Mr. Elite 50 Wins Again

JASPER, Ala. --- Mark Davis has just entered another almost mystic realm.

When Davis won two of the first four Citgo Bassmaster Elite 50s in 2004, it was interesting and impressive. To win three of the last four though is sort of scary.

For Davis it was almost necessity.

Davis has chalked up yet another win in the Elite 50s, almost assuredly cementing a spot in legendary streaks alongside the likes of Rick Clunn and four Bassmaster Classic victories and Larry Nixon with four MegaBucks championships.

Davis posted a final round five-fish stringer that totaled 11 pounds, 8 ounces to win by what could be considered a huge margin for Smith Lake. His total, 24 pounds, 14 ounces, was just more than two pounds heavier than Kevin Wirth (five fish, 10 pounds, 7 ounces) who finished second with 22-11.

Kelly Jordon (five fish, 9-12) was third with 21 pounds, 5 ounces; Zell Rowland (three fish, 5 pounds, 15 ounces) was fourth 17-15; Kevin VanDam (three fish, 5-13) was fifth with 16-13; and Chad Morgenthaler (one fish, 1-11) was sixth with 13-14.

While Davis’ win gives him a start at legendary status, the more pressing issue is it puts him in contention for qualifying for the Bassmaster Classic. That’s big stuff for Davis, considering he finished around 130th place in the Classic standings during the regular Bassmaster Tour standings.

“I think I’m really starting to get it together, finally,’’ Davis said. “And I needed it to come together or I was going to lose out on the Classic for this season and next.”

The professional angler from Mount Ida, Ark. underwent shoulder surgery earlier in the year and feared that it might have ruined his career. Obviously he had no need to worry.

Davis fished an almost masterful two final days in this event to get back to the top of his game. The most important of those days was Friday when he took the lead with a 13 pound, 6 ounce stringer.

“That day was the biggest key,’’ Davis said. “I got out hot and fast and I was able to stay there.”

That hot and fast start came on a Strike King Quad-Shad spinnerbait that produced a limit of keeper bass in the first 20 minutes of the day. From there he was able to build.

But things changed drastically in the final. A major cold front pushed through the Smith Lake area virtually shutting the fishing down and forcing all the anglers to struggle for critical bites.

“I don’t really know what happened to the aggressive bites,’’ Davis said. “I still thought they would bite that spinnerbait.”

They didn’t, though, and armed with a 1-pound lead, rather than panic Davis settled down and switched to a lower gear, following his plan of changing with what the fish wanted or needed in each hole of the six-hole course.

With temperatures dropping rapidly and mush of the fish that were hanging tight to the shallows backing off and suspending, Davis tied on a 4-inch Yum Dinger, rigged it wacky-worm style, and slowly started squeaking out a limit.

“I used to not be a fan of these course-type fish offs,’’ Davis said. “But I think I’ve grown to understand how to approach them and one of the biggest things is just to keep an open mind, let the conditions in each place tell you. And they weren’t telling me much today, other than I had to slow down.”

The slowed method was the perfect thing to put him on the fast track to the winner’s circle. And this time, it was worth $100,000. That’s big stuff for anybody, even Davis, considering the other two wins were worth $5,000 each.

Rank Name   Hometown  Bass Weight Pts. Winnings

1. Mark Davis Mount Ida, Ark. 10 24-14 310 $104,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-12 Day 2: 5 12-01 Day 3: 5 13-06 Day 4: 5 11-08
2. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky. 10 22-11 295 $22,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-11 Day 3: 5 12-04 Day 4: 5 10-07
3. Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas 10 21-05 290 $12,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 3 8-12 Day 3: 5 11-09 Day 4: 5 9-12
4. Zell Rowland Montgomery, Texas 8 17-15 285 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 12-14 Day 3: 5 12-00 Day 4: 3 5-15
5. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. 8 16-13 290 $11,300.00
Day 1: 5 20-02 Day 2: 5 11-00 Day 3: 5 11-00 Day 4: 3 5-13
6. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 6 13-14 276 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 4 9-15 Day 3: 5 12-03 Day 4: 1 1-11

 

By Steve Bowman, FishFactory.com