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Syracuse, NY
- The aptly named Champion’s Choice on Oneida Lake concluded on Sunday after crowning three new Champions. Bobby Lane came into the final event of the 2008 Bassmaster Elite Series tour needing just one fish to cement the Rookie of the Year Title. Not only did he catch that most important bass, he added 14 more to his creel and finished the event in 17th with a three day combined weight of 39-10.
The second honor to be awarded was the Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year. Todd Faircloth came into the event with a small lead of 21 points over arguably the greatest angler of all time, Kevin VanDam. Day one saw both anglers struggle neither being able to pull away. Kevin cut his deficit by 6 points coming in just a few ounces heavier the Faircloth with 10 pounds 13 ounces.
On day two, the nightmare continued for Faircloth. The quality bite he had found in practice disappeared on Thursday and did not resurface on Friday. He struggled to catch a limit and when the day was done, his five fish limit of 6 pounds, 6 ounces dropped him down the leader board and completely out of the AOY race.
VanDam, as he as done all his career, found enough fish to power his way past Todd and claimed a fourth AOY Title. He caught 13-1 on day two to seal the title and have a chance to fish in the finals. With a day three weight of 12-5, VanDam finished the event in 38th adding $10,000.00 in winnings to the $250,000.00 he received from Toyota for finishing the season as number one.
Mathematically out of the AOY running but still in contention to win the Champion’s Choice, Mike McClelland came into this tournament with nothing to lose. After putting more than 43 pounds in the boat during the first three days, McClelland started the final day more than 7 pounds off the lead, but still in reach of a decent pay day. Just as he stole the win away from Brian Snowden at the Sunshine Showdown, McClelland could leap frog Faircloth in the point’s standings with a fourth place finish or better at Oneida. The newest member to the BASS millionaire club, McClelland only had 10-7 on Sunday to finish the event in 11th.
Once you wiped away all the added festivities that accompany a season ending event, there was still a tournament to be decided. Amongst all the hoopla that went on during the first three days, Dean Rojas and Mike Iaconelli made the Oneida event a two man race.
Rojas, as he usually does, threw a frog to the tune of 50 pounds, 10 ounces during the first three days. Coming close to several wins on the back of “Kermit”, the affectionate name of Dean’s favorite lure, Dean added a flipping bite to his arsenal for the final event of the year.
Like Dean, Mike Iaconelli relied on a flipping pattern to amass 47 pounds before the final day including a five fish limit that busted the 20 pound mark on Friday. Although he started Sunday three pounds back, Ike was confident about his chances.
In the end, Dean brought 14-8 pounds to the scales to win the Champion’s Choice event with a total weight of 65 pounds, 2 ounces.
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Iaconelli fell to third with just 12-4 on Sunday finishing almost six pounds back.. Surprising the leaders and those that thought a smallmouth bite couldn’t contend this week, Kevin Langill finished in second with a week long total of 60 pounds, 7 ounces.
Dustin Wilks accentuated a great comeback year with a fourth place finish at the last event with a 59 pound total. Dave Wolak rounded the top five with the day’s biggest weight of 16-3 boosting his tournament total to 57-9.
Rojas Rides the Frog to Victory
Dean Rojas has withstood several disappointing final day performances as a result of his commitment to the frog bite. Throughout it all, his confidence in the bait and his ability to use it has not wavered. On Sunday, when his complimentary pattern of flipping a Slurpies Brush Beaver to the outside edge of the grass beds failed, Dean once again turned to
Kermy.
“I’ve been close so many times and when I saw Oneida on the schedule, I couldn’t wait to get back here,” Dean said while revealing he was born in New York. “Today I caught one bass on the Slurpie Brush Beaver and the rest came on Kermy. He really bailed me out today.”
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Dean’s equipment choices for the frog bait were a Quantum Signature Series Frog rod, Quantum PT Burner and 65 pound braided line. He used the Bronze Eye SPRO frog in black color and the all new popping frog, also by
SPRO, in a leopard color. “The popping frog was my numbers bait and the bronze eye caught the bigger fish,” Dean revealed.
Often asked about his commitment to stick with the frog even after several final day let downs, Dean has entertained thoughts of doubt. “I almost came to the conclusion I wasn’t going to win again. Today, I decided to keep my head down and work hard. I knew that sooner or later things would come my way.”
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Fishing is For the Birds –Langill Lands in Second
Watching the birds dive on bait as he pulled up to his primary area – a shoal coming out of 18 feet of water—Kevin Langill exclaimed, “It’s going to be a great day.”
Langill found a large group of quality smallmouths feeding on bait early in practice and he seined that school for more than 60 pounds to record his top ten finish on the Elite Series. “It was super today. I could cast in any direction and catch a fish for four hours this morning. The bite died off when this front moved in. I did catch a four pounder on my last cast of the day.”
Kevin used a lipless crankbait, 10lb Seaguar line and a medium action cranking rod made by Power Tackle. “The rod was key for me and keeping these big smallies hooked up,” he said.
