Stone Wins Bass Fishing Tournament on Harris Chain of Lakes
LEESBURG, Fla. - North Carolina's Marty Stone recovered from his "self-proclaimed slump" on Sunday, sweeping past the competition to win the first bass fishing event of the 2004 Bassmaster Tour.
Stone, who has not placed higher than 33rd in the past two Tour seasons, pulled 61 pounds, 12 ounces of bass out of the Harris Chain of Lakes, earning the tournament's $100,000 top prize. Stone's last BASS victory came five years ago at Alabama's Lake Wheeler.
An emotional Stone told the crowd at the Pat Thomas Ballfield, "I've seen the bottom of this sport and this just goes to show, you never give up.
"I'll be the first to admit, when I made that first Classic, I thought I was a pretty good fisherman," he said, "but I've been in a self-proclaimed slump for the past few years. I want to be a good fisherman, and to do that I'm going to have to be on the water. I have a lot of work to do."
Stone's victory came by fishing a 7-inch Sweebo Worm, junebug in color, with an American Rodsmith 71/2-foot flipping stick. Stone also used a 3/8-ounce Gambler Ninja Spin spinnerbait, a minnow style spinnerbait that has a white and blue head.
"Those are ideal colors for cloudy weather like today," Stone said.
Stone also picked up an additional $1,000 as the of the day, the daily award for having the heaviest catch of the day. His 15-pound, 13-ounce sack for Day 4 earned him some money, but Stone doesn't think he'll see much of it.
"My wife and I made a deal," he joked. "I can keep all the trophies and she gets the money."
Arkansas pro Scott Rook came up a spot from third to finish the tournament in second, earning him $38,000. Rook came in with a 12-13 sack Sunday, giving him a total of 60-9 for the four days.
Brent Chapman took home third place Sunday and a check for $23,000. Chapman, who was fishing his 100th BASS event, wasn't satisfied with his performance.
"I need to make sure I put every fish in the boat," Chapman said. "I missed two fish today that could have been the difference in the tournament. I'm really trying hard not to think about that now, but it's hard not to."
New Jersey's Mike Iaconelli, who led Saturday's round, wound up fourth (58-12), with Texans Tommy Martin (56-7) and Bud Pruitt (48-1) taking fifth and sixth places, respectively.
The Purolator Big Bass of the day went to Martin, who brought in a 6-pound bass to earn him the $1,000 bonus. The Purolator Big Bass of the Tournament and its $1,000 prize went to Day 1 leader Alton Jones. His 10-pound 13-ounce lunker had already earned him $1,000 for Day 1.
On Friday, tournament officials erred while determining which of the two amateur anglers tied for 12th place would qualify to fish in Saturday's final amateur round.
After tournament officials discovered the error, they contacted the anglers in question and discussed reparations with the amateur who was incorrectly cut. Final measures will be determined when BASS officials meet next week.
Tournament Director Trip Weldon called the incident unfortunate and assured that corrective steps are being taken to prevent a similar situation in the future.
The Bassmaster Tour heads north next week to Smith Lake in Jasper, Ala., for the second event on the 2004 Tournament Trail, Feb. 5-8.Fans can catch a telecast of the Harris Chain tournament on Saturday, Feb. 7 at 10:30 a.m. ET/9:30 a.m. CT on ESPN2.
Thousands of fans were on hand Sunday afternoon to take part in the highly interactive and family friendly BASS Sponsor Expo area. Sponsors presented interactive exhibits and provided a fun family experience for all ages.
2004 Florida Bassmaster Tour Pro 01/29-02/01
Harris Chain Of Lakes, Leesburg Fla.
