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BASS Elite 50 Series: Smith Lake, AL

Elite 50 Event # 1 of 4

Preview | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4

Preview: Elite 50 Series Opens on Smith Lake

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Jasper, Ala. — The last time the CITGO Bassmaster Tournament Trail stopped at Smith Lake in Alabama, the anglers were greeted by some of the worst weather in BASS history. Torrential rain, relentless winds and bone-chilling temperatures combined to make last February’s Tour stop more of an endurance test than a fishing tournament.

Luckily, when an all-star lineup of BASS pros returns to the city of Jasper and Smith Lake to kick off the four-event Elite 50 Tour on April 20-23, they won’t recognize the place.

“Let me tell you about the difference between fishing Smith Lake last year and fishing it this year,” said Gerald Swindle, the 2004 CITGO Bassmaster Angler of the Year who considers Smith to be his home lake. “It’s like the difference between fishing Okeechobee and Table Rock. It’s like two entirely different lakes.

“The difference is like night and day.”

The Elite 50 Tour is professional fishing’s first top dollar, no-entry-fee major series with a guaranteed paycheck for every participant — a milestone in the sport created last year by BASS. The 50 competitors earned their “elite” status through combined performance over the past three CITGO Bassmaster Tour seasons or their lofty place on BASS’ all-time money list.

The sport’s heavy hitters will launch the lucrative 2005 Elite 50 Series on the 21,200-acre impoundment of the Sipsey Fork River (located an hour north of Birmingham). The 44-year-old Alabama Power Co. reservoir is picturesque with its numerous bluffs, sloughs, bays, feeder streams and more than 500 miles of shoreline. Smith Lake is also deep and clear – a combination that the BASS pros seldom encounter.

Its waters are loaded with largemouth and spotted bass. In fact, Smith Lake has surrendered five world-record spotted bass over the years – the last, in 1979, has since been bested by several California fish.

Last year’s event on Smith Lake was the first BASS tournament held there since 1968 when the legendary Bill Dance was the winner. In 2004, Californian Charlie Weyer took the $100,000 top prize with a four-day total of 32 pounds, 10 ounces. To win, he fished backwater areas with a worm on a jighead.

According to Swindle, though, Smith Lake will require a completely different approach this time around.

Heavy rainfall in recent weeks has transformed the lake. It now looks nothing like what the pros were expecting to find.

“We’ve gotten so much rain that it’s hard to predict how the fishing will be,” Swindle said. “The lake has come up so much. It’s three feet over full pool right now and came up about nine feet in the last two weeks.

“What once was thought to be a sight-fishing tournament is going to be a fishing tournament now. I would have taken it either way, but the water coming up adds water color, and with water color you can’t see them as well.

Lake managers will likely be trying to drop the water level on Smith, “but they can only drop it six or eight inches a day – max,” said Swindle. “That will have the fish spooky. What few fish that are trying to bed will be all jumpy, so it looks like it’s going to be a fishing tournament. We haven’t had one of these where the water temperature was in the 60s and you could just throw something out and reel it in. We won’t know how to act. The guys are going to have to kind of warm up to that idea.”

Without all the rain, Swindle said the tournament would have been dominated by sight-fishing because Smith’s ultra-clear water lends itself to seeing shallow spawning bass.

“I think there will be a lot of fish caught on a spinnerbait and a crankbait,” he said. “The guys will catch them 10 feet deep and shallower. I don’t think there will be a big deep bite going on. There’s always somebody out there trying to do it, but I don’t think it’s going to be much of a factor at all.”

Beginning in 2006, the Elite 50 Series will be replaced by BASS’ “majors” – the Bassmaster Memorial, Bassmaster American and Bassmaster Legends. The majors will feature reduced fields, no entry fees and top dollar payouts.
 

From BASS

Day 1: KVD Leads on Smith

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JASPER, Ala. - How many ways can you say sight fishing?

The anglers in the Citgo Bassmaster Elite 50 series certainly said it in a lot of different ways. Kevin VanDam had his own definition and it produced a 20 pound, 2 ounce stringer.

The 2004 Elite 50 series winner, leads after day one by almost three pounds. Dean Rojas is second with 17 pounds, 3 ounces, while Mark Davis, who won two of the events last season and has floundered all season long, is in third with 16 pounds, 12 ounces. Kelly Jordon is fourth with 15 pounds, 3 ounces. And Chad Morganthaler and Jeff Kriet are tied for fifth with 15-2

Tim Horton, who weighed only four keepers totaling 15 pounds, 6 ounces, would have been in fourth but was disqualified for asking his observer to hold a push pole while he cast to a fish.

