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The Final Report
BASS Tour: Lake Eufaula, AL
As the incredibly short BASS Tour season winds down, a lot is at stake for
the pros. With all the new contingency programs BASS has introduced, pros
have many more targets to aim at. Not least among the targets is the Angler
of the Year race.
"There's a lot at stake," said
Gerald Swindle. Swindle lead the AOY race before this event, but because the
Alabama pro placed 38th, he dropped to second place by 13 points.
Scott Suggs of Arkansas took over the lead by claiming 15th place at
Eufaula. "Most Exciting Tournament"
Talk about an exciting tournament; this one was a real nail-biter. Former
Classic champion Denny Brauer of Camdenton, MO, led the event on Day 2 by a
somewhat comfortable margin over Ron Shuffield, but things changed
drastically on Day 3. Ben Matsubu charged up from 8th place to rank second -
only two ounces behind Brauer. Day 4 was the most intense
day of them all - with only six anglers remaining in the field, they all
were within 7 pounds, 14 ounces of Brauer.
Day 4: After Brauer's Day 3 comment
that "Fishing's going to be tough for me," it seemed that anything could
happen. However, Matsubu dropped to 3rd, Brauer weighed in 19-02, and
rookie Desaro weighed in 24-05. The result? Brauer: 76-14. Desaro: 76-11.
Brauer won another event on Lake Eufaula by a mere 3 ounces over Idaho's
Bink Desaro.
"This is probably the most exciting tournament that I've ever won," Brauer
said. "When you are sitting in back of the line and you hear a guy ahead of
you weigh in 24 pounds, it kind of gets you wondering." Keep in mind
that Brauer has won a lot of tournaments, and is actually nearing the $2
million mark in BASS tournament winnings. Among his wins were a Bassmaster
Classic, so remarking that this is the most exciting event is a strong
statement. Now for the tough part. What in the world could
Brauer have used to catch his bass? Jigs, of course. Brauer went back to
'old faithful' for his victory: a Strike King pro model jig with a 3X chunk
trailer, which he pitched to vegetation. However, he mixed in a little
topwater fishing as well.
"I was fishing stuff so ugly that it wasn't something you could put anybody
on," said Brauer, who claimed to have neither a set area or a specific
strategy all week. "I had never fished that area before and I was
catching fish there the first two days. I didn't go back there yesterday; I
wanted to let the area rest a bit.
"They quit biting at about 9 a.m., because the water was dropping. I was
pitching to the edge of some vegetation, pitching to grass or anything that
would come along. There were so few bites to be had, though, that it was
kind of a lucky deal." On Day 3, Brauer mentioned that
had not "missed a fish and I
haven't lost a fish, all three days." He went on to comment that "you're
very fortunate when that happens." If he had lost one bass on any day of the
event, it would have meant Desaro's collecting $100,000 instead of Brauer.
The Stats:
| Day |
Rank |
Weight |
| 1 |
3 |
22-14 |
| 2 |
1 |
46-10 |
| 3 |
1 |
57-12 |
| 4 |
1 |
76-14 |
Close and Confident
In spite of placing second by only 3 ounces, Bink Desaro of Boise, Idaho,
had a good attitude about placing second.
"I'm happy with second," Desaro said. "To be second to a guy like Denny is
incredible. This is more (money) than I've ever made in my whole life put
together. My confidence level is way up there now." Just in time for
the final BASS Tour event of the year.
Desaro also won $1,000 for being the Heavyweight of Day 4,
and he also won the big bass award on the same day, earning another $1,000.
Desaro was fishing the grass with a black and blue Sweet
Beaver flipping lure by Reaction Innovation. He pitched the lure to
penetrate heavy mats of vegetation and alligator grass to catch the bass
hidden below. The Stats:
|
Day |
Rank |
Weight |
|
1 |
15 |
17-14 |
|
2 |
7 |
35-13 |
|
3 |
3 |
52-06 |
|
4 |
2 |
76-11 |
Awards, But No 1st
Hemphill, Texas' Ben Matsubu came very close to overtaking Brauer as well -
on Day 3. Matsubu was only 2 ounces behind Brauer heading into Day 4, but
faltered and fell to 3rd place. After leaping from 8th to 2nd on Day 3,
Matsubu earned $1,000 as the Heavyweight of the day, and, like Desaro,
earned the big bass award on the same day.
The Stats:
|
Day |
Rank |
Weight |
|
1 |
7 |
20-06 |
|
2 |
8 |
34-00 |
|
3 |
2 |
57-10 |
|
4 |
3 |
76-11 |
As For the Rest...
