ESPN

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Seigo SaitoKevin VanDam

Toyota 12 rank: 1st

Age (DOB): 41 (October 14, 1967)

Hometown: Kalamazoo, Mich.

First BASS event: 1987 New York Invitational (finished 110th)

Total BASS events: 219

BASS wins: 15

Top 10 finishes: 82 (37.4%)

Best AOY finish: 1st (1992, 1996, 1999, 2008)

Career earnings: $3,463,476.33 (1st)

Track record: VanDam has fished two BASS events on the Alabama River (BASS has never held a professional tournament on Lake Jordan). At the 2003 Alabama Showdown, he finished 18th, and at the 2004 Elite 50 event he was 12th.

Notes: After leading the AOY race for most of the season, VanDam was caught by Skeet Reese at the regular season finale on Oneida Lake. Only the adjusted scoring for the postseason (including bonus points for having won the event at Smith Mountain Lake) put him back on top going into Toyota Trucks Championship Week. VanDam already owns a large chunk of the BASS record books. He is second behind Roland Martin for the most AOY crowns with four, has won two Bassmaster Classics (2001 and 2005), is the all-time top money winner in BASS history and has even won an ESPY. At this point in his career, KVD is adding to his résumé only to ensure that there's no real debate when someone asks who is the greatest of all time.

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