James Rickard2007 Angler of the Year--Skeet Reese
January 21st 2008 07:44
Fishing is usually like chess--more fun to do than watch, but the way the 2007 Bassmaster tournament trail played out made us remember it's still a sport!
The Background
The shirt and trophy say it all--CHAMPION!
It gets interesting when someone sneaks in through the back door because they always finish strong but fail to win any of the days and yet, end up winning the tournament due to the previous day's winner having a day with poor weight total or failing to get their five fish allotment.
To be honest, I never really got very excited about this sort of thing until the 2005 Bassmaster tournament was held in Pittsburgh, PA.
That had to be a humbling experience because you had the best anglers in the world either failing to bag their limit or landing fish that were "throwbacks" in other tournaments. To make a long story short, Kevin Van Dam won that tournament with a Bassmaster record low weight!
It should be pointed out that there are a few prestigious tournaments that are NOT part of the trail. These major tournaments are invitation-only affairs, limited to the world's best anglers based on earnings, Classic wins, and point totals on the trail.
Winning any tournament is always sweet but consistency pays off in the long run. For instance, let's assume that two anglers fish ten tournaments. "Angler A" wins one, finishes third in another, fails to place in a couple more, and, in short, is all over the board when it comes to winning. On the other hand, "Angler B" can finish second or third in each tournament and actually defeat Angler A in total points!
If you swallow the fishing/chess analogy, let me throw another your way. The trail is like a war. You may win a big battle (a tournament) but still lose the war. (total points) The guy who racks up those second and third place wins can defeat an opponent through attrition. So, it pays to remember the big picture and hang in there.
The Drama
Since fishing doesn't get the attention of other sports, few people know one of the best sports stories to come out of 2007.
Being named Angler of the Year is no small accomplishment. The title was even more meaningful for Skeet Reese when he took the title in 2007.
Kevin Van Dam
Through much of the year, Reese and Van Dam were neck and neck. In June Van Dam proved he was worthy of his #1 ranking when he captured a tournament win to catapult himself from 113 points behind Reese to lead by 62 points--an unheard of swing of 175 points!
What was even more impressive (and probably scary for Reese) is that this victory came at a time when the tournaments were heading into their northern swing, which are, more or less, considered home turf for a Yankee like Van Dam who is from Michigan.
Those in the know thought the series was Van Dam's but Reese took the second spot at a tournament while Van Dam finished back in the pack at 27th. Reese backed this up later when he again bested Van Dam. Finally, the spotlight shifted away from KVD!
So, how will this affect 2008? The tournaments start again in February!
Until next time--watch yourself and watch your line!
Reese image from luckycraft.co.jp
Van Dam image from espn.co.com
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