Michigan's Kevin VanDam Wins Bassmaster Elite Series Event at Oklahoma's Grand Lake
Editor's Note: Bassmaster Elite Series fans have the opportunity to visit www.ESPNOutdoors.com/hottestrig and vote for their favorite Elite angler's boat designs in the Hottest Rig Running contest. Fans can vote each week until the winner is announced July 29 at the Bassmaster Memorial presented by Evan Williams Bourbon in Syracuse, N.Y. The winner of the contest will receive $10,000
Final Results: Pros | Co-Anglers
James Overstreet
With the victory, VanDam's 12th, he adds $100,000 to his career earnings of nearly $2.5 million, which makes him BASS' all-time money leader. The victory also propelled VanDam to the top of the standings for Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year, one of the most prestigious awards in the sport.
Fishing fans can view all of the on-the-water action on The Bassmasters on ESPN2 at 9 a.m. ET Saturday, June 30.
VanDam joins 2006 Sooner Run champion Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark., the only other two-time Elite Series winner. Coincidentally, VanDam, whose other Elite win this season came on Alabama's Lake Guntersville, predominantly used the same lure, a Strike King crankbait, in both Elite wins.
"I have had a couple of mediocre tournaments this year and that really motivates me to do well," the 39-year-old said. "Fishing against this level of competition really fuels my competitive nature. Once you get the taste of victory, you want nothing else."
Concentrating on main lake and secondary points with the crankbait, VanDam did well early, boating two keeper bass in the morning. As is his customary style, the two-time Bassmaster Classic champion moved frenetically around the lake.
He concentrated on depths of 4 feet to as deep as 15 feet. The key, he said, was to locate points that were unique and to thoroughly work his spots with a number of casts.
"Persistence was the key," VanDam said. "I had confidence in my spots, and although I moved around a lot I was thorough in my approach."
After a tremendous Saturday, in which Kriet weighed the biggest limit of the tournament, the Oklahoman slipped to second with a sub-par final day of 14 pounds, 8 ounces. He failed to notch his first Elite victory and second BASS victory, but did move up from sixth to fourth in the Angler of the Year standings.
Primarily working Carolina-rigs and swimbaits on picturesque Grand, Kriet failed Sunday to entice the big bites he enjoyed Saturday.
"I don't feel like I did anything wrong execution-wise," the 38-year-old said. "It was a great week. My day is going to come soon. I am going to win one of these events soon. Mark my words."
Fellow Oklahoman Edwin Evers, of Talala, finished third, just ounces behind Kriet with 73 pounds, 7 ounces. In fourth was Kevin Short of Mayflower, Ark., with 72 pounds, 7 ounces. Tied for fifth with 70 pounds, 11 ounces were Davy Hite of Prosperity, S.C., and Kelly Jordon of Mineola, Texas.
Marty Robinson, who entered the day in third, slipped to seventh with 69 pounds, 0 ounces. McClelland, the 2006 Sooner Run champion, finished 11th with 66 pounds, 14 ounces.
The next Bassmaster Elite Series tournament is July 12-15 on Lake Champlain out of Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Fishing fans can watch live, streaming video of all Elite Series weigh-ins at www.ESPNOutdoors.com. On Sunday, fans can also monitor www.ESPNOutdoors.com throughout the day for live updates and Hooked Up with Tommy Sanders and ESPN Outdoors personality Mark Zona.
Day 4 Purolator Big Bass
Pro: Edwin Evers; Talala, Okla.; 5-13
Location and Field
Sooner Run presented by Longhorn — Bassmaster Elite Series
Grand Lake
Grove, Okla.
June 21-24
Field
108 pros, 108 co-anglers
Cut to top 50 after Day 2
Cut to top 12 pro anglers after Day 3
Launch
North Beach Development
61201 East 270 Rd.
Grove, OK
Weigh-in
North Beach Development
61201 East 270 Rd.
Grove, OK
Local sponsors: Local sponsors include Grand Lake Association.
Bassmaster Elite Series sponsors: Sponsors of the Bassmaster Elite Series include Toyota Tundra, Purolator, Triton Boats, Mercury Marine, Berkley, Advance Auto Parts, Lowrance Electronics, MotorGuide, Evan Williams Bourbon and Costa Del Mar.
For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit www.bassmaster.com. Visit www.espnmediazone.com for ESPN's latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video and audio clips and more.
BASS is the worldwide authority on bass fishing, sanctioning more than 20,000 events through the BASS Federation Nation annually. Guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans, BASS sets the standard for credibility, professionalism, sportsmanship and conservation, as it has for nearly 40 years.