All of them reported sight fishing as the primary means of catching their fish. As a matter of fact almost all of the anglers in the field reported they were sight fishing. They just had different definitions of how it was being done.

And some like, Larry Nixon couldn't define it all. "It's sight fishing," he said. "But I'm not too sure what the fish are doing when I'm casting to them."

Typically sight fishing denotes an angler sitting over a spawning bed making countless casts to a bass. That type of sight fishing took place, but the stage of the fish on Smith Lake forced other types of sight fishing to take place as well.

"The fish are in mid-spawn right now," said Shaw Grigsby a sight-fishing expert. "They are just doing everything. Some are locked on the beds, others are moving up and starting to spawn, some are cruising and a lot of them are just shallow and guarding fry and there's a big bunch that are post spawn."

And for the most part, the anglers in the field can see the fish. VanDam for example is seeing fish that aren't locked on a bed, but rather swimming erratically around shallow cover guarding fry.

"You can't really just lock up on those fish because they are extremely shallow," VanDam said. "When I see them I leave them alone and come back a few minutes later and cast from a distance."

Most of those fish are hitting a finesse worm but others have hit fluke-style soft-plastic jerkbaits.

"The key, though, was getting in an area where I know there are a lot of big largemouth," VanDam said. "And the weather today was perfect for that type of fishing."

For the most part the conditions were sunny and calm, allowing anglers to see great distances and pinpoint their casts. It also made it easy for those anglers targeting spawning beds to see the reactions of the fish they were casting to.

The big difference, though, will be how the weather could impact the second day's catch. Clouds are expected to start moving in and wind could come with it. That combined with all the easy-pickings gone could mean a change in how things take place on day two.

Gerald Swindle, the home-lake favorite, believes that most of the anglers will have to struggle to match their first-day pace.

"It will be tougher," he said. "Tomorrow, they'll have to fish for them and who knows what can happen on this lake?"

VanDam thinks he knows. Not that it will matter much. It is likely all he needs is steady limit to make the semifinal 12. Others like Swindle who is well back in the pack, will have to figure things out quickly.