(PRO Division) Standings Day 4
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total
$$$
1. Marty Stone Linden, N.C. 20 61-12 305
$100,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 14-00 Day 3: 5 12-06 Day 4: 5
15-13
2. Scott Rook Little Rock, Ark. 20 60-09 295
$38,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-03 Day 2: 5 16-10 Day 3: 5 12-15 Day 4: 5
12-13
3. Brent Chapman Shawnee, Kan. 20 60-02 290
$23,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-15 Day 2: 5 12-01 Day 3: 5 12-01 Day 4: 5
14-01
4. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 20 58-12 290
$20,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 17-04 Day 3: 5 13-05 Day 4: 5
8-15
5. Tommy Martin Hemphill, Texas 19 56-07 280
$16,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-10 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 5 11-05 Day 4: 4
12-07
6. Bud Pruitt Spring, Texas 13 48-01 276
$15,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 3 13-10 Day 4: 0
0-00
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Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 87 625 1554-06
2 68 553 1392-13
3 5 36 94-01
4 4 24 64-01
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164 1238 3105-052004 Angler of the Year
After Leesburg, Fla. Ending 02-01-2004
-------------------------------------------
Place Name St Pts
-------------------------------------------
1 Marty Stone N.C. 305
2 Scott Rook Ark. 295
3 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 290
3 Brent Chapman Kan. 290
5 Tommy Martin Texas 280
6 Alton Jones Texas 277
7 Bud Pruitt Texas 276
8 Jason Quinn S.C. 273
9 Scott Suggs Ark. 264
10 Chris Baumgardner N.C. 260
11 David Wharton Texas 257
12 Takahiro Omori Texas 254
13 Larry Nixon Ark. 251
14 Steve Daniel Fla. 248
15 Terry Scroggins Fla. 245
16 David Walker Tenn. 243
17 Bernie Schultz Fla. 241
18 Tom Biffle Okla. 239
19 Kelly Jordon Texas 237
20 Harold Allen Texas 235
21 Tim Horton Ala. 233
22 Byron Velvick Nev. 231
23 Mike Auten Ky. 229
24 Skeet Reese Calif. 227
25 Terry Baksay Conn. 225
26 Gary Klein Texas 223
27 Kevin Wirth Ky. 221
28 Koby Kreiger Fla. 219
28 John Murray Ariz. 219
30 Mark Kile Ariz. 215
31 Brian Snowden Mo. 213
32 Randy Blaukat Mo. 211
33 Danny Correia Mass. 209
34 Jimmy D Mize Ark. 207
35 Matt Reed Texas 205
36 Ishama Monroe Calif. 203
36 Chad Brauer Mo. 203
36 Jason Reyes Texas 203
39 Randy Howell Ala. 197
40 Davy Hite S.C. 195
40 O T Fears III Okla. 195
42 Mike Reynolds Calif. 191
43 Mike McClelland Ark. 189
44 Curt Lytle Va. 187
45 Aaron Martens Calif. 185
46 Kevin Short Ark. 183
47 Tim Loper Miss. 181
47 Edwin Evers Okla. 181
49 Brooks Rogers Texas 177
50 Art Ferguson III Mich. 175
51 Steve Sennikoff Texas 173
52 Mark Rizk Ala. 171
53 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 169
54 Jimmy Mason Ala. 167
55 Shaw E Grigsby, Jr Fla. 165
56 Jay Yelas Texas 163
57 Mark Davis Ark. 161
58 Todd Faircloth Texas 159
59 Gerald Swindle Ala. 157
60 Peter E Thliveros Fla. 155
61 Jeff Reynolds Okla. 153
62 Woo Daves Va. 151
62 Dustin Wilks N.C. 151
62 Charlie Hartley Ohio 151
65 Mark Rogers Fla. 145
66 Scott A Nielsen Utah 143
67 Dean Rojas Texas 141
