From Minnesota to Texas

“I could have a mega-bag.”

Minnesotan Josh Douglas said that to Andy Crawford, who is with him now. Douglas has about 14 pounds in the livewell, although it could be much more. He lost a 5-pounder at the boat, and a largemouth he estimated weighing around 8 pounds that got entangled in a brushpile.

Key to his strategy is not what he learned here, but what he brought from his home state to Sam Rayburn. Douglas fishes the pro tours and also doubles up during summer with a guide gig on Mille Lacs Lake, known for its superb offshore smallmouth bite.

“All I did in practice was idle around, marking isolated cover,” he said.

Douglas has about 50 waypoints stored in his Lowrance unit, and he only hit half of those on Day 1, to weigh 22 pounds, 5 ounces, to take fourth place in a leaderboard dominated by local anglers.