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Reese, VanDam Vie for Coveted Bassmaster Angler of the Year Title, Top Position in Bassmaster Elite Series Power Index

Toyota Rookie of the Year, Moving Forward Races Heat Up

By BASS Communications
May 11, 2007
(Archive)

Updated: May 11, 2007, 1:32 AM ET

CELEBRATION, Fla. — Skeet Reese has recorded a steady and consistent career worthy of envy at BASS. But the Auburn, Calif., Bassmaster Elite Series pro has yet to secure the award he covets most: the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year.

After five Bassmaster Elite Series events in 2007, Reese leads the standings with 1,288 points, and the importance of leading the race near the midway point of the season is not lost on the veteran angler. "Every event that I can finish in the top 10 is a plus for me," said Reese, a one-time BASS winner. "I have had a lot of close calls of late where I didn't seal the deal, and as disappointing as that is, winning the Angler of the Year title would make all that disappointment go away. I have always said it is the ultimate dream for any professional angler to win this title."

Following up the season-opening Bassmaster Classic, in which Reese finished second by a mere six ounces, he scored four consecutive top-10 finishes in Elite events. Included in that run was another second-place finish at California's Clear Lake.

With his strong start, Reese opened up a commanding lead, but he relinquished much of it to 11-time BASS winner Kevin VanDam at the fifth Elite event of the season two weeks ago at Alabama's Lake Guntersville. VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., was the winner of that event, while Reese finished in a tie for 53rd, missing his first cut in an Elite event this season. Reese now leads VanDam by just 25 points.

Unlike Reese, VanDam already has won three Angler of the Year titles and is the BASS all-time money leader, but despite his bevy of accomplishments, his desire for yet another Angler of the Year title is strong.

"I think the rest of the season sets up well for me, but you have to perform to win at this level," said VanDam, who has 1,263 points. "To win Angler of the Year against this level of competition truly validates a career."

The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year program, which along with the Bassmaster Classic becomes one of the most prestigious titles in the sport, is a lucrative, season-long points race that rewards the most consistent angler with $125,000.

Rounding out the top five are California's Jared Lintner with 1,234 points, California's Ish Monroe with 1,169 points; and red-hot rookie Derek Remitz of Alabama, with 1,129 points.

Mike Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J., seized his first Angler of the Year title in 2006. He is tied for 39th in the 2007 standings.

Toyota Rookie of the Year

Entrenched in the top five in the Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, Derek Remitz of Madison, Ala., has opened up a wide margin in the Toyota Rookie of the Year race. The consistent rookie has put himself in prime position to take home the award that provides the top-performing rookie with a $25,000 top prize and is based on the Angler of the Year standings.

"This season has been a dream come true thus far," said the 24-year-old, who leads the race with 1,129 points. "If you told me at the start of the season that I would have already won my first Elite event and been in the top position in the Rookie of the Year standings, I would have thought you were crazy."

Trailing Remitz by more than 100 points in the standings is Bryan Hudgins of Orange Park, Fla., with 989 points. Following Hudgins are Casey Ashley, the youngest competitor in the Elite Series at 23, of Donalds, S.C., with 982 points; Scott Campbell of Springfield, Mo., with 917 points; and Jason Williamson of Aiken, S.C., with 832 points.

Steve Kennedy won the Rookie of the Year award in 2006 and narrowly missed his chance for an Angler of the Year bid, ultimately finishing second to Iaconelli.

Toyota Moving Forward Award

By improving 62 positions in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings from his ranking last year, California's Fred Roumbanis is the leader in the 2007 Toyota Moving Forward award standings.

The award honors the Bassmaster Elite Series angler who posts the greatest improvement from season to season based on the AOY points standings. The winning angler receives $10,000.

Roumbanis, of Auburn, Calif., is seventh in the 2007 AOY standings after a strong run of opening tournaments.

"It's nice to show improvement from year to year," said the 28-year-old, who finished 69th in the 2006 Angler of the Year standings. "The schedule this year is fantastic and I feel like I have been capitalizing on some opportunities to catch some big fish."

Denny Brauer secured the title in 2006, improving 99 positions from his 2005 performance. Roumbanis leads Mississippi's Pete Ponds, who has improved 60 places in the Angler of the Year standings. Rounding out the top five are Connecticut's Ken Brodeur, with an improvement of 57 places; Florida's Chris Lane, with an improvement of 46 places; and Kentucky's Mark Menendez, with an improvement of 44 spots.

