ESPN Elite Series

LAKE WALES, Fla. — The 2008 Bassmaster Elite Series tour begins its second event of the season Thursday with another stop in Florida, this time at the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes. The Citrus Slam, presented by Longhorn, appears to present the 109 Elite Series pros with the same set of conditions they faced last week in the Sunshine Showdown on the Harris Chain of Lakes.

Most of the bass have already spawned, however, fish can be found in all stages — pre-spawn, on the beds and post-spawn. There is likely to be some sight-fishing for bass on the beds, especially Thursday and Friday. But no one expects the winner to be able to rely on that pattern for four straight days.

The field will be cut to the top 50 after Friday's weigh-in and the top 12 after Saturday. The 8 a.m. take-offs and 4 p.m. weigh-ins will be held at Camp Mack.

Fifteen pros were asked to pick the three most likely winners of the $100,000 first-place prize and here is what they said:

Mike McClelland
1. Aaron Martens — I think there are a few spawners left, and Aaron is someone who might be able to take advantage of that.
2. Fred Roumbanis — because he'll be throwing a topwater bait, and at some point, they're going to bite it.
3. Chris Lane — he's got the local knowledge to do well here.

Jeff Kriet
1. Terry Scroggins — he always does well here. I don't think he's ever missed the top-12 cut here.
2. Bobby Lane — he's been on a roll. He was fifth at the (Bassmaster) Classic and third at the Harris Chain. He can catch them here.
3. Dean Rojas — they've got to bite a frog somewhere here this week, and five frog bites ought to be a pretty good sack.

Tommy Biffle
1. Bobby Lane — he lives here.
2. Terry Scroggins — he always does well here.
3. Kevin VanDam — he always catches fish.

Kevin Short
1. Peter Thliveros — because he's embarrassed that he didn't catch them last week.
2. Chris Lane — he's tired of hearing about his brother, Bobby. He's sick of hearing about his brother, Bobby.
3. Jeff Kriet — he's still kicking himself because Mike McClelland won last week and they were fishing the same lily pads.

Ken Cook
1. Bobby Lane — because he lives here and fishes here all the time.
2. Davy Hite — he knows some places where they were ganged up last fall.
3. Kevin VanDam — I think the fish are scattered and covering a lot of water may be a way to do well here. Plus, he always figures out a way to get them to hit a reaction bait.

Rick Morris
1. Bobby Lane — he's been Mr. Consistency, plus he knows how to fish Florida, and he did well last week.
2. Terry Scroggins — he knows how to move around this place better than anyone.
3. Chris Lane — he's got local knowledge, and he knows how to adapt.

Bobby Lane
1. Preston Clark — if there are any fish left on the beds, he'll catch them.
2. Terry Scroggins — he knows this place real well.
3. Chris Lane — he can catch a big bag here any day of the week.

Cliff Pace
1. Terry Scroggins — just because he knows Florida.
2. Bobby Lane — because he's from here.
3. Greg Hackney — because I know he's as pissed off as I am about last week.

Skeet Reese
1. John Murray — because he hasn't caught them yet (this year) and I know he's going to.
2. Bobby Lane — he knows where they live here.
3. Shaw Grigsby — because there are some bed fish, and he can catch them and spank everybody.

Ish Monroe
1. Dean Rojas — it's his lake.
2. Skeet Reese — because he's the man.
3. John Murray — because he's the man behind the man.

Jeremy Starks
1. Terry Scroggins — because he lives 45 minutes away from here, and he's won two Opens here.
2. Aaron Martens — because there are some bed fish, and I believe he'll catch them.
3. Greg Hackney — he's still pissed off about finishing dead last a week ago.

Rick Ash
1. Chris Lane — because he knows more about this lake than anybody.
2. Bobby Lane — because he knows more about this lake than anybody but Chris Lane.
3. Kevin VanDam — he wants a little rebound from last week.

Pat Golden
1. Dave Wolak — it's going to take a lot of mixing it up, and he's good at that.
2. Skeet Reese — he's super consistent.
3. Bobby Lane — local knowledge.

Jon Bondy
1. Steve Kennedy — because I talked to him today.
2. Chris Lane — he has lots of spots.
3. Bobby Lane — Florida fishermen are on a roll.

Jeff Conella
1. Terry Scroggins — he has a good history on this lake.
2. Gary Klein — it's a tough event, and he can excel here.
3. Rick Ash — he made the top 12 at Harris, made the cut here last year and had a top five at Okeechobee.

Visit Bassmaster.com for full coverage of the Elite Series Citrus Slam on the Kissimmee Chain of Lake from Lake Wales, Fla., March 13-16, 2008. Daily weigh-ins with live streaming video and real-time leaderboards start at 4 p.m. ET. "Hooked Up" will air Sunday at 10 a.m., noon and 3:30 p.m. ET.

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