By B.A.S.S. Communications Staff
PALATKA, Fla. — When the necessary became the nemesis, Bill Lowen’s patient persistence delivered a clutch catch that typified his amazing day.
Bolstering a Day 1 limit of 21 pounds, 5 ounces with a second-round bag that went 24-4, the seasoned pro from Brookville, Ind., leads the Bassmaster Elite Series season opener at the St. Johns River with a two-day total of 45-9. Lowen heads into Saturday with a 7-14 margin over Day-1 leader Jay Przekurat.
“It was an amazing day; you just can’t explain it when it happens,” Lowen said. “You look for those days all the time, and I had one of those days today.”
Lowen has been targeting shallow wood with a flipping jig and swim jig. When he hooked a solid bass around noon, the fish became entangled in a pile of limbs. After a couple of minutes of Lowen tugging and carefully poking his rod tip toward the snare, the fish suddenly found its way free.
“I saw the fish run a bream up against the bank, so I threw my jig over there, and as soon as the jig hit the water, she ate it,” Lowen said. “I was going to the back of the boat to land her and she just got stuck in a (submerged tree). I could feel her pulling, so I knew she was still there, but I couldn’t gain on her.
“After what felt like an eternity, I just put a lot of pressure on her. I was thinking the line was gonna break, but actually, the branch broke, and she just floated to the top. Usually, when that happens, it doesn’t end well. I got really lucky.”
Not long after that miracle catch, Lowen culled his smallest fish – a 1 1/2-pounder – with a 5 1/2. Another late-day cull gave him the confidence to pack up and head to weigh-in.
Lowen has been fishing a creek north of Palatka where deep, protected water has suffered less impact from the cold front that arrived on Day 1. While high, bright skies and significantly lower air and water temperatures challenged other competitors, Lowen found his fish generally cooperative.
“It’s all about the tide on the St. Johns, and when it finally got right around 11, I went to my main area and my first bite was a 6-pounder,” Lowen said. “From there on out, every decision I made was the right decision.
“I’m very comfortable doing what I’m doing. Obviously, I was worried about the cold front, but I don’t think it’s bothering them at all.”
Lowen knows he still has a lot of ground to cover, but the potential for adding a blue trophy to the one he claimed at Pickwick Lake in 2021 is well within his sights.
“Typically, on the St. Johns, I catch them good the first day and then I stub my toe,” Lowen said. “I didn’t want to do that this time. Obviously, I didn’t, but I was blessed.
“Everything just went right, and I’m looking forward to getting the XPress boat and Yamaha back out there, throwing my little cricket around and making a run at this thing. After last year, coming off my worst season ever, it feels good to start out like this. I definitely needed this to get my confidence back up.”
Hailing from Plover, Wis., Przekurat set the Day-1 high mark with 24-15, the event’s heaviest bag. Day 2’s shivering, windy weather halved his productivity with a limit of 12-12 and dropped him to second with 37-11.
“It was a tough day for me; I kinda knew that going into the day,” Przekurat said. “I had to scramble around a little bit and caught what I caught. Hopefully tomorrow,I can step it up a little bit and stay in the Top 10.”
Calling his day a junk-fishing exhibition, Przekurat said the day’s weather complexion made consistency nonexistent.
“I caught a couple off the bed on a dropshot, I caught a couple just (blind-casting) a wacky-rigged Strike King Ocho, and I caught one on a jerkbait on a little channel-swing place,” Przekurat said. “I didn’t catch many fish at all.”
Seth Feider of New Market, Minn., is in third place with 37-7. Turning in a consistent performance, he backed up his Day-1 score of 18-15 with 18-8 and gained seven spots from 10th.
“It was the same bait as yesterday; I caught every one on a Texas-rigged black/blue Z-Man Bang StickZ with a 3/16-ounce weight,” Feider said. “I fished some different areas today and moved around a little more. It seems like I can’t keep beating on the same areas over and over again.
“I’m trying to pick one or two areas each day and try to catch everything I can out of it and then move on down the road. I caught some of my fish on docks and seawalls, but mostly on pads.”
