PARIS, Tenn. - Kevin VanDam has set the bar so high that when the Kalamazoo, Mich., veteran goes a few tournaments without a victory, bass fishing fans are left to ponder if he has lost the magic. But VanDam is undoubtedly on top of his game and Saturday, he laid waste to rumors of a struggle, extending his Kentucky Lake domination at the Tennessee Triumph with a four-day total of 92 pounds, 5 ounces.
The victory, VanDam's 17th - which inches him closer to the BASS all-time mark of 19 - was accomplished in wire-to-wire fashion and the 20-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier was locked in from the first day of practice. Most importantly, VanDam accumulated a stout number of Bassmaster Angler of the Year points and bumped his standing there up to eighth, which puts him safely in the cutline for the Bassmaster Elite Series Postseason with one qualifying event remaining.
While his weight steadily decreased each day of competition, VanDam, who earned $100,000 for the victory, brought in four consecutive limits that weighed more than 20 pounds. His Kentucky Lake ledger includes two firsts, a second and a third-place finish in the previous four times the Bassmaster Elite Series has visited the fishery.
"I kept hearing people say, "Is there something wrong with VanDam," and it kind of made me laugh," said VanDam, a five-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year. "I mean, I had a pretty good start to the year winning the Classic. There have been a few scenarios this year where key bites just didn't go my way and that happens. Sometimes you are on a roll and sometimes you aren't.
"This lake is so special to me and I knew I had a good shot here. It really suits my style. It just feels great."
It was a typical VanDam setup that propelled him to victory. He primarily worked two Strike King crankbaits, a Series 6 XD and a silent stalker in chartreuse sexy shad, which boated the majority of his weighed bass. He mixed in other lures but as in years past, the crankbaits were the main weapon of choice.
While he stuck with an old friend in his presentation method, it was a new toy that VanDam labeled as "key". VanDam's side-imaging unit -he recently inked a deal with Humminbird - gave him the ability to expand on his areas and locate the sweet spots where the bass were holding. In fact, his three best spots were found using the equipment.
Once he found the schools of bass, it was a matter of long, precise casts that were able to hit bottom. If his cast was right, VanDam said, that the bass were so wadded up in the defined areas, that he couldn't work his lure without bumping a bass.
"The technology that is available to us nowadays, it's almost like magic," said VanDam, a three-time Bassmaster Classic champion. "You can see the schools of bass and I'm not sure why they were relating to the areas they were in, but they were certainly there."
While VanDam hasn't struggled by any stretch of the imagination - he will have won more than $600,000 this year with plenty to remain - he has been disappointed. In particular, the previous Elite event on Clarks Hill Lake was the first time VanDam felt he left something on the table. Apparently, he does his best when he's angry.
"I was really disappointed after the last event," said VanDam, 42. "So I wanted to come in here and do everything I could to have a shot at the Angler of the Year. That has been my goal when I started the season and it will still be my goal when it ends."
In a distant second was Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla. Evers totaled 85-12, nearly 7 pounds off of VanDam's torrid pace. While Evers lamented some of the bites he failed to put in the boat, the five-time Bassmaster winner took solace in his second-place position in the Angler of the Year standings.
"It's an eight-event season and you have to perform throughout," said Evers. "I like where I'm at and I can't wait to get back to fishing next week."
Right behind Evers was his brother-in-law Terry Butcher, also of Talala. Butcher amassed 80-4 and moved up to sixth in the Angler of the Year standings with the stellar performance. Sticking to fourth was Jason Quinn of York, S.C., with 78-15 while Derek Remitz of Grant, Ala., snagged fifth with 78-9. Remitz moved up to third in the AOY standings, which can be found below.
Up next for the Elite Series is the regular-season finale, the June 17-20 AutoZone Sooner Run on the Arkansas River out of Muskogee, Okla. There, much will be at stake as qualifying positions in the Postseason (top 12), the Bassmaster Classic (top 37) and next year's Elite Series will be determined.
Kentucky Lake has hosted a dozen BASS events, including the 2009 Tennessee Triumph, at which Lane of Lakeland, Fla., won his first BASS tournament with a total of 97 pounds, 9 ounces, after leading through all four days. Lane finished a disappointing 52nd.
Kentucky Lake is 185 miles in length, with 160,000 surface acres and 2,380 miles of shoreline. Lake Barkley adds another 80,000 surface acres.
The top prize of the Tennessee Triumph is $100,000.
