This goes to show it's important to keep your head in the game because catching up is doable in this tournament. I'm about 8 pounds out, and here that's just one bite away. This fact will help me focus harder. The way today shook out, I ended up catching four of my five fish off of one spot. I had a limit by 11 or 11:30 a.m., but with this being the Delta I need to find bigger fish.

Tomorrow I'm going to go to the same spot, put the Power Poles down and sit there and hope five swim by. At least I know I'll be one cast away from putting myself closer to the top. I have some history with this spot, and think it has the potential to replenish. When I pulled up I caught one, went a while without a bite, got another, then I caught two in a row. I'm a run-and-gun fisherman, and the Delta is a good place to do that, but there are too many places to go and not get bit. I tied on a bunch of different baits for Day 2. Everything from football jigs, drop shots, tubes, Texas rigs and crankbaits. I'll be fishing a lot of structure-type baits.

It's nice knowing that I'm going to do that today; it took a lot of the decision making out of last night. We just ordered Chinese food in, listened to the Lady Bears basketball game and watched the Baylor men in the Big 12 tournament on TV. As you may know, the Joneses are huge Baylor fans. Bears all the way!

Oh, and check  out our new video series on Bassmaster.com, titled Keeping up with the Jonses. You can follow us as we travel throughout the country during the Elite season. It's a different look, and I think it's going to be a lot of fun.