Bassmaster Elite Series Power Index

With strong, consistent performances in the first half of the Elite Series season, Kevin VanDam and Skeet Reese have made significant strides in the Power Index, a system that ranks an angler by his average weight caught during his last 12 qualifying tournaments in the last two years. The two anglers hold the top positions in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, but VanDam leads Reese in the Bassmaster Elite Series Power Index standings.

VanDam is averaging 51 pounds, 10 ounces of weight per tournament while Reese is averaging 50 pounds, 7 ounces. Reese and VanDam are the only two anglers averaging more than 50 pounds per tournament.

The Power Index closely mirrors the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings for the top 3 positions as Jared Lintner, third in the AOY standings, holds down that position in the Power Index as well with 44-15 per tournament. In fourth is Alabama's Steve Kennedy, averaging 43-10 per tournament. Kennedy likely was aided by his four-day catch on California's Clear Lake of 122 pounds, 14 ounces, which edged Reese by more than five pounds and established a BASS record for heaviest tournament weight.

Oklahoma's Tommy Biffle is fifth, averaging 41-13.

"This is another gauge of how successful an angler you are," said VanDam. "It feels great to be at the top and I can only hope I stay there."

Full standings for all four Elite Series programs are below.

2007 TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Skeet Reese Calif. 1288 2 Kevin VanDam Mich. 1263 3 Jared Lintner Calif. 1234 4 Ishama Monroe Calif. 1169 5 Derek Remitz Texas 1129 6 Jeff Kriet Okla. 1128 7 Fred Roumbanis Calif. 1119 8 Aaron Martens Ala. 1115 9 Steve Kennedy Ala. 1102 10 Scott Rook Ark. 1067 11 Mike McClelland Ark. 1059 12 Gerald Swindle Ala. 1033 13 Terry Scroggins Fla. 1032 14 Kelly Jordon Texas 1027 15 Chris Lane Fla. 1025 16 Tommy Biffle Okla. 1024 17 Alton Jones Texas 1021 18 Brent Chapman Kan. 998 19 Todd Faircloth Texas 997 20 Stephen Browning Ark. 994 21 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 989 22 Casey Ashley S.C. 982 23 Pete Ponds Miss. 981 24 Mark Menendez Ky. 977 25 Timmy Horton Ala. 974 26 Cliff Pace Miss. 973 27 Paul Elias Miss. 972 27 Dean Rojas Texas 972 29 Gary Klein Texas 970 30 John Crews Va. 969 31 John Murray Ariz. 958 32 Kevin Wirth Ky. 956 33 Jeff Reynolds Okla. 949 34 Greg Gutierrez Calif. 942 35 Jason Quinn S.C. 940 36 Mark Tyler Okla. 932 36 Brian Snowden Mo. 932 38 Peter Thliveros Fla. 921 39 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 918 39 Ray Sedgwick S.C. 918 41 Ken Brodeur Conn. 917 41 Scott Campbell Mo. 917 43 Kevin Short Ark. 907 44 Rick Morris Va. 905 45 Edwin Evers Okla. 873 46 Randy Howell Ala. 872 47 Greg Hackney La. 866 48 Jimmy Mize Ark. 865 49 Takahiro Omori Texas 859 50 Mark Tucker Mo. 847 51 Russ Lane Ala. 846 52 Shaw Grigsby, Jr Fla. 843 53 Morizo Shimizu Calif. 841 54 Ben Matsubu Texas 840 55 Davy Hite S.C. 833 56 Jason Williamson S.C. 832 57 Dave Wolak N.C. 829 58 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 822 59 Boyd Duckett Ala. 798 59 Ken Cook Okla. 798 61 Denny Brauer Mo. 797 62 Bernie Schultz Fla. 791 63 Britt Myers S.C. 786 64 Matt Reed Texas 779 65 Zell Rowland Texas 778 66 Bill Lowen Ohio 777 66 Lee Bailey Ala. 777 68 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 776 68 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 776 70 Bradley Hallman Okla. 771 71 James Charlesworth Fla. 764 72 Jim Murray Ga. 762 73 Mike Wurm Ark. 761 74 Charlie Hartley Ohio 757 75 Jami Fralick S.D. 754 76 Marty Robinson S.C. 753 77 Jeff Connella La. 752 77 Paul Hirosky Pa. 752 79 Mark Rogers Fla. 751 80 Rick Clunn Mo. 736 81 James Niggemeyer Texas 724 81 Bill Smith Ky. 724 83 Kevin Langill N.C. 723 84 Matt Amedeo Ohio 722 85 Guy Eaker N.C. 712 86 Kenyon Hill Okla. 711 87 Grant Goldbeck Md. 710 88 Kurt Dove Va. 702 89 Glenn Delong Ohio 684 90 James Kennedy La. 677 91 Marty Stone N.C. 675 92 Preston Clark Fla. 660 93 Steve Daniel Fla. 651 94 Keith Phillips Ala. 639 95 Eric Nethery Ga. 620 96 Jeremy Starks W.Va. 614 97 Jon Bondy Canada 596 98 Terry Butcher Okla. 595 99 Darrin Schwenkbeck Md. 586 100 Rick Ash Pa. 570 101 Dave Smith Okla. 562 102 Jimmy Mason Ala. 558 103 Doc Merkin Ill. 527 104 Charlie Youngers Fla. 494 105 Byron Velvick Texas 491 106 Frank Scalish Ohio 483 107 Bradley Stringer Texas 447 108 Elton Luce Jr Texas 426

