PUNTA GORDA, Fla. (April 28, 2008) – Florida was the first stop on the 2008 Redfish Cup tournament schedule, and 49 of the best Redfish teams in the country focused their sites on Punta Gorda. Two teams represented Lucky Craft this week, and all four anglers are Florida residents; Bryan and Greg Watts, from Eagle Lake and Lithia, respectively, and Paul Jueckstock from Port Orange, fishing with new partner and Punta Gorda resident, Manny Perez.

All 49 teams had two days to catch the four biggest redfish they could find to make the top-five and fish on Sunday. Greg and Bryan Watts missed the cut by less than a pound, with a two-day total of 24.75 pounds. After a bad practice, Greg and Bryan had only one pattern to rely on.

“The fish were constantly moving and none of them stayed in one spot,” Bryan said. “Coming into the first day of the tournament, we decided to fish an area where we had caught a few fish on Wednesday, our last official practice day. We were dropshotting with Gulp shrimp all weekend in that one main area.”

Using a 3/4-ounce lead, the Watts brothers tied a hook about 14 inches above the weight and fished in water a little more than a foot deep. The heavy lead allowed for 60- to 70-yard casts.

“It was pretty much one pattern of dead-sticking the Gulp shrimp the whole time,” Bryan explained. “We’d throw it out and move it a foot every 30 seconds or so. We were fishing in Mullet schools and would get the occasional rogue redfish running through. Those are the fish that gave us our 12 pounds both days, and that’s how we ended up in seventh.”

Greg and Bryan fished 23 miles from the launch site on a simple flat with a broken bottom. This area, where they caught most of their fish, was nearly 100 yards off a mangrove island where redfish seemed to be roaming back and forth, according to Bryan Watts.

The Watts brothers agreed the results were fantastic; especially considering they didn’t expect to finish above 17th after the way practice had shaped up earlier in the week.

“Patience played a big role in what we were doing this weekend,” Bryan said. “We had to stay in one spot and dead-stick for two straight days, and we never even saw a fish to sight-cast to. We knew that was completely out because the fish weren’t reacting to anything anyway. Based on all the circumstances of the weekend, we think the results are great.”

Looking forward to the next tournament in Texas, Greg and Bryan believe it could be a time for Lucky Craft to shine.

“Our tournament in Port Arthur, Texas is going to be a Lucky Craft tournament,” Bryan said. “I think we’re going to get on some crankbait fish, and I think that pattern will work really well. We could end up throwing anything from the Lucky Craft BDS 2 or 3, to medium or deep-divers, depending on the areas we’re fishing. It should be interesting.”

Paul Jueckstock and partner saw the opposite of the Watts brothers and had a “phenomenal” practice, according to the Port Orange resident.

“It was a great practice, but it was the same story as last year,” Jueckstock said, commenting on last year’s pattern of successful practices leading to tough tournaments. “We were on great fish. I was getting 12 to 13 pounds a day in practice, and even had one day with two fish weighing 14 pounds. Everything was going great. Then a high- pressure system came through and ruined it for us.”

Jueckstock and Perez fished several flats in practice that seemed to be holding a lot of bait. According to Jueckstock, there were two “bowl”-type areas between some islands where they found success.

“There was a deep trough about 4-feet deep that came up to 2 feet around the edges,” Jueckstock explained. “Also, behind the islands was a flat that was about a foot-and-a-half deep. It was like the fish would come in with the tide, following the bait fish, and they’d just mingle on those flats. We had some schools of fish and some singles come through, and it was a great pre-fishing time. I wasn’t concerned about the tournament one bit – I was very confident – until it actually arrived.”

Because of the high-pressure system that made it’s way through Punta Gorda, Jueckstock believes the fish left with the weather system.

“After talking with some locals, it seems the fish move when the east wind and high- pressure systems come through,” Jueckstock added. “Then you have to go looking to find them, and we just weren’t able to find out where our fish went.”

Jueckstock and Perez stuck to their game plan and fished their main areas both Saturday and Sunday to bring in a total two-day weight of 17.14 pounds, which put them in 24th overall. In the morning, they would throw the Wood Sammy in both a white color and MS American Shad. In the afternoon, they’d switch to soft plastics as the tide came in.

“There were still some fish around us, but after the high pressure came in, the fish just left our areas,” Jueckstock said. “There were still some fish, but they were finicky and spooked easily. We were catching around 25 fish a day in practice but only 10 to 15 in the tournament, and they were small.”

Overall, Jueckstock is disappointed because he was expecting a better finish. However, he is pleased with their team performance and said his first tournament with new partner, Perez, went very well. He is looking forward to fishing the next Redfish Cup tournament in Texas, May 30 – June 1.