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00:00This week on Elite Fishing Series TV, it's springtime in Southeast Texas and time for the anglers to dust off their reels, fuel up their rigs, and head to Port Arthur.
00:12It's the kickoff classic presented by Visit Port Arthur, Texas, tour stop number one of the Frogtogs Elite Solo Tour season.
00:30Hey folks, I'm Pat Malone, host and tournament director.
01:00My travels have taken me to a lot of great coastal communities, each one special in their own way.
01:07And this week's stop in Port Arthur, Texas is no exception.
01:11Port Arthur is just 90 miles from Houston and is where Texas, Louisiana, and the Gulf of Mexico all come together to create a wonderful culture and amazing fishery.
01:23We're going to see how much he weighs. 5'12".
01:26World-class birding, Cajun-influenced food, and a diverse culture all make Port Arthur an elite destination in the official Cajun capital of Texas.
01:38This week, some of the best anglers in the country have traveled here to compete for the top prize, a $10,000 check, and title of elite solo tour champion.
01:50Let's go now to one of those anglers, Strike King Pro Mike Crannett, for a preview of what lies ahead for the field this week when they hit the waters in and around Port Arthur, Texas.
02:01Thanks, Pat.
02:03Thanks, Pat.
02:04Boy, I love coming to Port Arthur because it has great fishing and offers a lot of options.
02:11This week, we'll be able to sight cast, throw spoons and spinnerbaits, and if conditions are right, we'll be throwing topwaters to schools of redfish in Sabine Lake.
02:22Come here, guys.
02:24Yes, sir.
02:25Get in the net.
02:26All right.
02:27Whether you fish the deepwater jetties or slip into the shallow marshes and backwaters, one thing is for sure.
02:35This is a tough field of pros, and in order to make it to day three, you have to make great decisions, fish clean, and have a little lady luck on your side.
02:45Port Arthur is a fisherman's paradise, offering the best of Louisiana and Texas fishing to the field.
03:00It's springtime, and that means weather to play a big role in the outcome.
03:04Staying focused and positive will be at a premium.
03:08Thinking positive and hoping for two, three, four good fish to run up on, so we're ready.
03:16It's beautiful.
03:17It's going to be a good day.
03:18After they get done being shell-shocked from all that thunder and lightning an hour ago, they'll eat.
03:24I have a quarter-ounce jig head on it with a gulp of some flavor on it, and just switch out flavors until I find out what they want to eat.
03:31Anglers launched each morning at Ancelette's Marina and idled out past the historic Rainbow Bridge.
03:43The weather for days one and two proved to be a challenge, but a challenge the elite pros were more than capable of handling.
03:51After a full day of fishing, the anglers would trailer their rigs to the Bob Bauer Civic Center to weigh their three-fish limit per day of big Texas redfish, 20 to 28 inches in overall length.
04:04The goal over the two days of qualifying was to weigh in a two-day, six-fish full tournament limit, heavy enough to make it through the final four, and fish for all the marbles on Championship Saturday.
04:20All the way from Hinesville, Georgia, Tony Gaskins hit the stage first, followed by Gary Marino, Will Granberry, Tony Vietor, and in his rookie season on the Elite Fishing Series, Daniel Dump.
04:39Each angler had their fish measured by tour official Tony Toomey at the Check It Stick measuring station before hitting the stage to have them weighed.
04:50Here we go, all the way from Seguin, Texas.
04:52We're going to bring you up your leader from yesterday with 20.18 pounds, Mr. Travis Land.
04:58Y'all put your hands together for Travis.
05:00He needs 5.33.
05:01He's got three fish, three alive, another good limit, 22.50.
05:06You know, the winds blew hard north yesterday.
05:08It blew hard southeast today.
05:10Tomorrow it's going to blow hard north again.
05:11It's hard to put together any kind of pattern in that kind of conditions.
05:15It's blowing hard, so we're just going to have to hide in these pockets and let that sun get up a little bit higher so we can see down in this black water.
05:23I've got one little area tomorrow that, you know, is kind of protected and hopefully we can pull three more out of there and see what happens.
05:30Travis Land set a high bar, leading after two days with 43.35 pounds.
05:36Even under tough springtime conditions, the final four brought in good bags of fish over the two days.
05:43A testament to their skills and to the incredible fishery in Port Arthur.
05:48Stay tuned, we'll be back with Day 3, Championship Saturday, after these short messages.
05:54Welcome back to the Elite Fishing Series and the Kickoff Classic, presented by Visit Port Arthur.
06:01The final four met early on Championship Saturday at the Robert A. Bower Civic Center before heading out for Day 3's final round.
06:09We've got a little north wind today. It's going to be a little breezy, but we made it to Day 3. That's the main deal. We're here. We're at the big show.
06:21We're in the championship day and got a good little north wind that just picked up. I'm hoping it should be good for us.
06:27It should suck some of the water out. We found a real high tide yesterday with a bunch of rain.
06:31So hopefully it'll suck a little bit of that water out just enough to where we can see those fish better and get on them.
06:38Alright, here we are. Port Arthur, Texas, 2024. First stop, Elite Solo Tour. We made it to Day 3. It's going to be a pretty balmy 65 degree high today.
