BROOKELAND, Texas – Multi-day tournaments exist for a reason – they test anglers over a people of time, with moving fish, different conditions and shifts of fortune. Both days of the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Southwestern Division event Sam Rayburn have been impressive, with a bunch of big bags every day, but through two, Dakota Ebare is miles ahead of the competition. While Lee Livesay faltered, Ebare kept the pedal down, landing 29 pounds, 10 ounces for a 61-1 total – good for a 7-15 margin over second place.
In second place, Dylan Thompson sacked up mid-20s bags two days in a row for 53-2. Behind him, Riley Harris has done the same to the tune of 52-1. In most other scenarios, they’d be well ahead of the competition.
Notably, Ebare is now within striking distance of some Toyota Series weight records. For the all-time three-day weight record, he’d need more than 30 pounds on Day 3, but it’s not out of the question – Michael Yoder caught 93-8 at Falcon in 2010 for the top spot. He’s also well within range of the Sam Rayburn Toyota Series record, which Colby Miller set last year with 77-7. Setting a new record for winning margin on the Toyota Series seems like a big ask – Banks Shaw set it last year at Chickamauga, winning by 24-5. However, if things break just right, or, just wrong for his competition, it could be in play.
On the co-angler side, David Bozarth leads after two days with 26-13. In second, Errol Sigue is ounces away with an even 26 pounds for his total. Though some of the drama may have gone out of the race on the pro side, the co-angler weigh-in on Championship Saturday could be pretty tense.
Ebare puts together another great day
With a change in wind strength and direction today, Ebare didn’t blast a big bag out of the gate – he needed to work for most of the day.
“It wasn’t fast and furious,” Ebare said. “You know, I had to run some new water and eventually I ran to a new area and found a pretty good concentration of them. I didn’t have them early, it wasn’t until midday before I really started getting some better bites. So, you know, I spent some time in some dead water and just kept shuffling around and finally got into a good productive area. But I don’t know what tomorrow brings. It’s a new day.”
Rayburn sees a lot of tournament pressure, and for a pro with a Brookeland address like Ebare, it’s possible to fish for big money every year. So, he’s naturally disinclined to put out a free clinic. But, even if he did, it might not matter that much – Ebare is a master when it comes to breaking down a lake in the moment, which has accounted for a lot of the successes in his career.
“What’s interesting about this is that both days I’ve caught them in places where I’ve never caught a big bag,” he said. “So, the lake’s always new. Every year, every tournament, it seems like, it’s all about just fishing current conditions, and that’s what I’ve been doing this week. Last tournament, I caught them in a totally different area doing something totally different.”
Today, he pulled into one area with some good environmental cues and took it from there.
“Not everybody’s catching them, it’s not easy. It’s just about being in the right place at the time,” he said. “This afternoon, I pulled into the area, saw a loon, then I noticed some bait in the area and that was where I caught most of my weight. That’s not somewhere I practiced, and it’s not somewhere that I fished yesterday. I’m just literally running down the lake fishing history and current conditions.”
Since making fishing his career, Ebare has made Texas his home – Rayburn is where he won his first Toyota Series event, and he’s now firmly rooted in the community. After two finishes below his standard to start the Elite Series season, Ebare likes how this event is playing out.
“You know, I struggled a little bit, I had a couple mediocre tournaments in my first two Elite Series events in Florida,” Ebare said. “So, to come home and get the train rolling back in the right direction really feels good. To win, it would be just as special as the first one. Anytime I can have a good event here at home in front of family and friends and be able to do it for this community that’s been so great to me over the years, it would be a win for everyone. I’m damn sure gonna try to do it.”
The rest of the Top 25 aren’t going to let him have it easy, but so far, Ebare is functioning at the peak of his powers, and that’s not easy for any level of competition to handle.
Top 10 pros
1. Dakota Ebare – 61 – 1 (10)
2. Dylan Thompson – 53 – 2 (10)
3. Riley Harris – 52 – 1 (10)
4. Lee Livesay – 48 – 9 (10)
5. Chad Mrazek – 46 – 13 (10)
6. Cody Ross – 43 – 10 (10)
7. JD Chandler – 43 – 8 (10)
8. Todd Castledine – 43 – 3 (10)
9. Brody Campbell – 42 – 14 (10)
10. Hayden Heck – 42 – 2 (10)