Despite the conventional wisdom of expecting sunny afternoons to excel in post-frontal conditions, Feider said the morning hours produced his best bites — including an estimated 6-pounder.
John Cox of Debary, Fla., is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with his 8-13.
Saturday’s takeoff is scheduled for 7 a.m. ET at the Palatka City Boat Ramp. The weigh-in will be held at Palatka Riverfront Park at 3 p.m.
Day 2 Standings
1. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 10, 45-09 -- 104
Day 1: 5, 21-05 -- Day 2: 5, 24-04
2. Jay Przekurat -- Plover, WI -- 10, 37-11 -- 103
Day 1: 5, 24-15 -- Day 2: 5, 12-12
3. Seth Feider -- Elko New Market, MN -- 10, 37-07 -- 102
Day 1: 5, 18-15 -- Day 2: 5, 18-08
4. Shane LeHew -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 35-07 -- 101
Day 1: 5, 18-04 -- Day 2: 5, 17-03
5. Evan Kung – Pickering, ON – 10, 35-06 -- 100
Day 1: 5, 19-05 -- Day 2: 5, 16-01
6. Caleb Kuphall -- Mukwonago, WI -- 10, 35-04 -- 99
Day 1: 5, 15-02 -- Day 2: 5, 20-02
7. John Cox -- Debary, FL -- 10, 35-02 -- 98 -- $1,000.00
Day 1: 5, 18-05 -- Day 2: 5, 16-13
8. Joey Cifuentes III -- Clinton, AR -- 10, 34-07 -- 97
Day 1: 5, 12-08 -- Day 2: 5, 21-15
9. Brock Mosley -- Collinsville, MS -- 10, 34-03 -- 96
Day 1: 5, 17-11 -- Day 2: 5, 16-08
10. Brandon Card -- Salisbury, NC -- 10, 33-09 -- 95
Day 1: 5, 20-00 -- Day 2: 5, 13-09
11. Bryan New -- Leesville, SC -- 10, 33-05 -- 94
Day 1: 5, 20-10 -- Day 2: 5, 12-11
12. Hunter Shryock -- Ooltewah, TN -- 10, 33-01 -- 93
Day 1: 5, 13-07 -- Day 2: 5, 19-10
13. Patrick Walters -- Eutawville, SC -- 10, 32-07 -- 92
Day 1: 5, 14-03 -- Day 2: 5, 18-04
14. Bernie Schultz -- Gainesville, FL -- 10, 32-02 -- 91
Day 1: 5, 17-07 -- Day 2: 5, 14-11
15. Justin Atkins -- Florence, AL -- 10, 31-14 -- 90
Day 1: 5, 18-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-04
16. Logan Parks -- Auburn, AL -- 10, 31-14 -- 89
Day 1: 5, 14-09 -- Day 2: 5, 17-05
17. Jason Christie -- Dry Creek, OK -- 10, 31-14 -- 88
Day 1: 5, 16-09 -- Day 2: 5, 15-05
18. Gerald Swindle -- Guntersville, AL -- 10, 31-05 -- 87
Day 1: 5, 14-00 -- Day 2: 5, 17-05
19. Robert Gee -- Knoxville, TN -- 10, 31-04 -- 86
Day 1: 5, 12-12 -- Day 2: 5, 18-08
20. Tucker Smith -- Birmingham, AL -- 10, 30-10 -- 85
Day 1: 5, 18-03 -- Day 2: 5, 12-07
21. Luke Palmer -- Coalgate, OK -- 10, 30-09 -- 84
Day 1: 5, 11-13 -- Day 2: 5, 18-12
22. Emil Wagner -- Marietta, GA -- 10, 30-09 -- 83
Day 1: 5, 13-09 -- Day 2: 5, 17-00
23. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, KY -- 10, 30-04 -- 82
Day 1: 5, 18-07 -- Day 2: 5, 11-13