Rank Name     Hometown     Bass Weight Pts. Winnings
1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. 5 20-02 305 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-02
2. Dean Rojas Grand Saline, Texas 5 17-03 295
Day 1: 5 17-03
3. Mark Davis Mount Ida, Ark. 5 16-12 290 $2,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-12
4. Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas 5 15-03 285
Day 1: 5 15-03
5. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla. 5 15-02 280
Day 1: 5 15-02
5. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 5 15-02 280
Day 1: 5 15-02
7. Larry Nixon Bee Branch, Ark. 5 15-00 272
Day 1: 5 15-00
8. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, Kan. 5 14-05 268
Day 1: 5 14-05
9. Jay Yelas Tyler, Texas 5 14-01 264
Day 1: 5 14-01
10. Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 5 13-12 260
Day 1: 5 13-12
11. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, Fla. 5 13-11 257
Day 1: 5 13-11
12. Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif. 5 12-09 254
Day 1: 5 12-09
13. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 5 12-07 251
Day 1: 5 12-07
14. Edwin Evers Mannsville, Okla. 5 12-04 248
Day 1: 5 12-04
15. Gerald Swindle Hayden, Ala. 5 11-15 245
Day 1: 5 11-15
16. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky. 5 11-14 243
Day 1: 5 11-14
17. Alton Jones Waco, Texas 4 11-12 241
Day 1: 4 11-12
18. Bud Pruitt Spring, Texas 5 11-10 239
Day 1: 5 11-10
19. Jeff Reynolds Platter, Okla. 5 11-08 237
Day 1: 5 11-08
20. Rick Clunn Ava, Mo. 5 11-02 235
Day 1: 5 11-02
20. David Fritts Lexington, N.C. 5 11-02 235
Day 1: 5 11-02
20. Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas 5 11-02 235
Day 1: 5 11-02
23. Luke Clausen Spokane Valley, Wash. 5 11-01 229
Day 1: 5 11-01
24. Ishama Monroe Hughson, Calif. 5 10-10 227
Day 1: 5 10-10
24. Zell Rowland Montgomery, Texas 5 10-10 227
Day 1: 5 10-10
26. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, Ark. 5 10-03 223
Day 1: 5 10-03
27. Aaron Martens Leeds, Ala. 4 9-11 221
Day 1: 4 9-11
28. Shaw E Grigsby, Jr Gainesville, Fla. 4 9-10 219
Day 1: 4 9-10
29. Roland Martin Naples, Fla. 4 9-08 217
Day 1: 4 9-08
30. George Cochran Hot Springs, Ark. 5 9-06 215
Day 1: 5 9-06
31. Dave Wolak Warrior Run, Pa. 4 9-05 213
Day 1: 4 9-05
32. Ron Shuffield Bismarck, Ark. 4 8-13 211
Day 1: 4 8-13
33. Denny Brauer Camdenton, Mo. 4 8-12 209
Day 1: 4 8-12
34. Stacey D King Reeds Spring, Mo. 4 8-07 207
Day 1: 4 8-07
35. Peter E Thliveros Jacksonville, Fla. 4 8-02 205
Day 1: 4 8-02
36. Terry Scroggins Palatka, Fla. 3 8-01 203
Day 1: 3 8-01
37. Gary Klein Weatherford, Texas 3 7-12 201
Day 1: 3 7-12
38. Guy Eaker Cherryville, N.C. 4 7-07 199
Day 1: 4 7-07
39. Mike Reynolds Modesto, Calif. 2 5-15 197
Day 1: 2 5-15
40. Mark Tyler Scottsdale, Ariz. 3 5-11 195
Day 1: 3 5-11
41. Randy Howell Springville, Ala. 2 5-10 193
Day 1: 2 5-10
42. Jimmy Mize Ben Lomond, Ark. 3 5-09 191
Day 1: 3 5-09
43. David Wharton Sam Rayburn, Texas 3 5-08 189
Day 1: 3 5-08
44. Marty Stone Linden, N.C. 3 4-15 187
Day 1: 3 4-15
45. Jim Bitter Fruitland Park, Fla. 1 4-14 185
Day 1: 1 4-14
46. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, N.C. 2 4-13 183
Day 1: 2 4-13
47. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, Okla. 1 3-10 181
Day 1: 1 3-10
48. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, Mo. 1 2-08 179
Day 1: 1 2-08
49. Kenyon Hill Norman, Okla. 1 1-05 177
Day 1: 1 1-05
50. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, Ala. 0 0-00 0
Day 1: 0 0-00
 

Day 2: KVD Maintains Lead

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JASPER, Ala. --- If Gerald Swindle wasn’t such a great angler, he might make a pretty good prophet.

Going into the Citgo Bassmaster Elite 50, Swindle prophesized that Smith Lake would be inconsistent and there would be a lot of heart breaks. Most folks would have never guessed he would lead the list.

Kevin VanDam continues to lead the event. VanDam posted his second limit of the tournament, ?-?, to build a two-day total of 3? He’s followed by the expected cast of All-Stars, including Mark Davis in second with 28 pounds, 13 ounces. Chad Morgenthaler is third with 25-1 while Jeff Kriet is fourth with 24-8.

The rest of the field shapes up like this: Kelly Jordon (5th, 23-15); Jay Yelas (6th, 23-13); Kevin Wirth (7th, 23-9); Zell Rowland (8th, 23-8); Michael Iaconelli (9th, 22-13); Skeet Reese (10th, 22-11); Larry Nixon (11th, 21-14) and Davy Hite (12th, 21-12).


The prophet, Swindle, is in 13th place with 21 pounds, 9 ounces heading up the list of those with heart breaks and providing a fine example of just how inconsistent Smith Lake can be. Swindle only had three fish on his home lake.

As a matter of fact the 50 anglers could only manage 15 limits for the day.

"The true Smith Lake is starting to show itself," Swindle said.

That may be the case. But the Smith Lake the semifinal 12 will be fishing hasn’t even been seen yet. The weights for the 12 anglers will go to zero on Friday and they will fish in a six-hole course in Ryan, Long Branch and Lick creeks, an area that has been off limits for the tournament.

"Things might change when we get there, but I’m betting there will be a lot of the same stuff,’’ VanDam said.

The same stuff means that there will be a healthy portion of fish skimming the shallows. Some will be spawning and sitting on their beds, others will be guarding fry, but the biggest portion will be in a post-spawn mode, suspended and hard to catch. It all adds up to some inconsistent patterns and catches that will likely continue through the rest of the event.

