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Yep he won the 2-day Bassmaster Open on a local (for him) lake – which by the way is not leech-infested, like you would think 😁 – and that made 2 Opens wins for him this season. The other win was at Eufaula, OK. He won that one with a mix of power and finesse, this one was all finesse. Get to those deets in a sec.
Check this run out: In Oct '23 Easton won the Bassmaster College Classic Bracket (ended up 16th outta 56 at the Classic) – after almost missing it due to emergency brain surgery. Then he hit the Opens for the first time and finished 7th and 11th in the first 2, then he won the 6th one and now the 8th. B.A.S.S. said only 2 other guys have won 2 Opens in the same season: Big Show "Terry" Scroggins (2007) and Randall "jig kung fu" Tharp (2008).
Obviously Easton has something going on. Let's maybe find out what that is – here's 5 with him:
1. It seems like after you were in the hospital your fishing really went up a notch. Is that fair to say?
> "I definitely agree. It definitely made a huge uptick after being in the hospital.
> "I really think that just made me appreciate everything that much more...take a step back and think how lucky I am to be able to fish and that sort of thing.
> "I value every day so much more since then, and it's made me more successful on the water."
Follow-up: Did you change how you fish at all?
> "I fish the same exact way. I was always talking to my college roommate before that happened...I just never caught big fish. I always caught good limits of fish but I'd never catch a big one. Then this year I catch a big one almost every tournament.
> "I haven't changed anything about my fishing style – I'm not sure what's going on. I broke my PB 3-4 times this year, I had big fish at the Leech Lake tournament...it's crazy."
2. Do you think you had enough fish for a day 3?
> "I definitely had enough fish. I would have had to come up with some idea to get them to fire – they're just so smart.
> "I don't think my fish were getting pressured. I almost think the fish felt the tournament pressure and shut down.
> "I definitely would have had to come up with a new bait or new rotation or something to come up with a good bag of fish on day 3. Day 1 I caught 15-20 fish, day 2 it went down to 7-8 fish...."
3. Why did you fish the Dice bait vs some other kind of dropshot or finesse bait?
> "I just think it's a really good crawfish imitator, and the color I was using – a lot of crawfish in Leech Lake have that smokey, tannish color. I thought it was the best imitator of that and was something most people would not be throwing."
[I asked him why he thought that bait imitated crawfish.]
> "I really don't know exactly what smallmouth think it is, I just know they really like to bite it. A lot of the crawfish they eat out there are not full-size – the claws are half the size of my pinkie."
4. How important is FFS in your fishing, and would you feel comfortable fishing without it?
> "On Leech Lake it just made me that much more efficient. My gameplan would be exactly the same whether I had FFS or not.
> "With FFS I was able to pull up to a spot and pan to a rock or whatever I'm fishing and know if a fish was there or not. Without it, I'd make 4-5 casts and if I got no bites I'd...just pull the trolling motor and leave. So my gameplan would be exactly the same."
5. If someone coming out of high school is trying to decide between just fishing or college fishing to get to the pros, what would your advice be?
> "Oh my gosh college fishing 100%. That is 100% without a doubt the reason I am where I'm at.
> "Winning the College Bracket Tournament changed my life, but even if I didn't win that tournament I'd have almost all the experience I needed to take it to the next level. I'd just have to figure out the financial side of things.
> "[In college fishing] you get everything you need on a national level...you see a lot of lakes, you're competing all over the country in 250-boat fields.... [The Opens] almost feel the same to me. Obviously the skill is much better but college [fishing has the] same feel.
> "My advice to all HS fishermen is not to skip [college fishing]. I think it is a vital step...to the Opens."
What he fished at Leech
He did fish a ChatterBait a little, but his main bait was an OSP Saikoro Dice Rubber (non-salt) in the "suji ebi" color. Most of his fish came on a hover-type rig, not the dropshot.
> Hover-type rig – #2 Ryugi Talisman Hook, 1/32-oz Strike King Tungsten Neko Weight, 8-lb Strike King Tour Grade Braid (yellow) to 10-lb Strike King Contra fluoro, Lew's Custom Lite Spin Reel (300), 7' 2" L Lew's Custom Lite Rod.
> "Every fish was different. Some would I would deadstick it and they would move in and look at it. If they didn't grab it, I let it fall all the way to the bottom and I'd shake it. A lot would pick it up off the bottom."
> Dropshot – Same hook, 6-12" leader so 1/4-oz Strike King cylinder dropshot weight, same line, same reel, 7' M Lew's Elite Series Rod. "Deeper boulders."
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