Even when the birds weren’t working, Langill knew the bass were still there. “You could see the arches come off the bottom and the bait fish split up. When I saw that, I knew it was time to go to work.”
When asked if he would change anything about the way he fished this week, he responded. “I wouldn’t do anything different. This place is awesome. I bet there were at least 1000 smallmouth in the area I was fishing. It was incredible.”
Ike Stumbles, Lands in Thirds
“I found a great group of fish, developed a pattern to catch them and followed through on it,” he said about his performance on Oneida. “I wish I had found a better backup area, but I feel like a caught as much as I could from my one spot.” Mike milked his primary spot all four days to accumulate 59 pounds, 4 ounces and took home third place.
The area Ike fished was a big flat with milfoil and curly cabbage scattered on it. He targeted the patches of cabbage with a Berkley Beast with a ¾ tungsten weight and a True Tungsten Glide Bait with a 1 ounce weight. “The trigger was to have the bait crash through grass and cause a reaction bite. Everyday, I would learn a little more about this area and figure something new out. I am pleased with the way I fished.”
Wilks Pleased With the Week
Dustin Wilks improved his weight over the weekend and finished the tournament in 4th. Fishing one primary spot, Wilks put 59 pounds on the scales. “I only spent 20 minutes there the first two days and a little over an hour there yesterday. I stayed on that spot most of the day today. You could catch them on top when they were schooling and on a jig when they would drop back down. I would throw a jerk bait when things got tough.”
The prime location was a small hump that came up from six feet to four feet on top. “Looking back I did the best I could. I spent a lot of time looking for another area, but I couldn’t find any.”
Wolak Walks away with 5th
Dave Wolak was one of the competitors considered as a home town boy and he showed his prowess bringing in the biggest stringer on Sunday at 16-3. “I had a lot of friends and family here and I squeaked into the finals. I had my best day in terms of size, today.”
Wolak fished grassy areas all week and brought in a mixed bag each day. “On this lake, the fish are either in the grass or real close to it. I caught the largemouths in about 12 feet of water. I stayed a little deeper because I thought the shallow bite wouldn’t hold up.”
Dave’s primary bait for the week was a jig tied to 56 pound Sunline braid, IMX Loomis flipping stick and a Team Diawa reel.
“Sticking with the wrong species too long is probably what I did wrong this week. You have to fish what this lake gives you and I made some untimely moves,” he answered when asked about his decisions this week on Oneida.
’08 Great for Jones
2008 Bassmaster Classic Champion, Alton Jones finishes a great year with a 6th place at Lake Oneida. “Oneida has always been a lake that I have had fun on. I had a few spots I could catch a decent limit of smallmouths and then go looking for a quality largemouth bites.”
Jones flipped milfoil in 4 to 6 feet of water using a Yum Mega tube with 50lb braid and a ½ ounce tungsten weight. “It is just like you are fishing for largemouths. When you set the hook on a 3 pound smallie in shallow grass it feels like you just hooked a tank. It was the most fun flipping I’ve ever had.”
Jones used the Kistler football head rod, Ardent SX1000 reel and 50 lb Power Braid with a fluorocarbon leader.
Ashley Back to the Dance
Casey Ashley needed a strong finish to make it back to the Bassmaster Classic. A final day limit of 13-15 gave the singer for South Carolina a total weight of 56-1 good enough for 7th and a return ticket to the big dance. “I had a good tournament and that is all I can ask for,” said the third place finisher in last’s years Rookie of the Year race. “I went out hoping to catch 15 pounds a day, but I fell a little short.”
Ashley targeted smallmouths in shallow water by swimming a jig. He used a 7 foot, 6 inch rod, Abu Garcia reel and 20 pound Berkley Trilene line. “I would make a long cast and work that jig back as hard as I could. Those smallmouths still would knock slack in my line. I needed a long rod and a fast reel to catch up with them.”
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On his season ending performance, Casey commented, “The first part of my year was good, but the last half was all down hill. It feels good to a have this kind of tournament when it mattered most.”
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Lowen Survives Storm
The final day witnessed Bill Lowen leave his boat and seek cover from a storm. “I had a lightning bolt hit a hundred yards from the boat. We were huddled under a tree and a lady comes out telling us to come in out of the storm. So we did.” Lowen, an expectant father, knew when it was time to call it quits. “I’ve got a baby on the way and I didn’t feel safe out there. Sometimes it is just not worth the risk.”
The wind and afore mentioned storm, kept Lowen from capitalizing on smallmouth and it took time away from his largemouth area. “It is what it is. I caught 95% of my fish flipping shallow cover and today I didn’t get enough time to make a difference.”
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Bill used four inch, green pumpkin Power Hawg, 3/16th ounce River to Sea Tungsten weight and 15 Trilene Fluorocarbon line. “I just went all the way up a river and fished shallow structure. That is my style of fishing. It just took so long to get in and out of there.”