BASS stages bass fishing tournaments for every skill level and culminates with the Bassmaster Classic. Through its clubs, youth programs, aquatic resource advocacy, magazine publishing and multimedia platforms, BASS offers the industry's widest array of services and support to its nearly 530,000 members. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.
2007 The Sooner Run 6/21-6/24 Grand Lake, Grove OK. (PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 20 78-02 315 $101,000.00 Day 1: 5 21-11 Day 2: 5 21-08 Day 3: 5 16-03 Day 4: 5 18-12 2. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 20 74-05 300 $39,000.00 Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 16-02 Day 3: 5 24-11 Day 4: 5 14-08 3. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 20 73-07 290 $27,000.00 Day 1: 5 18-04 Day 2: 5 19-09 Day 3: 5 13-10 Day 4: 5 22-00 4. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 20 72-07 285 $19,000.00 Day 1: 5 17-10 Day 2: 5 16-12 Day 3: 5 21-08 Day 4: 5 16-09 5. Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 20 70-11 278 $17,250.00 Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 22-05 Day 3: 5 16-01 Day 4: 5 20-10 5. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 20 70-11 278 $17,250.00 Day 1: 5 17-07 Day 2: 5 19-01 Day 3: 5 16-11 Day 4: 5 17-08 7. Marty Robinson Landrum, SC 19 69-00 272 $15,000.00 Day 1: 5 20-00 Day 2: 5 20-05 Day 3: 5 17-12 Day 4: 4 10-15 8. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 20 67-14 268 $14,500.00 Day 1: 5 17-07 Day 2: 5 19-06 Day 3: 5 15-07 Day 4: 5 15-10 9. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 20 67-06 264 $14,000.00 Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 5 16-07 Day 3: 5 18-02 Day 4: 5 14-07 10. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 20 66-15 260 $13,500.00 Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 19-12 Day 3: 5 15-08 Day 4: 5 16-03 11. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 20 66-14 257 $12,500.00 Day 1: 5 17-15 Day 2: 5 18-11 Day 3: 5 13-05 Day 4: 5 16-15 12. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 20 65-15 254 $12,300.00 Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 14-13 Day 3: 5 16-01 Day 4: 5 16-08 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
PUROLATOR BIG BASS Day 1 Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 05-14 $1,000.00 2 Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 06-04 $1,000.00 3 Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 06-02 $1,000.00 4 Edwin Evers Talala, OK 05-13 $1,000.00
PUROLATOR BIG BASS OF TOURN Jerry Mcvey Stewartsville, MO 06-11 $1,000.00
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT Day 1 Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 21-11 $1,000.00 2 Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 22-05 $1,000.00 3 Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 24-11 $1,000.00 4 Edwin Evers Talala, OK 22-00 $1,000.00
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT OF TOURN Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 24-11 $8,000.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 102 528 1480-02 2 97 520 1449-13 3 46 244 693-03 4 11 59 200-09 ---------------------------------- 256 1351 3823-11
TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS
------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Kevin VanDam Mich. 1775 2 Skeet Reese Calif. 1713 3 Jared Lintner Calif. 1670 4 Jeff Kriet Okla. 1638 5 Terry Scroggins Fla. 1581 5 Ishama Monroe Calif. 1581 7 Derek Remitz Texas 1527 8 Aaron Martens Ala. 1513 9 Kelly Jordon Texas 1504 10 Casey Ashley S.C. 1447 11 Fred Roumbanis Calif. 1446 12 Chris Lane Fla. 1445 13 Steve Kennedy Ala. 1442 14 Scott Rook Ark. 1430 15 Stephen Browning Ark. 1425 15 Timmy Horton Ala. 1425 17 John Crews Va. 1420 18 Mike McClelland Ark. 1417 19 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 1396 20 Edwin Evers Okla. 1394 21 Peter Thliveros Fla. 1393 22 Mark Tyler Okla. 1382 23 Todd Faircloth Texas 1379 24 John Murray Ariz. 1374 25 Tommy Biffle Okla. 1370 26 Boyd Duckett Ala. 1352 27 Kevin Short Ark. 1351 28 Alton Jones Texas 1345 29 Gary Klein Texas 1340 30 Dean Rojas Texas 1339 31 Morizo Shimizu Calif. 