Kota Clinches First Win
August 3, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
With more than an 8-pound advantage on the final day, Bassmaster Elite Series pro Kotaro Kiriyama of Moody, Ala., capitalized on a successful week of fishing deep and finding bait fish, winning the Empire Chase presented by Farmer’s Insurance on Sunday with 93 pounds, 6 ounces overall for the four-day tournament on Lake Erie and the Niagara River.
Kiriyama’s first career victory as a pro earned him a $100,000 first-place prize and included two days’ worth of bonuses for Berkley Big Bag honors (25-0 Saturday; 25-9 Sunday) and Purolator Big Bass honors – for a 5-15 smallmouth Saturday and a 5-8 smallmouth Sunday that tied Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas, for Big Bass. Kiriyama earned a total of $114,500.
Fishing fans can catch all of the action from the Empire Chase on The Bassmasters on Saturday, Aug. 9, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2.
Kiriyama came to America when he was 18 because, he said, his father encouraged him to find a profession that would keep him out of trouble, which he seemed to find in his native Japan as a wily teenager. He dedicated the win to his ailing dad, who was watching Sunday’s final weigh-in via the live Webcast on Bassmaster.com.
Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., the 2005 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year, finished second with 20-12 on Sunday and 85-1 overall. The 2007 Empire Chase winner Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., finished third with 20-4 on Sunday and 84-8 overall. John Murray of Phoenix finished fourth with 79-14 overall, and Day 2 leader Mike Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J., finished fifth with 79-7 overall.
Kiriyama’s victory wasn’t the only drama playing out Sunday, as the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race got a shakeup at the top of the ranks. With his sixth-place finish in the Empire Chase, Faircloth took over the lead in the AOY title chase by 21 points over former leader Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich. Faircloth’s four-day total in the Empire Chase was 77-11.
VanDam, who led the AOY race coming into the Empire Chase, finished the tournament in 18th with 53-0 overall. Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark., remains in third (47th at Empire Chase, 46-0) and reigning Bassmaster Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., remains fourth (59th, 28-9). Evers rounds out the top five in the AOY after his third-place finish at the Empire Chase.
The winner of the AOY race, which will be determined at the Aug. 7-10 Champion’s Choice, will receive $250,000 and the points will also determine the brunt of the 2009 Bassmaster Classic qualifiers. The top 36 Elite pros will qualify for the Classic, set for Feb. 20-22 out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La. Also derived from the AOY points will be the first 84 qualifiers for the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series roster.
Just as he did in 2007, Kiriyama used a Jackal drop-shot Crazy Ninja Worm in some of the deepest water of the tournament – from 30 feet to as much as 80 feet – to target suspended fish. A crucial component for the Japan native’s success was finding bait fish on which the smallmouth were feeding.
“I had to catch everything available at the time each day, because I never knew if I was going to get there the next day,” he said, referring to the windy, choppy conditions that could have kept him from his favorite spots. “I’ve been waiting for this since I became a professional – eight years.”
He culled about 40 fish in two to three hours of fishing Sunday, and was surprised more anglers weren’t using the same drop-shot worm this year. The only difference in his strategy this year was the addition of Berkley Gulp! liquid, in which he marinated his bait. He left the rest up to the fish.
“I don’t have to do anything,” Kiriyama said. “I see the fish on the graph, drop the line and just watch fish come and eat.”
Martens fished worms in 30 to 40 feet of water, and most of his fish came on long casts. He said he could see plenty of big fish in his spots.
“I couldn’t believe how many fish there were,” Martens said. “There are so many 5- and 6-pounders, it’d make you sick, but those 4-pounders are more aggressive and they get to the bait before the big ones do.”
Also of note, with his 12th-place finish Sunday, Elite Series pro Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., joined the BASS Millionaires’ Club after a $12,300 payday for the Empire Chase, bringing the exclusive club’s membership to 27.
VanDam, 40, likely will make history again to wrap up the 2008 season, this time as the first BASS angler to eclipse the $3 million mark. With one tournament remaining, the Champion’s Choice presented by Ramada Worldwide out of Syracuse, N.Y. on Oneida Lake, VanDam’s earnings are at $2,972,458.
Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., all but secured the Advance Auto Parts Rookie of the Year title, increasing the gap between himself and Wade Grooms of Bonneau, S.C. to 468 points with one event to go.
Mike McClelland continues to lead the race for the season’s Berkley Heavyweight title with 340 pounds, 8 ounces, staying ahead of VanDam by more than 12 pounds.
Up next is the Aug. 7-10 season finale, the Champion’s Choice presented by Ramada Worldwide on Oneida Lake out of Syracuse, N.Y.
For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit http://www.Bassmaster.com. Visit ESPNMediaZone.com for ESPN’s latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video, audio clips and more.
The Buffalo Convention & Visitors Bureau was the local sponsor of the Empire Chase presented by Farmer’s Insurance.
Sponsors of the Bassmaster Elite Series include Toyota Tundra, Advance Auto Parts, Berkley, Lowrance, Mercury, Purolator, Skeeter, Yamaha, Evan Williams Bourbon, Longhorn, OPTIMA Batteries, Triton Boats, Costa Del Mar, MotorGuide and Ramada Worldwide.
