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Prestigious Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Race to be Determined at Elite Series Season Finale

By BASS Communications
(Archive)

Updated: September 6, 2007, 4:17 PM ET

After 10 stops that included California, Texas and New York, the Bassmaster Elite Series, the most visible and prestigious tournament trail in fishing, will wind down its season with a finale Sept. 13-16 on Florida's Lake Tohopekaliga.

While fishing fans await the culmination of three points races, many anglers will look to secure qualifying spots at bass fishing's most major event, the 2008 Bassmaster Classic, set for Feb. 22-24 in Greenville, S.C.

The points races, the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year, the Toyota Rookie of the Year and the Toyota Moving Forward award boast some exciting action heading into the final event.

"It all comes down to this," said Skeet Reese, who leads the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings by more than 100 points. "I consider the Angler of the Year the crown jewel of bass fishing and a lot of hard work went into this season. I'm happy that I put myself in position to win, but I still have a job to do."

The Angler of the Year rewards Elite anglers based on consistent finishes. Points are allocated at each Elite event according to finish and are compiled throughout the season. The winner of the award will receive $125,000, and more than $600,000 will be distributed to the top 50.

For Reese, of Auburn, Calif., to secure his first AOY title, he must hold off three-time Angler of the Year winner Kevin VanDam. Reese has scored nine top-10 finishes this season and in August posted a victory at an Elite event on the Potomac River.

VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., has kept pace but trails by a significant margin heading into the final event. If VanDam is to claim his fourth title, he will need to finish in the top echelon of anglers and will need Reese to struggle at the final Elite event. VanDam would become just the second angler in BASS history to attain more than three AOY titles.

The rookie points standings, which are derived from the Angler of the Year standings, have been dominated by two anglers: Derek Remitz of Madison, Ala., and Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C. Both have posted victories in the Elite Series in 2007, with Remitz striking first at the season-opening event on Texas' Lake Amistad.

Remitz, a 25-year-old who qualified for the Elite Series via his top performance on the Bassmaster Open circuit in 2006, is in control, leading Ashley by more than 60 points. The winner of the award will receive a $25,000 top prize.

Past winners have included Elite champions Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., and Dave Wolak of Wake Forrest, N.C.

"Winning this award, with this competition, would validate my strengths as an angler," said Remitz, who recently relocated to Alabama. "Both Casey and I have set a tremendous pace and it should be a fantastic final event."

Also having a solid Elite season is Fred Roumbanis, who moved midseason to Broken Arrow, Okla., and is on top of the Toyota Moving Forward standings.

Roumbanis has dominated the standings thus far, based on improvement in the Angler of the Year standings from season to season. He has improved by more than 50 places in the 2007 AOY standings.

"It's been a fantastic season," said Roumbanis, who won the Bassmaster American, a Bassmaster Major in Greensboro, N.C. "The hard work I put in during the offseason has paid off and I feel like I'm in the zone at every tournament."

Roumbanis would have to stumble significantly, while second-place competitor Chris Lane of Winter Haven, Fla., would need to finish in the top 10 at the Toho Elite event to have a shot at the award.

While the points races are sure to feature exciting finishes, the majority of the 108-angler Elite field will be focused on securing spots in either the 2008 Bassmaster Elite Series or the Bassmaster Classic. The top 84 finishers in the Angler of the Year standings will qualify for the following Elite season, while the top 36 in the AOY standings will qualify for the Classic.

The 2007 Elite Series, which kicked off at the season-opening event on Texas' Lake Amistad in March, has awarded more than $11 million in prize money.

Five anglers crossed the $1 million mark in career BASS earnings during the 2007 season: Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., Alton Jones of Waco, Texas, Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., and Kelly Jordon of Mineola, Texas.

For comprehensive content on all of the points race, visit www.ESPNOutdoors.com. The Web site will have daily audio blogs from AOY contenders Reese and VanDam in addition to daily stories and photo galleries highlighting the dual.
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.

