Kevin VanDam

Menendez Drives home a win

March 29, 2009
(bassmaster.com, March 29, 2009)

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Old-school fishing fans are rejoicing as Mark Menendez of Paducah, Ky., laughed in the face of modernization, simplifying his approach by using an aluminum boat-rig with minimal trappings to accumulate 55 pounds, 7 ounces on his way to victory at the Toyota Trucks Diamond Drive on Lake Dardanelle.

Four-time Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Kevin VanDam threatened Menendez with his tally of 53 pounds, 4 ounces, but Menendez’s old-school approach in the end earned him his third BASS victory.

For the first time in nearly 15 years — BASS legend Roland Martin scored victory out of an aluminum rig on the Connecticut River in 1994 — Menendez scored victory at a top-level BASS event with aluminum, piloting a 17-foot G3 armed with a 90-horsepower Yamaha engine across Dardanelle for three days of the weather-shortened tournament.

With the victory, Menendez earns $100,000 and valuable points in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, which awards the top 36 anglers qualifying berths in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic. Two years running, Menendez, who is seventh in the AOY standings in 2009, has been the first angler out of the Classic cut and is seeking redemption this season after lost opportunities and doses of misfortune.

“This goes to show that sometimes you don’t need the most modern equipment to perform at the highest level,” said Menendez, 44. “This is the purest form of fishing, absolutely old school. But at the end of the day, it’s just a method of transportation and you have to catch the fish to win. Thankfully, I did.”

http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/tournaments/elite/news/story?id=4026140

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