To get a glimpse of how consistent, check out these types of performances. After day one when the flipping bite was nil, Tommy Biffle managed three bites on day two that totaled over 13 pounds, the heaviest sack of the day. And on day one, when Dean Rojas was skirting around the top of the leader board, he caught two of his larger fish on a topwater frog named Kermit. Anglers have reported catches on everything from buzzbaits to shaky-head worms.

And the sight-fishing bite obviously dropped off. Of the 12, the only angler who has stuck completely with bed fishing is Jay Yelas. The rest of the anglers, staying with the inconsistent theme, have had to keep switching throughout the day.

"I’m sure it’ll be more of the same in the course,’’ Davis said. "The only difference will be you won’t have that time to sit on a bed and make one bite. Because we’ll be switching holes every 45 minutes to an hour. You’d better have something else going on.’’

Some of the anglers feel like they do. At the top of that list are VanDam and Nixon who make no secret of the fact they are fishing for post-spawn fish.

"The majority of the fish are in that stage right now, so that’s what you have to target, the right kind of fish in the right type of water,’’ VanDam said.

Nixon agrees, adding, "If I get in the course, I’m going to kick their ass."

Smith Lake, though, may not be even that predictable. This tournament has already set one standard on its ears. Rick Clunn, for instance, who has be paragon for not sight fishing for bedding fish, reported that his catches in this event were all caught off the beds.

"I’m tired of being so hard headed,’’ he said. "This was just a good event where I needed to try it."

Who knows what kind of new experiments will take place on Friday?
 