Location and Field
Empire Chase presented by Farmer’s Insurance
Lake Erie/Niagara River
Buffalo
July 31-Aug. 3, 2008
Field
106 pros, 106 co-anglers
Cut to top 50 pros and co-anglers after Day 2
Cut to top 12 pro anglers after Day 3
Launch/Weigh-in
NFTA Small Boat Harbor
111 Furhmann Blvd.
Buffalo, NY
8 a.m./5 p.m. ET
Kiriyama Takes the Lead
August 2, 2008 by admin · Leave a Comment
Thinking small paid big dividends for Bassmaster Elite Series pro Kotaro Kiriyama of Moody, Ala., as he kept with a plan Saturday to key in on bait fish and surged to the lead on Day 3 in the Empire Chase presented by Farmer’s Insurance. Kiriyama’s 25 pounds is the heaviest five-fish limit of the four-day tournament so far on Lake Erie and the Niagara River.
Should Kiriyama hang on and claim his first career BASS victory, he would earn $100,000, adding to his Berkley Big Bag honors and Purolator Big Bass honors for a 5-pound, 15-ounce lunker smallmouth and the $1,000 premiums that go with those awards. His closest competitors, 2005 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., and 2007 Empire Chase winner Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., respectively, trail him by more than 3 pounds.
Martens is second with 64-5 overall, while Evers is third with 64-4. Day 2 leader Mike Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J., the 2006 Angler of the Year and 2003 Bassmaster Classic winner, slipped to fourth Saturday with 17-12 for 62-1 overall. Rounding out the top five is John Murray of Phoenix, with 60-11.
Fishing fans can catch all of the action from the Empire Chase on The Bassmasters on Saturday, Aug. 9, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2.
More than the trophy is at stake at the Empire Chase, as the drama of the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race continues to build. Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas, in second place in the AOY race, will take over the lead after the Empire Chase after qualifying for the final cut to 12 for Day 4. With a three-day total of 55-13 he is tied for seventh place in the tournament with Shaw Grigsby of Gainesville, Fla., who has eight career BASS victories to his credit.
Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., who led the AOY race coming into the Empire Chase, finished the tournament in 18th with 53-0 overall. He will fall to second in the AOY race, while Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark., remains in third (47th at Empire Chase, 46-0) and reigning Bassmaster Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., remains fourth (59th, 28-9).
The winner of the AOY race will receive $250,000 and the points will also determine the brunt of the 2009 Bassmaster Classic qualifiers. The top 36 Elite pros will qualify for the Classic, set for Feb. 20-22 out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La. Also derived from the AOY points will be the first 84 qualifiers for the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series roster.
Local favorite Matthew Sphar of Pavilion, N.Y., finished 43rd with a three-day total of 47-3.
Using the same 4-inch bait he used in 2007, Kiriyama is fishing some of the deepest water of the tournament at more than 70 feet, but the fish he is targeting are suspended. One of the keys of his success through the tournament has been imitating bait fish the smallmouth are feeding on.
“As long as I can get there, I have a chance to catch more fish,” said Kiriyama, 37, who added that he lost a 6-pounder Saturday. “I can see every fish going down, I catch it, stop it – it’s like a game. They can see anything in a certain size range, but if I use a bigger bait, I lose the fish because the bait gets stuck in their mouths.”
Martens continued his solid run with another 20-plus bag, this time one that he wasn’t expecting.
“I thought I had 19 pounds. That’s why I’m so smiley right now,” Martens said. “I had a terrible start. My biggest one came pretty quick, set it in the rocks, tried to jerk it loose and lost it. That was a 5-pounder.”
Martens, who is sharing water with Evers, didn’t catch much more than 2- or 3-pounders for much of the day. But he came back around to a previous spot Saturday and found a large school.
“It started getting rough, but within 45 minutes I culled three fish. They were nice 4-pounders,” Martens said. “The hardest part is, you have these awesome spots but if the fish aren’t there they’re not good. You’ve got to kick yourself and make yourself move.”
Among those making the cut in the top 12: Day 1 leader Matt Reed (11th, 55-1); and three-time BASS tournament winner Greg Hackney (12th, 55-0).
Tim Creighton of Buffalo held on to win the co-angler division and a $25,000 top prize with an overall weight of 38-14. South Carolina’s Marcos Malucelli finished second with 35-5.
Sunday’s final tournament launch and weigh-in will take place at the NFTA Small Boat Harbor, 111 Fuhrmann Blvd. Launch is at 8 a.m. ET and weigh-in at 5 p.m. As always, Bassmaster.com will provide updates throughout the day and preview the final weigh-in with Hooked Up, live at 4:30 p.m., hosted by ESPN2 Outdoors personalities Mark Zona and Tommy Sanders and BASS emcee Keith Alan.
For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit http://www.Bassmaster.com. Visit ESPNMediaZone.com for ESPN’s latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video, audio clips and more.
The local sponsor of the Empire Chase is the Buffalo Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Sponsors of the Bassmaster Elite Series include Toyota Tundra, Advance Auto Parts, Berkley, Lowrance, Mercury, Purolator, Skeeter, Yamaha, Evan Williams Bourbon, Longhorn, OPTIMA Batteries, Triton Boats, Costa Del Mar, MotorGuide and Ramada Worldwide.
Location and Field
Empire Chase presented by Farmer’s Insurance
Lake Erie/Niagara River
Buffalo
July 31-Aug. 3, 2008
Field
106 pros, 106 co-anglers
Cut to top 50 pros and co-anglers after Day 2
Cut to top 12 pro anglers after Day 3
Launch/Weigh-in
NFTA Small Boat Harbor
111 Furhmann Blvd.
Buffalo, NY
8 a.m./5 p.m. ET