2007 TOYOTA ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Derek Remitz Texas 1129 2 Bryan Hudgins Fla. 989 3 Casey Ashley S.C. 982 4 Scott Campbell Mo. 917 5 Jason Williamson S.C. 832 6 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 776 7 James Charlesworth Fla. 764 8 Marty Robinson S.C. 753 9 James Niggemeyer Texas 724 10 Matt Amedeo Ohio 722 11 Glenn Delong Ohio 684 12 James Kennedy La. 677

2007 TOYOTA MOVING FORWARD AWARD STANDINGS

--------------------------------------------------------- Place Name 2006 Finish 2007 Standings --------------------------------------------------------- 1 Fred Roumbanis 69 7 2 Pete Ponds 83 23 3 Ken Brodeur 98 41 4 Chris Lane 61 15 5 Mark Menendez 68 24 6 Scott Rook 47 10 6 Rick Morris 81 44 8 Ishama Monroe 37 4 9 Mark Tyler 64 36 10 Jeff Kriet 33 6 11 Stephen Browning 45 20 12 Kevin Short 67 43 13 Brent Chapman 41 18 14 Paul Elias 49 27 15 Mark Rogers 99 79 16 Brian Snowden 54 36 16 Terry Scroggins 31 13 18 Ray Sedgwick 56 39 19 Jared Lintner 18 3 20 Ken D Cook 73 59 21 Britt Myers 76 63 22 Greg Gutierrez 46 34 23 Mike McClelland 22 11 23 Jimmy Mize 59 48 25 Charlie Hartley 83 74 26 Gary Klein 36 29 27 Skeet Reese 7 1 28 Timmy Horton 30 25 29 Todd Faircloth 23 19 30 Grant Goldbeck 88 87 30 Kevin VanDam 3 2 30 Gerald Swindle 13 12

TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

Rank Name 1 VanDam, Kevin 2 Reese, Skeet 3 Lintner, Jared 4 Kennedy, Stephen 5 Biffle, Tommy 6 Martens, Aaron 7 Faircloth, Todd 8 Swindle, Gerald 9 Chapman, Brent 10 Gutierrez, Greg 11 Monroe, Ishama 12 McClelland, Mike 13 Lane, Russell 14 Jordon, Kelly 15 Rook, Scott 16 Iaconelli, Michael 17 Roumbanis, Fred 18 Snowden, Brian 19 Kriet, Jeff 20 Murray, John 21 Lane, Chris 22 Jones, Alton 23 Klein, Gary 24 Short, Kevin 25 Browning, Stephen 26 Scroggins, Terry 27 Quinn, Jason 28 Hackney, Greg 29 Howell, Randy 30 Rojas, Dean 31 Wolak, David 32 Evers, Edwin 33 Elias, Paul 34 Connella, Jeff 35 Lowen, Bill 36 Horton, Timmy 37 Wirth, Kevin 38 Hite, Davy 39 Fralick, Jami 40 Ponds, Pete 41 Thliveros, Peter 42 Brauer, Denny 43 Sedgwick, Ray 44 Morris, Rick 45 Brodeur, Ken 46 Cook, Ken 47 Menendez, Mark 48 Grigsby, Jr, Shaw 49 Bailey, Lee 50 Reynolds, Jeff 51 Tyler, Mark 52 Shimizu, Morizo 53 Hallman, Bradley 54 Rowland, Zell 55 Crews, John 56 Smith, William 57 Langill, Kevin 58 Reed, Matt 59 Myers, Britt 60 Kiriyama, Kotaro 61 Omori, Takahiro 62 Schultz, Bernie 63 Bondy, Jon 64 Daniel, Stephen 65 Tucker, Mark 66 Miyazaki, Yusuke 67 Wurm, Mike 68 Mize, Jimmy 69 Phillips, Keith 70 Stone, Marty 71 Dove, Kurt 72 Butcher, Terry 73 Starks, Jeremy 74 Luce Jr, Elton 75 Hirosky, Paul 76 Pace, Cliff 77 Eaker, Guy 78 Clunn, Rick 79 Scalish, Frank 80 Goldbeck, Grant 81 Schwenkbeck, Darrin 82 Youngers, Charlie 83 Matsubu, Ben 84 Hartley, Charlie 85 Rogers, Mark 86 Hill, Kenyon 87 Velvick, Byron 88 Merkin, Doc 89 Smith, Dave 90 Ash, Rick 91 Clark, Preston 92 Stringer, Bradley 93 Nethery, Eric 94 Mason, Jimmy *** Remitz, Derek *** Ashley, Casey *** Duckett, Boyd *** Hudgins, Bryan *** Niggemeyer, James *** Charlesworth, James *** Campbell, Scott *** Williamson, Jason *** Kennedy, James *** Sphar, Matthew *** Delong, Glenn *** Robinson, Marty *** Amedeo, Matt *** Murray, Jim Total Weight Average Weight Power Index 619 lbs 8 ozs 51 lbs 10 ozs 100.00 % 604 lbs 15 ozs 50 lbs 7 ozs 97.70 % 539 lbs 1 ozs 44 lbs 15 ozs 87.05 % 523 lbs 5 ozs 43 lbs 10 ozs 84.50 % 501 lbs 14 ozs 41 lbs 13 ozs 80.99 % 481 lbs 12 ozs 40 lbs 2 ozs 77.72 % 475 lbs 7 ozs 39 lbs 10 ozs 76.76 % 470 lbs 3 ozs 39 lbs 3 ozs 75.91 % 451 lbs 13 ozs 37 lbs 10 ozs 72.88 % 449 lbs 1 ozs 37 lbs 7 ozs 72.52 % 440 lbs 11 ozs 36 lbs 12 ozs 71.19 % 438 lbs 2 ozs 36 lbs 8 ozs 70.70 % 436 lbs 7 ozs 36 lbs 6 ozs 70.46 % 436 lbs 4 ozs 36 lbs 6 ozs 70.46 % 430 lbs 5 ozs 35 lbs 14 ozs 69.49 % 430 lbs 1 ozs 35 lbs 13 ozs 69.37 % 424 lbs 13 ozs 35 lbs 6 ozs 68.52 % 420 lbs 5 ozs 35 lbs 0 ozs 67.80 % 419 lbs 1 ozs 34 lbs 15 ozs 67.68 % 418 lbs 12 ozs 34 lbs 14 ozs 67.55 % 415 lbs 5 ozs 34 lbs 10 ozs 67.07 % 414 lbs 6 ozs 34 lbs 9 ozs 66.95 % 410 lbs 11 ozs 34 lbs 4 ozs 66.34 % 409 lbs 13 ozs 34 lbs 2 ozs 66.10 % 408 