68 Chuck Economou Fla. 139
69 Robert Lee Calif. 137
70 Jim Bitter Ind. 135
70 Jordan Paullo Conn. 135
72 George Cochran Ark. 131
73 John Crews Va. 129
74 Johnny Lesesne Ga. 127
75 Elton Luce Jr Texas 125
76 Randall R Romig Pa. 123
76 Morizo Shimizu Calif. 123
78 Gary Yamamoto Texas 119
79 Stacey D King Mo. 117
80 Zell Rowland Texas 115
81 Frank Scalish Ohio 113
81 Cody Bird Texas 113
83 Marcel Veenstra Mich. 109
84 Luke Clausen Wash. 107
85 Gerald Gostenik Mich. 105
86 Roland Martin Fla. 103
87 Kyle Mabrey Ala. 101
88 Randy Dearman Texas 99
89 Lee Bailey Conn. 97
90 R J Bennett Calif. 95
91 Brett Hite Ariz. 93
92 Roger Boler La. 91
93 Ron Shuffield Ark. 89
94 Terry Segraves Fla. 87
95 Kenyon Hill Okla. 85
96 Mike Hicks Va. 83
97 Randy Yarnall Pa. 81
98 Charles Hammack Texas 79
99 Sean Hoernke Texas 77
100 Doug Garrett Ark. 76
101 David Fritts N.C. 75
101 Kevin VanDam Mich. 75
103 Bink Desaro Idaho 73
104 Chris Price Md. 72
104 Jack L Wade Tenn. 72
106 Charles Ingram Tenn. 70
107 Rick Clunn Mo. 69
108 Tim Carroll Okla. 68
109 Denny Brauer Mo. 67
110 Rick Morris Va. 66
111 Thomas O'Bryant Tenn. 65
112 Chris Daves Va. 64
113 Tom Mann, Jr Ga. 63
114 Todd Auten S.C. 62
114 Dennis Kolender Nev. 62
116 Greg Hackney La. 60
117 Mark Tyler Calif. 59
118 J T Kenney Md. 58
119 Tom Burns Ill. 57
119 Robert Duke McCardle Ga. 57
119 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 57
122 Jason Barber Texas 54
122 Casey Iwai Ariz. 54
124 Jay Kendrick Ga. 52
125 Dalton Bobo Ala. 51
126 Ray Sedgwick S.C. 50
126 Paul L Elias Miss. 50
128 Mike O'Shea Calif. 48
129 Pete Ponds Miss. 47
129 Mark Shepard Fla. 47
131 Jarrett Edwards Colo. 45
132 Robert Hamilton Jr Miss. 44
133 Frank Ippoliti Md. 43
133 Jimmy Houston Okla. 43
135 Norio Tanabe Japan 41
136 Mike Wurm Ark. 40
137 Jody Cordell Ga. 39
138 Mark Menendez Ky. 38
139 Mark Tucker Mo. 37
140 Homer Humphreys, Jr La. 36
141 Darryl Burkhardt Ore. 35
142 Ben Matsubu Texas 34
143 Jeff Kriet Okla. 33
144 Chad Morgenthaler Ill. 32
144 Jeff Magee Miss. 32
146 Coby Carden Ala. 30
147 Charlie Weyer Calif. 29
148 Jack A Gadlage Ky. 28
149 Ken Cook Okla. 27
150 Pete Gluszek N.J. 26
151 Danny White Ga. 25
151 Stephen Browning Ark. 25
153 Tommy Stiles Tenn. 23
154 Lance Vick Texas 22
155 Guy H Eaker N.C. 21
156 Joe Thomas Ohio 20
157 Eric Nethery Ga. 19
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Purolator Big Bass Day
1 Alton Jones Waco, Texas 10-13 $1,000.00 2
Mark Rizk Arab, Ala. 10-03 $1,000.00 3
Bud Pruitt Spring, Texas 6-03 $1,000.00 4
Tommy Martin Hemphill, Texas 6-00 $1,000.00
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-- ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 2004 Tournament Year After Leesburg, FL ending
02-01-2004
Place Angler Name City State Total Points
1 Scott Suggs Alexander AR 264
2 Jason Reyes Humble TX 203
3 Kevin Short Mayflower AR 183
4 Jimmy Mason Rogersville AL 167
5 Scott A Nielsen Salt Lake City UT 143
6 Jordan Paullo Coventry CT 135
7 Marcel Veenstra Brighton MI 109
8 R J Bennett Grass Valley CA 95
9 Bink Desaro Boise ID 73
10 Thomas O'Bryant Drummonds TN 65
11 Greg Hackney Gonzales LA 60
12 Mark Shepard Labelle FL 47
