Warming weather has pulled Okeechobee’s bass out of the funk that made them so difficult to locate during the practice round. Some guys made huge leaps up the leaderboard today but the big lake befuddled many of the top sticks who normally make good money on the South Florida fish factory each winter.

The top 3 pros rotated positions – day 1 leader Casey Martin dropped to 3rd, Rick Cotten moved into first and Drew Benton followed him up one notch to settle into 2nd as we conclude cut day.

The top 20 fish tomorrow, the top 10 compete in the final round on Sunday.

Cotten added 30 pounds, 3 ounces to his day 1 effort of 24 pounds. He leads Benton by more than 7 pounds. Benton has been, not only remarkable, but remarkably consistent with daily limits of 23-7 and 23-9.

I fished with Benton today. He will win this tournament, I believe. He has a couple of solid options and they both produce big fish. Spawning bass are moving into one area and we saw a couple of 4’s and a 7-pounder today. He has those to go to tomorrow. His moving lure bite is strong as well. Waves of big bass are coming to him. They are all light colored main lake fish that are there to eat and spawn.

I shot some awesome video of Benton. Look for it this week. I will wait the tournament’s conclusion to run it on AnglersChannel.com because he really give us the breakdown on the lure, the spot and his technique, including a very important line choice.