SECOND WIN EXTENDS TEAM'S HOT STREAK

Manino and Juecstock Victorious at Punta Gorda Event

 

By DAYID A. BROWN

PUNTA GORDA, Fla.  — Continuing the most consistent success streak in Redfish

Tour history, Edgewater, Fl. anglers Eric Manino and Paul Juecstock captured

the winning 2-fish aggregate at the Punta Gorda tournament, May 18 at Burnt

Store Marina.

 

As the first team to weigh, Manino and Juecstock opted to wrap up their day

early and arrived at the dock around 1 p.m.  About four hours and 69 teams

later, the dynamic duo notched their second victory on the 2002 Redfish Tour

(first was in Lafitte, La. on April 6). Manino and Juecstock came into the

Punta Gorda event energized by a victory the previous weekend at the Triple

Challenge in Jacksonville. Last year, they won the Tour's 2001 Open Division

Championship and the qualifying round for the Lure Division Championship, in

which they finished fifth.

 

"The key to our success is that we're doing our homework," Manino explained.

"A year or two ago, we weren't able to fish that many days. To be competitive

you have to be on the water. Things change: patterns change, winds change,

tides change and you have to put in your time."

 

As with each of their recent victories, their money fish ate Nemire Red

Ripper spoons. Juecstock explained the bait's effectiveness: "It's a really

versatile lure, you can work it so many different ways. You can work it as a

topwater, as a crankbait, as a jerkbait, as a spoon, or by flipping. If you

want to hit every strike zone there is, that's the bait of choice."

 

Manino and Juecstock had located their fish at the mouths of feeder creeks in

the Pine Island area two weekends earlier while prefishing for the Port of

the Islands event. Fortunately, the fish stayed put long enough for the

winning anglers to capitalize. Manino said their first casts attracted the

eventual money fish. From there, another five reds, a couple of snook, jack

crevalle and a small shark would stretch their lines.

 

One of their first fish died after swallowing the spoon and bleeding out.

Complying with tournament rules, which prohibit culling dead fish, the

winners worried about the specter of a half pound deduction again dashing

their hopes. Manino said that during the Triple Challenge a week earlier, a

dead fish penalty took them from $2,400 to $700 in the Trout Division.

 

"Last weekend, in the Triple Challenge, we had a big trout die on us and that

took us from $2,400 to $700 [in prize money]," Manino said. "We figured that

was going to happen to us today and thank God it didn't."

 

Most notable about Manino and Juecstock's success streak is their relatively

brief union: "We just started fishing together in September [2001],"

Juecstock said. "For the last two years, we fished against one another. We got

sick and tired of beating one another so we figured we'd join forces. With

the knowledge [Eric] has from guiding and the things I brought to the

picture, it's really helped us out."

 

Juecstock also acknowledged 2001 Redfish Tour Team of the Year and

Championship winners, Greg and Bryan Watts, for setting a high mark for which

other teams now strive. "The Watts brothers gave us a goal to shoot for. They

accomplished more than anybody did last year. We want to do as good as they

did, if not better."

 

The second-place team of Chuck Howard and Billy Harris bagged the events’  

heaviest fish — an 8.67-pounder — along with a 5.80 for 14.47 pounds. Fishing

Watermelon and Baby Bass colored Mister Twister Exude RT Slugs in potholes

they caught their smaller fish early in the morning and their big one around

noon.

 

Howard said he and his partner leveraged the Exude baits' scent release

quality to create a chum trail. "Throwing the bait into the pothole

repeatedly allows the scent to stay in the hole."

 

Fishing the south end of Pine Island, the anglers found plenty of large reds

but, as Howard noted, they had trouble finding a second fish that was small

enough. "We had several reds that were right at 27 inches and we had to

gamble and throw them back. We finally found one that would measure. It was a

fun day."

 

As Harris recalled, their day included a spark of excitement. He and Howard

were scratching their heads when a solidly hooked redfish came unbuttoned.

Soon after, the culprit revealed itself when a 6-foot bull shark chased

another hooked redfish to the boat.

    

Finishing third, Dan Benson and Matt Ryan caught 6.24- and 7.90-pound redfish

for a 14.14-pound total. Berkley Power Jerk Baits in the New Penny color

tempted their fish over sandy potholes near Little Gasparilla Island. The big

fish came on their third cast, but they had to move further back into a bay

to find its pair three hours later.

 

Benson also credited the Watts brothers for key advice: "They say 'Do not

leave fish.' Last year, we ran around a lot and if we found fish that

wouldn't feed, we'd leave them. Today, we sat on one spot all day long and

did not leave our fish until we had them in the boat."

 

Ryan praised his Berkley Fireline for averting a near miss. When one of his

team's fish ran through thick grass, a large sea salad accumulated on the

line. But whereas the extra weigh would most certainly have doomed monofilament,

one whip crack of the Fireline sliced through the impediment.

 

In fourth place, Dan Jeffers and Rick Sechrist found fish weighing 7.27 and

6.43 pounds for a 13.70-pound aggregate. Fishing grassy drop-offs in

Gasparilla Sound they used MirrOlure Top Dog Jr.s and jigs. Having located

their fish a week earlier, they stayed in a 100-yard area the entire day and

thoroughly worked the spot.

 

Tragedy threatened as Benson wrestled with a red while offloading. "We nearly

dropped a fish in the water. It flipped out and almost got away from us. I

had to lay on it to keep if from going over the side."

 

Greg and Bryan Watts placed fifth with 7.28- and 6.37-pound redfish (13.65).

Working chartreuse Exude RT Slugs over potholes near mangrove shorelines in

four feet of water was their productive pattern. The brothers caught a dozen

high-slot reds, along with a couple of 5-pound trout.

 

Rounding out the top 10 were: Jason Selzer and Mark Elliott (sixth, 7.82,

5.63 -13.45); Mike Hutchisson, Michael Haines (seventh, 5.84, 7.50 - 13.34);

Robert Boudreaux, Jerry Cleffi (eighth, 6.89, 6.28 - 13.17); Miles Meredith,

Matt Haag (ninth, 6.70, 6.35 - 13.05); Chad Huff, Derek Fenton (tenth, 6.10,

6.67 - 12.77).