photo by BASS
He didn’t realize how difficult a Bassmaster Elite Series season with two victories could be, but Friday, Elite pro Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., put the ups and downs behind him as he was named the 2008 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year. VanDam endured a seasonlong fight with Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas, but overtook Faircloth on Day 2 of the Champion’s Choice presented by Ramada Worldwide on Oneida Lake to claim his fourth Bassmaster Angler of the Year award.
To claim the title and the $250,000 top prize, VanDam, 40, had to overcome several discouraging finishes in the 11-event Bassmaster Elite Series season. Despite being the only pro with two wins on the circuit this year, he came perilously close to losing out on the AOY title.
Going into the season finale here on Oneida Lake, VanDam had five top-10 finishes and made the top-50 cut in all but one tournament, the Battle on the Border at Texas’ Lake Amistad, where he finished 56th.
VanDam started the year with a third-place showing at the 2008 Bassmaster Classic, which doesn’t count toward the Angler of the Year standings. He opened the regular season with a decent 31st-place finish at the March 6-9 Sunshine Showdown at the Harris Chain of Lakes out of Leesburg, Fla., but followed that up with his first victory of 2008, in the Citrus Slam on the Kissimmee Chain out of Lake Wales, Fla.
“I have to thank my family and my sponsors,” VanDam said from the BASS weigh-in stage where he accepted his trophy Friday from Tom Ricks, Vice President and General Manager, BASS. “And BASS has done a really phenomenal job to give us a platform like the Elite Series, to go out here and follow our dreams.
“There are a lot of young, aspiring anglers here, the Junior World Championship is going to go this weekend. Those kids want to be up here, they want to do this, this is the top level of professional bass fishing, and BASS has made it this way, and ESPN. I am just so excited to be here.”
The AOY points lead ping-ponged among VanDam, Faircloth and Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark., who won the season opener. The chase eventually was narrowed to Faircloth and VanDam as Faircloth remained consistent throughout the season and VanDam claimed a second victory, this time at the Bluegrass Brawl on Kentucky Lake out of Gilbertsville, Ky.
“It really hasn’t sunk in yet, I can’t believe it,” VanDam said Friday after raising his fourth Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year trophy. “I knew this week would be critical and Todd has not had a bad tournament all year. For both of us to stumble yesterday, I was really disappointed. I thought I’d blown it, but I knew I had a second chance, I knew I had to make it happen. It’s a relief.”
Faircloth fought VanDam to the end, winning the Battle on the Border – ironically the one event in which VanDam stumbled out of the top 50 – but VanDam’s legendary determination and competitiveness gave him the edge.
“I found some deep fish during practice, I really wish I wouldn’t have even found them. It really messed with my head throughout this tournament,” said Faircloth, whose second-place finish in the AOY points was the best effort of his career. “That’s fishing. You can’t bank on anything.
“This would’ve been a really big deal for me in my career. The Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title is a good deal to have on your resume. I was real close, and wish the outcome would’ve been a little bit different. But I had a really good year, I don’t have anything to hang my head about.”