24. Kyle Norsetter -- Cottage Grove, WI -- 10, 30-03 -- 81
Day 1: 5, 14-08 -- Day 2: 5, 15-11
25. Logan Latuso -- Gonzales, LA -- 10, 30-00 -- 80
Day 1: 5, 15-01 -- Day 2: 5, 14-15
26. Chris Johnston – Otonabee, ON – 10, 29-09 -- 79
Day 1: 5, 10-13 -- Day 2: 5, 18-12
27. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 10, 29-05 -- 78
Day 1: 5, 21-02 -- Day 2: 5, 08-03
28. Austin Felix -- Eden Prairie, MN -- 10, 29-04 -- 77
Day 1: 5, 10-06 -- Day 2: 5, 18-14
29. Will Davis Jr -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 28-11 -- 76
Day 1: 5, 15-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-15
30. Jake Whitaker -- Hendersonville, NC -- 10, 28-08 -- 75
Day 1: 5, 15-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-12
31. John Crews Jr -- Salem, VA -- 8, 28-07 -- 74
Day 1: 5, 16-05 -- Day 2: 3, 12-02
32. Lee Livesay -- Longview, TX -- 7, 28-06 -- 73
Day 1: 5, 22-13 -- Day 2: 2, 05-09
33. Caleb Sumrall -- New Iberia, LA -- 9, 28-06 -- 72
Day 1: 4, 10-09 -- Day 2: 5, 17-13
34. Brandon Palaniuk -- Rathdrum, ID -- 10, 28-03 -- 71
Day 1: 5, 15-11 -- Day 2: 5, 12-08
35. Justin Hamner -- Northport, AL -- 10, 28-01 -- 70
Day 1: 5, 19-01 -- Day 2: 5, 09-00
36. Wes Logan -- Springville, AL -- 8, 27-15 -- 69
Day 1: 5, 19-12 -- Day 2: 3, 08-03
37. Cory Johnston -- Otonabee ON -- 10, 27-02 -- 68
Day 1: 5, 12-14 -- Day 2: 5, 14-04
38. John Garrett -- Union City, TN -- 10, 27-00 -- 67
Day 1: 5, 14-12 -- Day 2: 5, 12-04
39. Taku Ito -- Dalton GA -- 10, 27-00 -- 66
Day 1: 5, 13-09 -- Day 2: 5, 13-07
40. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 10, 26-15 -- 65
Day 1: 5, 09-07 -- Day 2: 5, 17-08
41. KJ Queen -- Catawba, NC -- 10, 26-15 -- 64
Day 1: 5, 15-08 -- Day 2: 5, 11-07
42. Pat Schlapper -- Eleva, WI -- 10, 26-13 -- 63
Day 1: 5, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 19-01
43. Jacob Powroznik -- North Prince George, VA -- 10, 26-13 -- 62
Day 1: 5, 13-14 -- Day 2: 5, 12-15
44. Matt Herren -- Ashville, AL -- 10, 26-09 -- 61
Day 1: 5, 10-14 -- Day 2: 5, 15-11
45. Bryant Smith -- Roseville, CA -- 10, 26-09 -- 60
Day 1: 5, 15-07 -- Day 2: 5, 11-02
46. Alex Wetherell -- Middletown, CT -- 10, 26-06 -- 59
Day 1: 5, 08-14 -- Day 2: 5, 17-08
47. Drew Cook -- Cairo, GA -- 10, 26-06 -- 58
Day 1: 5, 14-08 -- Day 2: 5, 11-14
48. Bryan Schmitt -- Deale, MD -- 10, 26-01 -- 57
Day 1: 5, 12-12 -- Day 2: 5, 13-05
49. David Gaston -- Sylacauga, AL -- 10, 25-15 -- 56
Day 1: 5, 09-12 -- Day 2: 5, 16-03
50. Carl Jocumsen – Queensland, AUS – 10, 25-02 -- 55
Day 1: 5, 16-04 -- Day 2: 5, 08-14
The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on Day 3.
51. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 10, 24-15 -- 54
Day 1: 5, 16-07 -- Day 2: 5, 08-08
52. Cody Meyer -- Eagle, ID -- 10, 24-13 -- 53
Day 1: 5, 13-04 -- Day 2: 5, 11-09
53. Kenta Kimura – Osaka, JAPAN -- 7, 24-09 -- 52
Day 1: 5, 14-07 -- Day 2: 2, 10-02
54. Paul Marks -- Cumming, GA -- 10, 24-07 -- 51
Day 1: 5, 08-03 -- Day 2: 5, 16-04
55. Beau Browning -- Hot Springs, AR -- 7, 24-06 -- 50
Day 1: 5, 17-08 -- Day 2: 2, 06-14
56. Jordan Lee -- Cullman, AL -- 10, 24-05 -- 49
Day 1: 5, 10-01 -- Day 2: 5, 14-04
57. Cooper Gallant -- Bowmanville ON – 10, 24-02 -- 48
Day 1: 5, 15-05 -- Day 2: 5, 08-13
58. David Mullins -- Mt Carmel, TN -- 10, 24-02 -- 47
Day 1: 5, 09-05 -- Day 2: 5, 14-13
59. Brad Whatley -- Bivins, TX -- 8, 24-01 -- 46
Day 1: 3, 09-09 -- Day 2: 5, 14-08
60. Dakota Ebare -- Brookeland, TX – 10, 24-01 -- 45
Day 1: 5, 09-11 -- Day 2: 5, 14-06
61. Scott Martin -- Clewiston, FL -- 10, 23-12 -- 44
Day 1: 5, 12-15 -- Day 2: 5, 10-13
62. Brandon Lester -- Fayetteville, TN -- 10, 23-03 -- 43
Day 1: 5, 14-13 -- Day 2: 5, 08-06
63. Cody Huff -- Ava, MO -- 10, 23-01 -- 42
Day 1: 5, 13-04 -- Day 2: 5, 09-13
64. Cole Sands -- Johnson City, TN -- 9, 22-15 -- 41
Day 1: 5, 14-11 -- Day 2: 4, 08-04
65. Ed Loughran III -- Richmond, VA -- 10, 22-13 -- 40
Day 1: 5, 13-06 -- Day 2: 5, 09-07
66. Cliff Pace -- Ovett, MS -- 10, 22-11 -- 39
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 11-11
67. Brandon Cobb -- Greenwood, SC -- 10, 22-09 -- 38
Day 1: 5, 07-15 -- Day 2: 5, 14-10
68. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 8, 21-09 -- 37
Day 1: 3, 06-03 -- Day 2: 5, 15-06
69. Ben Milliken -- Omaha, NE -- 10, 21-08 -- 36
Day 1: 5, 11-07 -- Day 2: 5, 10-01
70. Kyle Welcher -- Valley, AL -- 10, 21-05 -- 35
Day 1: 5, 11-06 -- Day 2: 5, 09-15
71. Jonathan Kelley -- Old Forge, PA -- 10, 21-03 -- 34
Day 1: 5, 12-04 -- Day 2: 5, 08-15
72. Tyler Rivet -- Raceland, LA -- 10, 21-00 -- 33
Day 1: 5, 09-01 -- Day 2: 5, 11-15
73. Wesley Gore -- Clanton, AL -- 10, 20-15 -- 32
Day 1: 5, 12-01 -- Day 2: 5, 08-14
74. Bob Downey -- Detroit Lakes, MN -- 10, 20-09 -- 31
Day 1: 5, 12-08 -- Day 2: 5, 08-01
75. Chris Zaldain -- Boyd, TX -- 10, 20-08 -- 30
Day 1: 5, 12-15 -- Day 2: 5, 07-09
76. Matt Arey -- Shelby, NC -- 10, 19-13 -- 29
Day 1: 5, 10-15 -- Day 2: 5, 08-14
77. Chad Pipkens -- Dewitt, MI -- 10, 19-06 -- 28
Day 1: 5, 07-12 -- Day 2: 5, 11-10
78. Matt Robertson -- Kuttawa, KY -- 7, 19-05 -- 27
Day 1: 2, 03-08 -- Day 2: 5, 15-13