Butcher Makes Do
Terry Butcher could not make the Classic nor would he probably fall out of the 2009 qualified field. He was fishing free this week. “I had a good week. I had a terrible practice so to come out of this with a good finish feels great. I found a few spots and just milked them for all they were worth.”
Most of Terry’s fish came off areas that had rock combined with grass. Looking back, Butcher thought he could have changed up a little more. “Yesterday, I had a largemouth area that was getting pressure and I could have hit it a little earlier. It was a one fish area and I waited too long to go back to it. 11 pounds on Saturday killed my chances.”
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Week-ends Good for Bernie
Bernie Schultz was another angler needing a high finish on Oneida to secure a spot in the 2009 Classic. With 54 pounds, 15 ounces and a 10th place finish, Schultz moved into the proposed Classic field. “This week was like a roller coaster ride. I knew I needed a top 12 finish and at times I wasn’t sure I had the bite to do it,” he said.
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Schultz used a Rapala X-shad and Risto-Rap to catch smallies from 2 feet down to 12 feet deep. “For the first time in my career I caught a lot cranking. That is not usually the case for me. This lake suits my style. In this relatively shallow lake, there is not a lot of places for the fish to hide.”
When asked if he would change anything about this week’s effort, he said, “I’m not one to second guess my decisions. I had to make some adjustments from what I found in practice and I am pleased with how I fished.”
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McClelland Finishes Strong
Mike McClelland shared water with 9th place finisher Terry Butcher. His four day weight of 53-8 was anchored by 17-14 on Friday. “Today I just couldn’t get anything going. I think the wind change really affected this area.”
McClelland used his new SPRO jerkbait, a jig and a spinnerbait to catch the lion share of his fish. “Everywhere I caught smallmouths was in bare spots surrounded by grass. When the wind started, you couldn’t see those spots as well.”
“I wish I would have spent more time looking for largemouths. The good ones I caught came off certain types of docks and I wasted a lot of time on the wrong ones.”
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Davis Back In Form
Mark Davis, in his return year to the BASS circuit, finished 12th in the AOY standings. The reason behind Mark’s success was strong performances like the one he had on Lake Oneida this week. The Skeeter pro placed 12th at this week’s event with a four day total of 53-4. “I fished a Strike King ¾ ounce football jig with a pumpkin trailer in 13 to 15 feet of water. Those fished dried up yesterday and I had to go looking today.”
On his first trip to Lake Oneida, Davis stuck with smallmouth for most of the tournament. “I looked for a largemouth bite, but I couldn’t get anything figured out. If I could do it all over again, I would work harder trying to find the largemouths.”
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FINAL
DAY STANDINGS
| Pl. |
Pro
Angler |
DAY
1 |
DAY
2 |
DAY
3 |
DAY
4 |
TOTAL |
| Fish |
Weight |
Fish |
Weight |
Fish |
Weight |
Fish |
Weight |
Fish |
Weight |
| 1 |
Dean
Rojas |
5 |
15-14 |
5 |
16-
9 |
5 |
18-
3 |
5 |
14-
8 |
20 |
65-
2 |
| 2 |
Kevin
Langill |
5 |
15-
3 |
5 |
16-
1 |
5 |
14-10 |
5 |
14-
9 |
20 |
60-
7 |
| 3 |
Michael
Iaconelli |
5 |
12-11 |
5 |
20-
1 |
5 |
14-
4 |
5 |
12-
4 |
20 |
59-
4 |
| 4 |
Dustin
Wilks |
5 |
14-
5 |
5 |
13-
7 |
5 |
15-13 |
5 |
15-
7 |
20 |
59-
0 |
| 5 |
Dave
Wolak |
5 |
13-13 |
5 |
13-11 |
5 |
13-14 |
5 |
16-
3 |
20 |
57-
9 |
| 6 |
Alton
Jones |
5 |
14-
3 |
5 |
13-
3 |
5 |
15-13 |
5 |
13-
4 |
20 |
56-
7 |
| 7 |
Casey
Ashley |
5 |
13-11 |
5 |
15-
2 |
5 |
13-
5 |
5 |
13-15 |
20 |
56-
1 |
| 8 |
Bill
Lowen |
5 |
14-
4 |
5 |
14-
3 |
5 |
13-
6 |
5 |
13-
7 |
20 |
55-
4 |
| 9 |
Terry
Butcher |
5 |
16-
9 |
5 |
14-
7 |
5 |
11-
5 |
5 |
12-14 |
20 |
55-
3 |
| 10 |
Bernie
Schultz |
5 |
15-
3 |
5 |
12-
7 |
5 |
13-12 |
5 |
13-
9 |
20 |
54-15 |
| 11 |
Mike
McClelland |
5 |
10-
3 |
5 |
17-14 |
5 |
15-
0 |
5 |
10-
7 |
20 |
53-
8 |
| 12 |
Mark
Davis |
5 |
13-13 |
5 |
15-
5 |
5 |
12-
5 |
5 |
11-13 |
20 |
53-
4 |
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