Kevin VanDam

VanDam maintains lead in AOY points race

June 30, 2008
(bassmaster.com, June 30, 2008)

HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. — After being in 63rd place Thursday, Kevin VanDam managed to dodge a bullet in the Bassmaster Elite Series Tennessee Triumph presented by Longhorn.

By making the top 12 cut Sunday, Todd Faircloth had an opportunity to take the lead in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Anglers of the Year race. He had to finish sixth to tie VanDam, and any finish higher would have put Faircloth in the lead.

But when Faircloth moved up only one spot — from 11th to 10th Sunday — it assured VanDam of remaining No. 1, if only by 16 points.

However, Faircloth wouldn’t even have had to make the top 12 to take the points lead if VanDam hadn’t rescued himself from near disaster on both Friday and Saturday. The Kalamazoo, Mich., native made the top 50 cut by only three ounces Friday. Then he caught his biggest bag of the tournament Saturday — 10 pounds, 13 ounces — to move from 49th place to 32nd.

The 2008 AOY race wasn’t going to be won or lost this week. But VanDam appeared to be separating himself from the contenders after finishing in the top 10 in the last three tournanments.

There are only two tournaments left in the 11-event Elite Series season. Now with Faircloth close and both Mike McClelland and defending champion Skeet Reese within 150 points of VanDam, this race probably won’t be decided until August 10 — the last day of the final 2008 tournament — on New York’s Oneida Lake.

“That was my goal, to make up as many points as I could today,” said Faircloth, who held the TTBAOY lead before VanDam scored a wire-to-wire win at Kentucky Lake two weeks ago. “I just never had any good bites today.

http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/tournaments/elite/news/story?id=3466483

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