06:51Wind's blowing out of the north about 30 right now. It's supposed to steadily come down. Might be a little tougher than it's been the past few days. So we all stay tuned and see what happens.
07:02As the anglers arrived at the ramp and began getting their rigs ready for Day 3's launch, the time had finally come. Launch the boat. Make sure you don't leave anything in the truck. Check your electronics. And of course, make sure your engine starts.
07:21But these guys are pros. And like any athlete, each of them had that laser like focus on the task ahead.
07:28Oh man, chilly this morning. Well, cold and mosquitoes biting me. Most of them. Right on the toes.
07:36The time for fun and games is over. With a springtime cold front and what some know will be tough fishing, it's time to get started.
07:45For some anglers, getting started will prove a challenge. And for Travis Land, if he can't get unstuck, he'll be fishing from behind. Or worse.
07:55Yeah, I know. It got hot though. Not at all. You don't want to start off on day three by overheating your motor. You've done so much to get here. You want to stay in the game.
08:08But it looks like all four have made it out and they're heading to spot number one on the final day of competition in Port Arthur, Texas.
08:19Jeremy Reeves has made it to his first spot and is getting his gear set up for what he hopes is a winning finish to this week long event.
08:41And early on, Waypoint Marine Pro Chris Scheneldecker is already moving to plan B.
08:47Right now we're at our B spot, I guess you could say. The wind has pushed the water out a ton, as you can see.
08:56One of the spots where my first spot I wanted to go to, it's got to go through a little gate to get in there.
09:01And it's got about a two foot wave going through the gate. So we didn't feel too comfortable going through there.
09:07So came to our backup spot and hopefully we have enough water in here to buzz around in and work through and hopefully find some fish that'll eat.
09:17I better change that real quick.
09:26It got a little bent on the tip right there. You don't want that. That cost you the whole tournament.
09:33I don't know how many times that I pulled up and didn't retie and it cost me.
09:40It takes two seconds to do it. Just do it. Look at them pelicans over there diving. They're doing it.
09:49Must be a good spot, huh?
10:02Oh, here we are. First stop. Hoping it's our only stop for the day. Float across a couple of y'all stay tuned.
10:21Come up right there by the boat.
10:46Welcome back to the Elite Fishing Series in Port Arthur, Texas.
10:55Elite Fishing Series Television is brought to you by Tidewater Boats.
11:01The official boat of the Elite Fishing Series. Yamaha Outboards, the official outboard motor of the Elite Fishing Series.
11:10Frog Cogs, total outdoor performance gear. McLean Trailers, built for the long haul.
11:25Waterloo Rocks, might as well fish the best. Check it stick measuring systems.
11:32Brecknell Scales, Speedy Stop Fuel and Bolt. The Silver Slipper Casino and Hotel and our community partners.
11:40Oh, he looked at it and didn't want it. Dang it. Dang it. Dang it. Dang it. Dang it. That was a good one.
11:59All right. I wasn't quite, didn't have almost everything quite ready. He's up here in the bank.
12:05Right off the bat, there's worked out an eight pounder. Hope that one doesn't come back and haunt us.
12:10I put that bait in front of him. He turned around and saw it, but then he saw my shadow.
12:15Because the sun's behind us, it's still a little early. Just going to creep down this bank. That's a good sign they're still here.
12:22Right when we got here, a ship went by and made a giant wake, so it really dirtied it up. So, I'm going to kind of hang out right here and give it a few minutes.
12:31Let that water kind of calm down. It's just rubbing on my rubber rail and it's making a lot of noise and it's making more noise than what I really want.
12:45A lot of what happens during the day for an Elite Fishing Series Pro has nothing to do with landing and weighing a fish.
12:53In order to stay stealth, anglers have to think on the fly with fixes that will give them the advantage over the fish.
13:00Just want to see if maybe if I put a little cushion under there, if it'll help relieve some noise.
13:07After getting the fix the best that he could, Jeremy gets back to fishing.
13:12It's getting late and he still hasn't boated his first scorable fish.
13:16Dude, watch for the wind.
13:24Been in and out of the marsh a couple times trying to see if the water's come up any. It's still just down.
13:31It doesn't look like it's going to come up until probably about the time we're headed back.
13:35So we decided to move out in the intercoastal and start pounding rocks.
13:40See if we can't pick something up along these jetties right off the intercoastal.
13:45And we're going to hit a little grass line up here after that and just see if we can't pick something up.
13:50Make something happen in the last hour and a half.
13:52But it's not looking too hot.
13:54Got it.
14:04Well, I'll get my net out.
14:06This looks like a really, really good fish.
14:09While some are struggling with the Texas springtime conditions, Travis Land is on good fish.
14:14Maybe too good.
14:16First fish of the morning is a little too big.
14:18But we're going to turn them loose and find one that's a little bit smaller.
14:21This one was a little too big.
14:23But Travis hooks up again and this one has Travis heading in the right direction.
14:28I hope this one isn't too big because these are good ones.
14:36Big old beautiful Port Arthur's redfish.
14:40Catching them too big.
14:43They're getting smaller though.