FINAL STANDINGS- TENNESSEE TRIUMPH 2010 Paris, TN 6/9-6/12 Kentucky Lake, Paris TN. (PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4 Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$ 1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 20 92-05 320 $100,000.00 Day 1: 5 25-00 Day 2: 5 24-02 Day 3: 5 21-11 Day 4: 5 21-08 2. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 20 85-12 295 $25,000.00 Day 1: 5 19-14 Day 2: 5 21-12 Day 3: 5 23-12 Day 4: 5 20-06 3. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 20 80-04 290 $20,000.00 Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 5 21-10 Day 3: 5 19-10 Day 4: 5 23-01 4. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 20 78-15 285 $15,000.00 Day 1: 5 20-13 Day 2: 5 21-01 Day 3: 5 21-00 Day 4: 5 16-01 5. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 20 78-09 280 $14,000.00 Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 16-01 Day 3: 5 21-15 Day 4: 5 21-14 6. John Crews Salem, VA 20 77-11 276 $13,500.00 Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 18-00 Day 3: 5 25-00 Day 4: 5 20-03 7. Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 20 77-10 272 $14,500.00 Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 26-12 Day 3: 5 24-00 Day 4: 5 10-08 8. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 20 75-05 268 $12,500.00 Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 19-04 Day 3: 5 18-01 Day 4: 5 19-03 9. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 20 71-13 264 $12,000.00 Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 19-10 Day 3: 5 22-01 Day 4: 5 15-01 10. Matt Greenblatt Palm Beach Gardens, FL 20 69-08 260 $11,500.00 Day 1: 5 20-00 Day 2: 5 18-09 Day 3: 5 19-01 Day 4: 5 11-14 11. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 20 67-02 257 $11,000.00 Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 22-05 Day 3: 5 16-11 Day 4: 5 13-00 12. Keith Poche Troy, AL 19 65-11 254 $10,500.00 Day 1: 5 20-01 Day 2: 5 21-07 Day 3: 5 14-06 Day 4: 4 09-13 BIG BASS OF TOURNAMENT Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 10-01 $1,000.00 BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT OF TOURN Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 26-12 $500.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 84 449 1374-09 2 81 436 1397-08 3 42 225 727-04 4 11 59 202-08 ---------------------------------- 218 1169 3701-13 BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS Pro Points After Kentucky Lake, Paris, Tenn. Ending 06-12-2010, Day 4 ------------------------------------------- Place Name St Pts ------------------------------------------- 1 Skeet Reese Calif. 1821 2 Edwin Evers Okla. 1759 3 Derek Remitz Ala. 1673 4 Brian Snowden Mo. 1617 5 John Crews Va. 1609 6 Terry Butcher Okla. 1606 7 Cliff Pace Miss. 1596 8 Kevin VanDam Mich. 1549 9 Aaron Martens Ala. 1539 10 Greg Hackney La. 1528 11 Bill Lowen Ohio 1512 12 Gary Klein Texas 1511 13 Dave Wolak N.C. 1508 14 Jeff Kriet Okla. 1499 15 Russ Lane Ala. 1498 16 Morizo Shimizu Japan 1489 17 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 1481 17 Mark Davis Ark. 1481 17 Todd Faircloth Texas 1481 17 Tommy Biffle Okla. 1481 21 Jason Williamson S.C. 1470 22 Dean Rojas Ariz. 1467 23 Mike McClelland Ark. 1459 24 Scott Rook Ark. 1457 25 Shaw Grigsby Fla. 1451 26 Bobby Lane Fla. 1435 27 Stephen Browning Ark. 1434 28 Greg Vinson Ala. 1431 29 Gerald Swindle Ala. 1426 30 Matt Herren Ala. 1401 30 Terry Scroggins Fla. 1401 32 Steve Kennedy Ala. 1380 33 Kevin Wirth Ky. 1377 34 Boyd Duckett Ala. 1364 35 Clark Reehm Ark. 1361 36 Brent Chapman Kan. 1360 37 Kelly Jordon Texas 1354 38 Cliff Crochet La. 1319 39 Jared Lintner Calif. 1318 40 Denny Brauer Mo. 1306 41 Mark Tucker Mo. 1299 42 Jason Quinn S.C. 1295 43 Casey Ashley S.C. 1290 44 Paul Elias Miss. 1282 45 Mark Menendez Ky. 1280 46 Matt Reed Texas 1274 47 James Niggemeyer Texas 1272 48 Bradley Roy Ky. 1268 49 Takahiro Omori Texas 1261 50 Marty Robinson S.C. 1248 51 Ish Monroe Calif. 1243 52 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 1241 53 Billy McCaghren Ark. 1233 54 Timmy Horton Ala. 1225 55 Davy Hite S.C. 1218 56 Dustin Wilks N.C. 1216 57 Alton Jones Texas 1208 58 Guy Eaker N.C. 1200 59 Rick Morris Va. 1195 60 Bradley Hallman Okla. 1183 61 Randy Howell Ala. 1177 62 Pete Ponds Miss. 1169 63 Pat Golden N.C. 1163 64 Zell Rowland Texas 1162 65 J Todd Tucker Ga. 1155 66 Jeff Connella La. 1143 67 Kenyon Hill Okla. 1141 68 Marty Stone N.C. 1139 68 Kevin Short Ark. 1139 70 Peter Thliveros Fla. 1137 71 Matt Greenblatt Fla. 1132 72 Bernie Schultz Fla. 1131 73 Byron Velvick Texas 1128 74 Fred Roumbanis Okla. 1112 75 Charlie Hartley Ohio 1111 76 Rick Clunn Mo. 1098 77 Chris Lane Ala. 1077 78 Mark Tyler Okla. 1075 79 Britt Myers S.C. 1065 80 Jami Fralick S.D. 1053 81 Chad Griffin Texas 1051 82 Grant Goldbeck Md. 1045 83 Keith Poche Ala. 1035 84 John Murray Ariz. 1027 85 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 1007 86 Dennis Tietje La. 1005 87 Wade Grooms S.C. 1001 88 Vince Fulks Okla. 947 89 Byron Haseotes Mass. 903 90 David Smith Okla. 875 91 Jeremy Starks W.Va. 867 92 Mark Burgess Mass. 837 93 Scott Ashmore Okla. 755