Skeet Reese of Auburn, CA, placed 4th, and caught 20 bass
weighing 69-15 over four days to win $20,000. Ron Shuffield from Bismarck,
AR, weighed in 20 bass that tipped the scales to 65-05 and earned $15,000
for his 5th place finish. Gonzales, LA, pro Greg Hackney wound up in 6th
place with 20 bass weighing 61-12 for his $14,000 check.
Standings:
For more complete standings, please
refer to The Full Story or each individual day's story on the
National Tournament News
page. Day 1:
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
| 1 |
Mark Rogers |
Naples, FL |
5 |
31-03 |
| 2 |
Ron Shuffield |
Bismarck, AR |
5 |
23-08 |
| 3 |
Denny Brauer |
Camdenton, MO |
5 |
22-14 |
| 4 |
Gary Klein |
Weatherford, TX |
5 |
21-06 |
| 5 |
Charles Hammack |
New Caney, TX |
5 |
20-13 |
| 6 |
David Fritts |
Lexington, N.C. |
5 |
20-10 |
| 7 |
Ben Matsubu |
Hemphill, TX |
5 |
20-06 |
| 8 |
Greg Hackney |
Gonzales, LA |
5 |
19-13 |
| 9 |
Zell Rowland |
Montgomery, TX |
5 |
19-10 |
| 10 |
Skeet Reese |
Auburn, CA |
5 |
19-01 |
| 11 |
Dean Rojas |
Grand Saline, TX |
5 |
18-12 |
| 12 |
Morizo Shimizu |
Murrita, CA |
5 |
18-11 |
| 13 |
Lance Vick |
Mineola, TX |
5 |
18-04 |
| 14 |
Yusuke Miyazaki |
Mineola, TX |
5 |
17-15 |
| 15 |
Bink Desaro |
Boise, ID |
5 |
17-14 |
| 16 |
Chris Daves |
Hopewell, VA |
5 |
17-11 |
| 17 |
Pete Ponds |
Madison, MS |
5 |
17-11 |
| 18 |
Brent Chapman |
Shawnee, KS |
5 |
17-10 |
| 19 |
Ray Sedgwick |
Cross, S.C. |
5 |
17-05 |
| 20 |
Peter Thliveros |
Jacksonville, FL |
5 |
17-04 |
| 21 |
Todd Auten |
Lake Wylie, S.C. |
5 |
17-03 |
| 22 |
Mark Davis |
Mount Ida, AR |
5 |
16-14 |
| 22 |
Chris Price |
Church Hill, MD |
5 |
16-14 |
| 22 |
Gerald Swindle |
Hayden, AL |
5 |
16-14 |
| 25 |
Jim Bitter |
Fruitland Park, FL |
5 |
16-11 |
Day 2:
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
| 1 |
Denny Brauer |
Camdenton, MO |
10 |
46-10 |
| 2 |
Ron Shuffield |
Bismarck, AR |
10 |
41-03 |
| 3 |
David Fritts |
Lexington, N.C. |
10 |
37-07 |
| 4 |
Mark Rogers |
Naples, FL |
7 |
37-02 |
| 5 |
Skeet Reese |
Auburn, CA |
10 |
36-14 |
| 6 |
Greg Hackney |
Gonzales, LA |
10 |
36-10 |
| 7 |
Bink Desaro |
Boise, ID |
10 |
35-13 |
| 8 |
Ben Matsubu |
Hemphill, TX |
10 |
34-00 |
| 9 |
Gary Klein |
Weatherford, TX |
10 |
33-15 |
| 10 |
Mark Davis |
Mount Ida, AR |
10 |
33-13 |
| 11 |
Alton Jones |
Waco, TX |
10 |
33-12 |
| 11 |
Peter Thliveros |
Jacksonville, FL |
10 |
33-12 |
The following anglers did not qualify to fish the final
two days.
