Courtesy of Luke Stoner – Dynamic Sponsorships

GROVE, Okla. – Jordan Lee looked about as calm as he could be this morning just a few minutes before blast-off for the 2022 REDCREST presented by Costa on Grand Lake in northeast Oklahoma. As he pulled a few of his signature series Jordan Lee Baitcast combos out of his rod locker, you could tell the 31-year-old bass fishing phenom was taking it all in and remaining focused.

“Today and tomorrow (Thursday) are all about staying above that cut line and surviving,” Lee said. “I’m just trying to make the first cut to fish on Friday with a smaller field. That’s when it all starts to go down. This tournament will be a marathon, not a sprint.”

The full field of 41-anglers will be on the water during the first two days of competition this week. When Lines Out signals on Thursday afternoon, the bottom 21-pros will be headed to the Expo in Tulsa and the remaining 20-anglers will be split into two groups of ten to fish Friday and Saturday, respectively.

Lee said his practice didn’t go extremely well, but it also didn’t go poorly. With just two days of practice to break down the 41,000+ acre behemoth that is Grand Lake, J. Lee wasn’t stressing the things that were out of his control.

“I got a few bites each afternoon (of practice) and feel like I know what type of rock I’m looking for,” Lee explained. “I’m just hoping I can get a few bites early to calm me down a little bit and get the momentum building. The mornings have been tough for me during practice so getting off to a decent start would be great. Either way I’m going to cover water and just keep fishing… that’s all you can do.”

The baits Lee lined out on the front deck of his boat would make any old-school angler smile. Big black and blue jigs threaded with meaty Berkley chunk trailers, a few different crankbaits like the Frittside, and a couple of big-bladed spinnerbaits. Lee has proven countless times throughout his career he can catch fish with any technique or technology, but he’s not afraid to admit he favors the old-school.

With air temperatures in the mid 30s, spitting rain, and a howling northwest wind Lee knew this first day of competition played into his power fishing prowess. To combat the cold Lee started the morning bundled up in about every layer of Carhartt gear he brought to Oklahoma.

He’s a big fan of the Base Force layers Carhartt offers and said they are key to staying warm and focused in frigid conditions. Lee’s second secret to staying warm came in the form of family medicine via his wife and 5-month year old son.

“With that wind blowing in my face I was struggling to shake the cold from my brain this morning until I saw Kristen and Baker walking down the dock… that’ll warm you up,” Lee said with a big smile.

Lee hasn’t lit up the Scoretracker like he’d like to today, but he’s caught enough to hang around the cut-line and is keeping pace for the marathon he’s been preparing for.