Rank Name  Hometown     Bass Weight Pts. Winnings
1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. 10 31-02 310 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-02 Day 2: 5 11-00
2. Mark Davis Mount Ida, Ark. 10 28-13 295 $2,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-12 Day 2: 5 12-01
3. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 9 25-01 290
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 4 9-15
4. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla. 9 24-08 285
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 4 9-06
5. Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas 8 23-15 280
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 3 8-12
6. Jay Yelas Tyler, Texas 9 23-13 276
Day 1: 5 14-01 Day 2: 4 9-12
7. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky. 10 23-09 272
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-11
8. Zell Rowland Montgomery, Texas 10 23-08 268
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 12-14
9. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 10 22-13 264
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 10-06
10. Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif. 10 22-11 260
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 10-02
11. Larry Nixon Bee Branch, Ark. 8 21-14 257
Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 3 6-14
12. Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 9 21-12 254
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 4 8-00
13. Gerald Swindle Hayden, Ala. 8 21-09 251 $5,700.00
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 3 9-10
14. Edwin Evers Mannsville, Okla. 10 21-07 248 $5,600.00
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 9-03
15. Peter E Thliveros Jacksonville, Fla. 9 20-15 245 $5,500.00
Day 1: 4 8-02 Day 2: 5 12-13
16. Terry Scroggins Palatka, Fla. 8 20-14 243 $5,500.00
Day 1: 3 8-01 Day 2: 5 12-13
16. Dean Rojas Grand Saline, Texas 7 20-14 243 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 17-03 Day 2: 2 3-11
18. David Fritts Lexington, N.C. 9 20-12 239 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-02 Day 2: 4 9-10
19. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, Ark. 10 19-15 237 $5,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 5 9-12
20. Jeff Reynolds Platter, Okla. 9 19-10 235 $5,300.00
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 4 8-02
20. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, Kan. 7 19-10 235 $5,300.00
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 2 5-05
22. Denny Brauer Camdenton, Mo. 9 19-07 231 $5,200.00
Day 1: 4 8-12 Day 2: 5 10-11
22. Gary Klein Weatherford, Texas 8 19-07 231 $5,200.00
Day 1: 3 7-12 Day 2: 5 11-11
24. Guy Eaker Cherryville, N.C. 9 19-00 227 $5,200.00
Day 1: 4 7-07 Day 2: 5 11-09
25. Stacey D King Reeds Spring, Mo. 8 18-06 225 $5,200.00
Day 1: 4 8-07 Day 2: 4 9-15
26. Luke Clausen Spokane Valley, Wash. 8 18-04 223 $5,200.00
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 3 7-03
27. Ishama Monroe Hughson, Calif. 9 18-03 221 $5,200.00
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 4 7-09
28. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, Fla. 6 18-00 219 $5,200.00
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 1 4-05
29. Mike Reynolds Modesto, Calif. 7 17-14 217 $5,200.00
Day 1: 2 5-15 Day 2: 5 11-15
30. Aaron Martens Leeds, Ala. 7 17-09 215 $5,200.00
Day 1: 4 9-11 Day 2: 3 7-14
31. Rick Clunn Ava, Mo. 7 17-03 213 $5,200.00
Day 1: 5 11-02 Day 2: 2 6-01
32. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, Okla. 4 17-01 211 $7,200.00
Day 1: 1 3-10 Day 2: 3 13-07
33. Jim Bitter Fruitland Park, Fla. 6 15-00 209 $5,200.00
Day 1: 1 4-14 Day 2: 5 10-02
34. Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas 7 14-14 207 $5,200.00
Day 1: 5 11-02 Day 2: 2 3-12
34. Dave Wolak Warrior Run, Pa. 7 14-14 207 $5,200.00
Day 1: 4 9-05 Day 2: 3 5-09
36. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, N.C. 6 14-13 203 $5,100.00
Day 1: 2 4-13 Day 2: 4 10-00
36. Mark Tyler Scottsdale, Ariz. 6 14-13 203 $5,100.00
Day 1: 3 5-11 Day 2: 3 9-02
38. Alton Jones Waco, Texas 5 14-09 199 $5,100.00
Day 1: 4 11-12 Day 2: 1 2-13
39. Randy Howell Springville, Ala. 6 13-14 197 $5,100.00
Day 1: 2 5-10 Day 2: 4 8-04
40. Bud Pruitt Spring, Texas 6 13-10 195 $5,100.00
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 1 2-00
41. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, Mo. 6 13-07 193 $5,000.00
Day 1: 1 2-08 Day 2: 5 10-15
42. Ron Shuffield Bismarck, Ark. 6 12-04 191 $5,000.00
Day 1: 4 8-13 Day 2: 2 3-07
43. Roland Martin Naples, Fla. 5 12-00 189 $5,000.00
Day 1: 4 9-08 Day 2: 1 2-08
44. Shaw E Grigsby, Jr Gainesville, Fla. 5 11-08 187 $5,000.00
Day 1: 4 9-10 Day 2: 1 1-14
45. George Cochran Hot Springs, Ark. 6 11-05 185 $5,000.00
Day 1: 5 9-06 Day 2: 1 1-15
46. David Wharton Sam Rayburn, Texas 5 9-02 183 $5,000.00
Day 1: 3 5-08 Day 2: 2 3-10
47. Marty Stone Linden, N.C. 5 8-08 181 $5,000.00
Day 1: 3 4-15 Day 2: 2 3-09
48. Jimmy Mize Ben Lomond, Ark. 4 8-04 179 $5,000.00
Day 1: 3 5-09 Day 2: 1 2-11
49. Kenyon Hill Norman, Okla. 3 5-10 177 $5,000.00
Day 1: 1 1-05 Day 2: 2 4-05
50. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, Ala. 2 4-08 175 $5,000.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 2 4-08
 

Day 3: Davis Grabs the Lead

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JASPER, Ala. --- Mark Davis’ middle name must be Elite 50. Every time you look up, he’s in contention of winning one of these premier events.

If Davis wins this one that will make three out of the last four E50s. The only thing standing in his way is the inconsistent nature of Smith Lake where the Citgo Bassmaster Elite 50 is taking place. Considering that inconsistent nature wasn’t so inconsistent on day three, the last day may really be a doozy.

Smith Lake actually fished to an above-average standard on Friday. Of the 12 anglers in the field, 10 boated limits and the weights were so close that ounces separated most of the anglers. The only one who could really say they "showed out" was Mark "Elite 50" Davis.

Davis posted a five-fish limit that weighed 13 pounds, 6 ounces giving him a 1-pound lead over the field, which may be bigger than it seems. Kevin Wirth is in second with 12 pounds, 4 ounces, while Chad Morganthaler is 1-ounce back in third with 12 pounds, 3 ounces and Zell Rowland is in fourth just 3 ounces behind him with 12 pounds even.

Kelly Jordon is fifth with 11 pounds, 9 ounces and the first two-days leader Kevin VanDam slipped into the final six with 11 pounds even.

Slipped is an accurate description. The next four anglers were just ounces from making the cut.