lbs 8 ozs 34 lbs 1 ozs 65.98 % 406 lbs 6 ozs 33 lbs 14 ozs 65.62 % 402 lbs 8 ozs 33 lbs 9 ozs 65.01 % 398 lbs 9 ozs 33 lbs 3 ozs 64.29 % 390 lbs 10 ozs 32 lbs 9 ozs 63.08 % 390 lbs 9 ozs 32 lbs 9 ozs 63.08 % 389 lbs 0 ozs 32 lbs 7 ozs 62.83 % 387 lbs 7 ozs 32 lbs 5 ozs 62.59 % 384 lbs 15 ozs 32 lbs 1 ozs 62.11 % 384 lbs 5 ozs 32 lbs 0 ozs 61.99 % 383 lbs 4 ozs 31 lbs 15 ozs 61.86 % 380 lbs 12 ozs 31 lbs 12 ozs 61.50 % 379 lbs 9 ozs 31 lbs 10 ozs 61.26 % 377 lbs 14 ozs 31 lbs 8 ozs 61.02 % 375 lbs 14 ozs 31 lbs 5 ozs 60.65 % 373 lbs 14 ozs 31 lbs 3 ozs 60.41 % 370 lbs 5 ozs 30 lbs 14 ozs 59.81 % 366 lbs 5 ozs 30 lbs 8 ozs 59.08 % 364 lbs 1 ozs 30 lbs 5 ozs 58.72 % 362 lbs 10 ozs 30 lbs 4 ozs 58.60 % 358 lbs 12 ozs 29 lbs 14 ozs 57.87 % 357 lbs 12 ozs 29 lbs 13 ozs 57.75 % 355 lbs 1 ozs 29 lbs 9 ozs 57.26 % 354 lbs 2 ozs 29 lbs 8 ozs 57.14 % 353 lbs 11 ozs 29 lbs 8 ozs 57.14 % 351 lbs 6 ozs 29 lbs 5 ozs 56.78 % 348 lbs 3 ozs 29 lbs 0 ozs 56.17 % 347 lbs 4 ozs 28 lbs 15 ozs 56.05 % 345 lbs 8 ozs 28 lbs 13 ozs 55.81 % 345 lbs 6 ozs 28 lbs 13 ozs 55.81 % 341 lbs 13 ozs 28 lbs 8 ozs 55.21 % 336 lbs 8 ozs 28 lbs 1 ozs 54.36 % 333 lbs 9 ozs 27 lbs 13 ozs 53.87 % 330 lbs 0 ozs 27 lbs 8 ozs 53.27 % 329 lbs 13 ozs 27 lbs 8 ozs 53.27 % 328 lbs 2 ozs 27 lbs 6 ozs 53.03 % 325 lbs 3 ozs 27 lbs 2 ozs 52.54 % 324 lbs 11 ozs 27 lbs 1 ozs 52.42 % 323 lbs 5 ozs 26 lbs 15 ozs 52.18 % 321 lbs 11 ozs 26 lbs 13 ozs 51.94 % 320 lbs 13 ozs 26 lbs 12 ozs 51.82 % 319 lbs 8 ozs 26 lbs 10 ozs 51.57 % 318 lbs 10 ozs 26 lbs 9 ozs 51.45 % 316 lbs 5 ozs 26 lbs 6 ozs 51.09 % 315 lbs 0 ozs 26 lbs 4 ozs 50.85 % 314 lbs 5 ozs 26 lbs 3 ozs 50.73 % 313 lbs 6 ozs 26 lbs 2 ozs 50.61 % 312 lbs 11 ozs 26 lbs 1 ozs 50.48 % 310 lbs 14 ozs 25 lbs 15 ozs 50.24 % 304 lbs 6 ozs 25 lbs 6 ozs 49.15 % 303 lbs 5 ozs 25 lbs 4 ozs 48.91 % 302 lbs 12 ozs 25 lbs 4 ozs 48.91 % 301 lbs 11 ozs 25 lbs 2 ozs 48.67 % 301 lbs 10 ozs 25 lbs 2 ozs 48.67 % 301 lbs 8 ozs 25 lbs 2 ozs 48.67 % 299 lbs 13 ozs 25 lbs 0 ozs 48.43 % 292 lbs 6 ozs 24 lbs 6 ozs 47.22 % 290 lbs 7 ozs 24 lbs 3 ozs 46.85 % 287 lbs 1 ozs 23 lbs 15 ozs 46.37 % 278 lbs 14 ozs 23 lbs 4 ozs 45.04 % 274 lbs 7 ozs 22 lbs 14 ozs 44.31 % 266 lbs 0 ozs 22 lbs 3 ozs 42.98 % 263 lbs 4 ozs 21 lbs 15 ozs 42.49 % 262 lbs 10 ozs 21 lbs 14 ozs 42.37 % 260 lbs 5 ozs 21 lbs 11 ozs 42.01 % 247 lbs 3 ozs 20 lbs 10 ozs 39.95 % 243 lbs 6 ozs 20 lbs 5 ozs 39.35 % 235 lbs 12 ozs 19 lbs 10 ozs 38.01 % 225 lbs 8 ozs 18 lbs 13 ozs 36.44 % 179 lbs 1 ozs 14 lbs 15 ozs 28.93 %

***An angler must have fished 12 qualifying events during the last two seasons for his weight to appear. A qualifying event is a Bassmaster Tour tournament, an Elite 50 tournament or Bassmaster Classic. In 2006 and beyond, a qualifying event is defined as a CITGO Bassmaster Elite Series tournament, a Bassmaster Major and a CITGO Bassmaster Classic.