79. Ray Hanselman Jr -- Del Rio, TX -- 10, 18-13 -- 26
Day 1: 5, 09-13 -- Day 2: 5, 09-00
80. Gregory DiPalma -- Millville, NJ -- 10, 18-11 -- 25
Day 1: 5, 09-00 -- Day 2: 5, 09-11
81. Scott Canterbury -- Odenville, AL -- 6, 18-04 -- 24
Day 1: 5, 15-10 -- Day 2: 1, 02-10
82. Hank Cherry Jr -- Lincolnton, NC -- 10, 17-04 -- 23
Day 1: 5, 10-10 -- Day 2: 5, 06-10
83. Jeff Gustafson -- Kenora, ON – 10, 17-02 -- 22
Day 1: 5, 08-00 -- Day 2: 5, 09-02
84. Alex Redwine -- Blue Ash, OH -- 10, 17-00 -- 21
Day 1: 5, 10-07 -- Day 2: 5, 06-09
85. Jamie Hartman -- Newport, NY -- 10, 16-15 -- 20
Day 1: 5, 08-02 -- Day 2: 5, 08-13
86. Buddy Gross -- Chattanooga, TN -- 10, 16-10 -- 19
Day 1: 5, 08-02 -- Day 2: 5, 08-08
87. Timothy Dube -- Nashua , NH -- 10, 16-07 -- 18
Day 1: 5, 09-01 -- Day 2: 5, 07-06
88. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 8, 16-03 -- 17
Day 1: 5, 09-02 -- Day 2: 3, 07-01
89. Tyler Williams -- Belgrade, ME -- 7, 16-02 -- 16
Day 1: 5, 13-10 -- Day 2: 2, 02-08
90. Trey McKinney -- Carbondale, IL -- 8, 15-05 -- 15
Day 1: 3, 02-13 -- Day 2: 5, 12-08
91. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 9, 14-07 -- 14
Day 1: 5, 09-09 -- Day 2: 4, 04-14
92. Marc Frazier -- Newnan, GA -- 8, 14-04 -- 13
Day 1: 5, 10-13 -- Day 2: 3, 03-07
93. Kyoya Fujita – Yamanashi, JAPAN -- 5, 13-13 -- 12
Day 1: 3, 10-01 -- Day 2: 2, 03-12
94. JT Thompkins -- Myrtle Beach, SC -- 9, 13-09 -- 11
Day 1: 5, 05-10 -- Day 2: 4, 07-15
95. Randy Howell -- Guntersville, AL -- 6, 13-07 -- 10
Day 1: 5, 11-08 -- Day 2: 1, 01-15
96. Jacob Foutz -- Charleston, TN -- 4, 13-06 -- 9
Day 1: 4, 13-06 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00
97. Kyle Patrick -- Cooperstown, NY -- 5, 13-00 -- 8
Day 1: 5, 13-00 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00
98. Paul Mueller -- Naugatuck, CT -- 8, 12-05 -- 7
Day 1: 5, 05-10 -- Day 2: 3, 06-11
99. Blake Capps -- Muskogee, OK -- 6, 12-00 -- 6
Day 1: 5, 08-14 -- Day 2: 1, 03-02
100. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 3, 11-10 -- 5
Day 1: 0, 00-00 -- Day 2: 3, 11-10
101. Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, AR -- 7, 11-07 -- 4
Day 1: 3, 03-07 -- Day 2: 4, 08-00
102. Easton Fothergill -- Grand Rapids , MN -- 8, 10-12 -- 3
Day 1: 5, 05-14 -- Day 2: 3, 04-14
103. Andrew Loberg -- Guntersville, AL -- 4, 07-09 -- 2
Day 1: 3, 06-05 -- Day 2: 1, 01-04
104. Matty Wong -- Honolulu, HI -- 1, 02-11 -- 1
Day 1: 1, 02-11 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00