Jay Yelas was 2 ounces out (7th place, 10-14); Larry Nixon was 4 ounces back (8th place, 10-12); Michael Iaconelli was 7 ounces back (9th place, 10-9) and Skeet Reese was 8 ounces back (10th place, 10-8).

"I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a final six that is this close,’’ said Trip Weldon, Bassmaster Tournament Director.

Even though it is close Davis broke away from the pack (even if it is only by a pound) by concentrating on being not so consistent with his tactics.

"I caught them on a lot of stuff,’’ Davis said. "I was constantly changing. I caught them on everything from a finesse worm to a spinnerbait and jerkbait to just about everything I could throw at them.

"That’s the key in this course: I don’t get hung up on one thing because every hole is different and you have to approach every hole different. Plus the weather changed constantly, so I had to do what was right at that particular time.’’

It would have been easy for Davis to not keep changing. The tournament started almost an hour late because of a severe thunderstorm that hit the Smith Lake area about a half hour before the tournament was set to begin. As the day progressed variable winds and shifts in wind strength and direction were common.

Davis took advantage of the after-affects of the thunderstorm and caught his limit in the first 20 minutes. Armed with confidence and healthy limit he went on to catch 12 keepers, boating at least one in every hole of the course.

"But the big deal was I had to keep changing, keep adapting,’’ he said. "When the wind laid down you had to change, when it picked up you had to change. You had to keep changing."

That consistent ability to read the water and adapt proved huge. Catching fish on Smith Lake didn’t seem to be a huge factor. VanDam even said "I caught thousands."

But getting that right bite that weighed ounces more than the last was vital. How Davis does it can’t be explained by him, either. "It’s just keep doing the right things and it will pay off,’’ he said. "And I guess get a lucky in the process."

That luck factor could pay big dividends on the final day. One 4-pound bite by any of the finalists and the course of this tournament could be set. Morganthaler weighed in the largest caught on Friday. It hit the scales at a whopping 3 pounds, 7 ounces.

Almost all of the anglers feel that if they can keep wading through the fish in Smith Lake that one of those big fish will bite. VanDam had two of those type bites on one cast, while fishing a jerkbait. He hooked up with a 2 1/2-pound spotted bass, and while he was fighting it a school of fish came up feeding on shad that were being regurgitated by the fish. One of those in the school was a 4-pounder and it hit part of the jerkbait hanging from the fish’s mouth, but came unhooked. Before the fight was over another, larger fish hit the same hook on the jerkabait, but it came off as well.

"There are those type of fish in the lake, and with just a little bit of luck I could have had one of those fish in the boat,’’ VanDam said.

And so could any of the remaining anglers, leaving the final day to be decided by one big bite or peculiar lock that Davis seems to have on Elite 50 tournaments.

Rank Name Hometown Bass Weight Pts. Winnings

1. Mark Davis Mount Ida, Ark. 5 13-06 305 $2,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-12 Day 2: 5 12-01 Day 3: 5 13-06
2. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky. 10 24-02 295 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-11 Day 3: 5 12-04
3. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, Ill. 5 12-03 290 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 4 9-15 Day 3: 5 12-03
4. Zell Rowland Montgomery, Texas 10 22-10 285
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 12-14 Day 3: 5 12-00
5. Kelly Jordon Mineola, Texas 5 11-09 280
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 3 8-12 Day 3: 5 11-09
6. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. 5 11-00 286 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-02 Day 2: 5 11-00 Day 3: 5 11-00
7. Jay Yelas Tyler, Texas 5 10-14 272 $7,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-01 Day 2: 4 9-12 Day 3: 5 10-14
8. Larry Nixon Bee Branch, Ark. 5 10-12 268 $6,800.00
Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 3 6-14 Day 3: 5 10-12
9. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 10 23-00 264 $6,600.00
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 10-06 Day 3: 5 10-09
10. Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif. 5 10-08 260 $6,400.00
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 10-02 Day 3: 5 10-08
11. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla. 4 8-12 257 $6,200.00
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 4 9-06 Day 3: 4 8-12
12. Davy Hite Prosperity, S.C. 3 5-11 254 $6,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 4 8-00 Day 3: 3 5-11

Day 4: Mr. Elite 50 Wins Again

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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

 

All articles by Steve Bowman, FishFactory.com unless otherwise specified.

Compiled by Brandon Shook