1338 32 Gerald Swindle Ala. 1336 33 Jeff Reynolds Okla. 1335 34 Greg Hackney La. 1325 35 Kevin Wirth Ky. 1319 36 Davy Hite S.C. 1316 37 Mark Menendez Ky. 1309 38 Brent Chapman Kan. 1301 39 Jason Quinn S.C. 1285 39 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 1285 41 Takahiro Omori Texas 1282 42 Randy Howell Ala. 1246 43 Denny Brauer Mo. 1243 44 Pete Ponds Miss. 1242 45 Cliff Pace Miss. 1239 46 Brian Snowden Mo. 1237 47 Mark Tucker Mo. 1229 48 Scott Campbell Mo. 1213 49 Jason Williamson S.C. 1210 50 Russ Lane Ala. 1206 51 Dave Wolak N.C. 1204 52 Shaw Grigsby, Jr Fla. 1203 53 Paul Elias Miss. 1193 54 Matt Reed Texas 1184 55 Ray Sedgwick S.C. 1179 56 Ben Matsubu Texas 1174 57 Marty Robinson S.C. 1173 58 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 1172 59 James Niggemeyer Texas 1171 60 Mike Wurm Ark. 1149 61 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 1144 62 Ken Brodeur Conn. 1142 63 Bill Lowen Ohio 1139 64 Lee Bailey Ala. 1134 65 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 1119 66 Britt Myers S.C. 1117 67 Kenyon Hill Okla. 1105 68 Bernie Schultz Fla. 1097 69 Jimmy Mize Ark. 1088 70 Rick Morris Va. 1077 71 Jeremy Starks W.Va. 1069 72 Ken Cook Okla. 1060 73 Greg Gutierrez Calif. 1052 74 Zell Rowland Texas 1046 75 Jim Murray Ga. 1045 76 Marty Stone N.C. 1038 77 Rick Clunn Mo. 1034 78 James Charlesworth Fla. 1027 79 Kurt Dove Va. 1022 80 James Kennedy La. 1017 81 Grant Goldbeck Md. 1011 82 Kevin Langill N.C. 1010 83 Bradley Hallman Okla. 992 84 Bill Smith Ky. 966 85 Jeff Connella La. 965 86 Jami Fralick S.D. 955 87 Glenn Delong Ohio 954 88 Guy Eaker N.C. 944 89 Preston Clark Fla. 919 90 Charlie Hartley Ohio 904 90 Mark Rogers Fla. 904 92 Paul Hirosky Pa. 902 93 Matt Amedeo Ohio 876 94 Jimmy Mason Ala. 874 95 Darrin Schwenkbeck N.Y. 873 96 Bradley Stringer Texas 871 97 Dave Smith Okla. 845 98 Eric Nethery Ga. 836 99 Doc Merkin Ill. 824 100 Terry Butcher Okla. 817 101 Steve Daniel Fla. 813 102 Keith Phillips Ala. 807 103 Byron Velvick Texas 787 104 Jon Bondy Canada 779 105 Rick Ash Pa. 744 106 Charlie Youngers Fla. 741 107 Frank Scalish Ohio 739 108 Elton Luce Jr Texas 525
TOYOTA ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS ------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Derek Remitz Texas 1527 2 Casey Ashley S.C. 1447 3 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 1285 4 Scott Campbell Mo. 1213 5 Jason Williamson S.C. 1210 6 Marty Robinson S.C. 1173 7 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 1172 8 James Niggemeyer Texas 1171 9 James Charlesworth Fla. 1027 10 James Kennedy La. 1017 11 Glenn Delong Ohio 954 12 Matt Amedeo Ohio 876
TOYOTA MOVING FORWARD AWARD --------------------------------------------------------- Place Name 2006 Finish 2007 Standings --------------------------------------------------------- 1 Fred Roumbanis 69 11 2 Chris Lane 61 12 3 Mark Tyler 64 22 4 Kevin Short 67 27 5 Pete Ponds 83 44 6 Ken Brodeur 98 62 7 Scott Rook 47 14 8 Ishama Monroe 37 5 9 Mark Menendez 68 37 10 Stephen Browning 45 15 11 Jeff Kriet 33 4 12 Terry Scroggins 31 5 13 Morizo Shimizu 48 31 14 Timmy Horton 30 15 14 Jared Lintner 18 3 16 Rick Morris 81 70 17 Britt Myers 76 66 18 Mark Rogers 99 90 19 Brian Snowden 54 46 20 Grant Goldbeck 88 81 20 Gary Klein 36 29 22 Skeet Reese 7 2 23 Davy Hite 40 36 23 Mike McClelland 22 18 25 Kurt Dove 82 79 25 John Crews 20 17 25 Brent Chapman 41 38 28 Kevin VanDam 3 1 29 Ray Sedgwick 56 55 29 Kelly Jordon 10 9 29 Ken D Cook 73 72
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT REPORT
Place Name Lbs-Ozs ----------------------------------------------------------- 1 Kevin VanDam 268-14 2 Derek Remitz 249-04 3 Jared Lintner 247-04 4 Skeet Reese 241-06 5 Aaron Martens 239-06 6 Terry Scroggins 239-00 7 Ishama Monroe 236-08 8 Jeff Kriet 234-14 9 Fred Roumbanis 231-13 10 Mark Tyler 228-07
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