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
Points |
Winnings |
| 13 |
Charles Hammack |
New Caney, TX |
10 |
32-08 |
251 |
$5,400.00 |
| 14 |
Kelly Jordon |
Mineola, TX |
10 |
32-02 |
248 |
$5,300.00 |
| 15 |
Scott Suggs |
Alexander, AR |
10 |
31-10 |
245 |
$5,200.00 |
| 16 |
Brent Chapman |
Shawnee, KS |
10 |
31-08 |
243 |
$5,100.00 |
| 17 |
Bernie Schultz |
Gainesville, FL |
10 |
31-03 |
241 |
$5,000.00 |
| 18 |
Shaw E. Grigsby, Jr. |
Gainesville, FL |
10 |
30-06 |
239 |
$4,900.00 |
| 19 |
Ray Sedgwick |
Cross, S.C. |
9 |
29-13 |
237 |
$4,800.00 |
| 20 |
Kevin VanDam |
Kalamazoo, MI |
10 |
29-08 |
235 |
$4,700.00 |
| 21 |
Jack Gadlage |
Benton, KY |
10 |
29-04 |
233 |
$4,550.00 |
| 21 |
Davy Hite |
Prosperity, S.C. |
10 |
29-04 |
233 |
$4,550.00 |
| 23 |
Mark Tyler |
Scottsdale, AZ |
7 |
29-03 |
229 |
$4,400.00 |
| 24 |
Chris Baumgardner |
Gastonia, N.C. |
10 |
28-14 |
227 |
$4,250.00 |
| 24 |
Chris Daves |
Hopewell, VA |
10 |
28-14 |
227 |
$4,250.00 |
Day 3:
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
| 1 |
Denny Brauer |
Camdenton, MO |
15 |
57-12 |
| 2 |
Ben Matsubu |
Hemphill, TX |
15 |
57-10 |
| 3 |
Bink Desaro |
Boise, ID |
15 |
52-06 |
| 4 |
Ron Shuffield |
Bismarck, AR |
15 |
52-01 |
| 5 |
Skeet Reese |
Auburn, CA |
15 |
51-11 |
| 6 |
Greg Hackney |
Gonzales, LA |
15 |
49-14 |
The following anglers did not qualify to fish the final
day.
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
Points |
Winnings |
| 7 |
Peter Thliveros |
Jacksonville, FL |
15 |
46-10 |
272 |
$12,000.00 |
| 8 |
Mark Davis |
Mount Ida, AR |
14 |
43-15 |
268 |
$10,000.00 |
| 9 |
Alton Jones |
Waco, TX |
14 |
42-15 |
264 |
$9,000.00 |
| 10 |
David Fritts |
Lexington, N.C. |
11 |
39-00 |
265 |
$7,000.00 |
| 10 |
Mark Rogers |
Naples, FL |
8 |
39-00 |
265 |
$9,000.00 |
| 12 |
Gary Klein |
Weatherford, TX |
11 |
37-00 |
254 |
$5,500.00 |
Day 4:
| Rank |
Name |
Hometown |
Bass |
Weight |
Points |
Winnings |
| 1 |
Denny Brauer |
Camdenton, MO |
20 |
76-14 |
315 |
$101,500.00 |
| 2 |
Bink Desaro |
Boise, ID |
20 |
76-11 |
295 |
$40,000.00 |
| 3 |
Ben Matsubu |
Hemphill, TX |
20 |
72-15 |
290 |
$25,000.00 |
| 4 |
Skeet Reese |
Auburn, CA |
20 |
69-15 |
285 |
$20,000.00 |
| 5 |
Ron Shuffield |
Bismarck, AR |
20 |
65-05 |
280 |
$15,000.00 |
| 6 |
Greg Hackney |
Gonzales, LA |
20 |
61-12 |
276 |
$14,000.00 |
Big Bass:
|
Day |
Name |
City, State |
Weight |
Award |
|
1 |
Mark Rogers |
Naples, FL |
9-06 |
$1,000.00 |
|
2 |
Kenyon Hill |
Norman, OK |
6-14 |
$500.00 |
|
2 |
Denny Brauer |
Camdenton, MO |
6-14 |
$500.00 |
|
3 |
Ben Matsubu |
Hemphill, TX |
6-15 |
$1,000.00 |
|
4 |
Bink Desaro |
Boise, ID |
7-04 |
$1,000.00 |
New AOY Standings:
| Rank |
Name |
State |
Points |
| 1 |
Scott Suggs |
AR |
1142 |
| 2 |
Gerald Swindle |
AL |
1129 |
| 2 |
Brent Chapman |
KS |
1112 |
| 4 |
Michael Iaconelli |
N.J. |
1082 |
| 5 |
Greg Hackney |
LA |
1059 |
| 6 |
Mark Davis |
AR |
1046 |
| 7 |
Chad Brauer |
MO |
1026 |
| 8 |
Takahiro Omori |
TX |
1007 |
| 9 |
Skeet Reese |
CA |
993 |
| 10 |
David Walker |
TN |
992 |
By Brandon Shook
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