14:45This one's 29.
14:46We're going to keep throwing at them.
14:50Good one.
14:52That's what I'm talking about.
14:54Got a good one right here.
14:56Yeah.
14:57All right.
14:59I figured they'd be moving in sometime or another.
15:02Woo.
15:03That's a big map.
15:07All right.
15:08You got a long hill on you.
15:13They're going to be 28 and three quarters.
15:28Hey.
15:30All right.
15:31We got the quail legs.
15:33I was watching Bass Masters and old Ben Milliken.
15:37He said you eat the quail legs, you get like, catch 10 pounders.
15:40Huh.
15:41Mmm.
15:42It's not that good.
15:46Mmm.
15:47All right.
15:48See if we can catch us a 10 pounder and get on the board.
15:52Welcome back to the Frog Togs Elite Solo Tours Kickoff Classic in Port Arthur, Texas.
15:59Closed captioning provided by McLean Trailers, the official trailer of the Elite Fishing Series.
16:07As we return to the water on Championship Saturday, local pro Jeremy Rings finally hooks up on his first fish of the day.
16:19A cold front and high pressure made for a chilly but beautiful day three in Port Arthur.
16:25But high pressure can wreak havoc on the fishery, and that's what happened on the final day.
16:30I'm going to bring him in hot and heavy right here.
16:33With a tight lift and stuck to the bottom, Jeremy still had his chances.
16:37But this six pounder would prove to be his only fish of the day.
16:41What we're looking for, but let's see.
16:46Six and three-quarter pounds.
16:48Well, we're at the end of the day.
16:50It's three o'clock.
16:51It's kind of a tough day for me.
16:54Saw a lot of fish.
16:56Probably should have had two more fish, but we're coming in today with one fish.
16:59Probably a six and three-quarter pounder.
17:02And we'll see where the chips fall.
17:04As Jeremy loads his boat on a very tough day three, this single fish will prove valuable
17:09as it puts him in second place when Mark Robinson catches a bad break.
17:13As we catch a fish and it has a bad tail, the top half of the tail is bad.
17:19We've got to let him go.
17:21There's like a seven-pounder right there.
17:23Having to release this fish meant Mark was zero for the day and finish up in the fourth
17:29and final spot on Championship Saturday.
17:31The water is really, really low.
17:33Lower than I even thought it was originally this morning.
17:36And things just didn't pan out.
17:38It doesn't always go the way you want it to go, and today was definitely that day.
17:42Chris Schindeldecker finishes out the Kickoff Classic in third place.
17:47Finally caught one I know of fit.
17:49A little guy, I should say.
17:52He weighs five and a half pounds.
17:56We're on the board.
17:58Finally on the board, Travis has been fighting off oversized fish all day, but he might have
18:03finally landed in a spot where he can get three keepers.
18:06Saltwater, four-inch swimming mullet, one of my favorite baits.
18:12Got one.
18:13Travis knew it was going to be a late bite.
18:16It had been all week for him, and today proved no different.
18:20Number two.
18:21That's not a bad fish.
18:23Seven pounds, that's perfect.
18:25I'll take three of those.
18:27One of them looked too big.
18:29This one definitely smaller than the other one.
18:32This is one of those eights we're looking for, for sure.
18:35Come here, guy.
18:38Yes, sir.
18:39Get a net.
18:40All right.
18:41All right, fella.
18:43Come here.
18:44Sure wish you to eat breakfast.
18:49Seven and a quarter, and...
18:54Oh, he's under 27, so that's okay.
18:56That's good.
18:57I was getting real nervous, but I told myself this morning it was going to be a late bite.
19:01We were patient.
19:03Lookie there.
19:04We got two.
19:05We got a seven, a seven and a quarter, and an eight and a half.
19:09I had a good day.
19:10Hope y'all did too.
19:12Packing up his gear for the final time this week, Travis will head to day three's weigh-in,
19:17feeling confident that with him he's bringing tour stop number one's winning limit.
19:24Upon arriving at the Bob Bowers Civic Center for the final time, Travis knew the moment and
19:29took time to share his great day of fishing with the fans waiting outside to see his catch.
19:35The excitement of being up close with Port Arthur Redfish and the pros who caught them was a draw all week long,
19:42and matched on day three only by the excitement and buzz inside at the 2024 Elite Outdoor Expo.
19:50Having boats, trucks, organizations, and exhibitors on hand to cheer on the anglers made for a great conclusion to this week's event.
20:02But the time has come to crown our champion of the 2024 Kickoff Classic, presented by Visit Port Arthur.
20:09Your only three fish limit today, 24-13.
20:13Y'all put your hands together for your champion, Waterloo Rods Pro, Mr. Travis Land.
20:18Anytime you can stand on this stage at this level, it's a blessing, so I'm just happy to be here.
20:23Travis Land takes the win with a full limit of three fish on a day when bites were few and far between.
20:29Congratulations to all of the anglers that competed this week at the Kickoff Classic.
20:34I'm Pat Malone, and thank you for watching the pros of the Elite Fishing Series.
20:38Tune in next week when it gets wet and wild in Lafitte, Louisiana, as we fish Jefferson Parish.
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