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BASS is the worldwide authority on bass fishing, staging 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 and sanctions bass fishing tournaments for every skill level culminating 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 TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Skeet Reese Calif. 2579 2 Kevin VanDam Mich. 2472 3 Jared Lintner Calif. 2276 4 Steve Kennedy Ala. 2178 5 Terry Scroggins Fla. 2166 6 Aaron Martens Ala. 2165 7 Fred Roumbanis Calif. 2136 8 Kelly Jordon Texas 2133 9 Todd Faircloth Texas 2109 10 Boyd Duckett Ala. 2063 11 Scott Rook Ark. 2054 12 Edwin Evers Okla. 2053 13 Tommy Biffle Okla. 2038 14 Greg Hackney La. 2037 15 Chris Lane Fla. 2030 16 Jeff Kriet Okla. 2027 16 Kevin Wirth Ky. 2027 18 Ishama Monroe Calif. 2024 19 Stephen Browning Ark. 2023 20 Gary Klein Texas 1999 21 Brent Chapman Kan. 1979 22 Derek Remitz Texas 1978 23 John Murray Ariz. 1976 24 Peter Thliveros Fla. 1972 25 Cliff Pace Miss. 1964 26 Timmy Horton Ala. 1954 27 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 1929 28 Takahiro Omori Texas 1922 29 Casey Ashley S.C. 1917 30 Mark Tyler Okla. 1878 31 Mike McClelland Ark. 1852 32 Randy Howell Ala. 1834 33 Alton Jones Texas 1830 33 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 1830 35 Jason Quinn S.C. 1805 36 John Crews Va. 1803 37 Dave Wolak N.C. 1799 38 Davy Hite S.C. 1794 38 Matt Reed Texas 1794 40 Jason Williamson S.C. 1784 41 Dean Rojas Texas 1783 42 Kevin Short Ark. 1782 43 Mark Menendez Ky. 1781 44 Jeff Reynolds Okla. 1779 45 Shaw Grigsby, Jr Fla. 1772 46 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 1770 47 Scott Campbell Mo. 1756 48 Mike Wurm Ark. 1755 49 Gerald Swindle Ala. 1751 50 Brian Snowden Mo. 1741 51 Rick Morris Va. 1735 51 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 1735 53 Britt Myers S.C. 1720 54 Morizo Shimizu Calif. 1719 55 Bill Lowen Ohio 1715 56 Marty Robinson S.C. 1712 57 Denny Brauer Mo. 1700 58 James Niggemeyer Texas 1673 59 Ray Sedgwick S.C. 1668 60 Kenyon Hill Okla. 1657 61 Mark Tucker Mo. 1653 62 Kurt Dove Va. 1638 63 Jami Fralick S.D. 1636 64 Rick Clunn Mo. 1632 65 Bernie Schultz Fla. 1621 66 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 1618 67 Paul Elias Miss. 1612 68 Ken Cook Okla. 1609 69 Bradley Hallman Okla. 1585 70 Russ Lane Ala. 1566 71 Pete Ponds Miss. 1558 72 Grant Goldbeck Md. 1553 73 Jeremy Starks W.Va. 1552 74 Ben Matsubu Texas 1549 75 James Kennedy La. 1521 76 Lee Bailey Ala. 1509 77 Jim Murray Ga. 1502 78 Jimmy Mize Ark. 1498 79 Jeff Connella La. 1497 80 Charlie Hartley Ohio 1466 81 Preston Clark Fla. 1461 82 Ken Brodeur Conn. 1438 83 Paul Hirosky Pa. 1432 84 Greg Gutierrez Calif. 1407 85 Mark Rogers Fla. 1393 86 Kevin Langill N.C. 1391 87 Marty Stone N.C. 1390 88 Matt Amedeo Ohio 1388 89 James Charlesworth Fla. 1372 90 Terry Butcher Okla. 1349 91 Guy Eaker N.C. 1329 92 Glenn Delong Ohio 1298 93 Zell Rowland Texas 1295 94 Dave Smith Okla. 1259 95 Bill Smith Ky. 1253 95 Keith Phillips Ala. 1253 97 Steve Daniel Fla. 1240 98 Darrin Schwenkbeck N.Y. 1232 99 Doc Merkin Ill. 1181 100 Bradley Stringer Texas 1173 101 Frank Scalish Ohio 1172 102 Jon Bondy Canada 1152 103 Eric Nethery Ga. 1142 104 Jimmy Mason Ala. 1099 105 Byron Velvick Texas 1065 106 Rick Ash Pa. 985 107 Charlie Youngers Fla. 980 108 Elton Luce Jr Texas 855

2007 TOYOTA ROOKIE OF THE YEAR RACE

2007 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR After Potomac River, Charles County, MD ending 08-12-2007, Day 4 ------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Derek Remitz Texas 1978 2 Casey Ashley S.C. 1917 3 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 1830 4 Jason Williamson S.C. 1784 5 Scott Campbell Mo. 1756 6 Marty Robinson S.C. 1712 7 James Niggemeyer Texas 1673 8 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 1618 9 James Kennedy La. 1521 10 Matt Amedeo Ohio 1388 11 James Charlesworth Fla. 1372 12 Glenn Delong Ohio 1298

2007 TOYOTA MOVING FORWARD AWARD --------------------------------------------------------- Place Name 2006 Finish 2007 Standings --------------------------------------------------------- 1 Fred Roumbanis 69 7 2 Chris Lane 61 15 3 Scott Rook 47 11 4 Mark Tyler 64 30 5 Rick Morris 81 51 6 Stephen Browning 45 19 6 Terry Scroggins 31 5 8 Mark Menendez 68 43 8 Kevin Short 67 42 10 Britt Myers 76 53 11 Kurt Dove 82 62 11 Brent Chapman 41 21 13 Ishama Monroe 37 18 14 Jeff Kriet 33 16 15 Grant Goldbeck 88 72 15 Ken Brodeur 98 82 15 Gary Klein 36 20 18 Jared Lintner 18 3 19 Todd Faircloth 23 9 19 Mark Rogers 99 85 21 Pete Ponds 83 71 22 Takahiro Omori 35 28 23 David Wolak 43 37 23 Skeet Reese 7 1 25 Ken D Cook 73 68 26 Timmy Horton 30 26 26 Yusuke Miyazaki 55 51 26 Brian Snowden 54 50 29 Charlie Hartley 83 80 29 Jami Fralick 66 63 31 Davy Hite 40 38 31 Kelly Jordon 10 8 33 Kevin VanDam 3 2