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Arizona's Dean Rojas Gets Redemption
in New York; Ends Seven-Year Drought
August 10, 2008 - SYRACUSE, N.Y. Putting
to rest a seven-year drought, Dean Rojas of Lake Havasu, Ariz.,
scored victory at the Champion's Choice presented by Ramada Worldwide
on New York 's Oneida Lake , the final Bassmaster Elite Series
event of the season. With the victory, Rojas crossed the
$1 million mark in career BASS earnings and upped his victory
tally to three by posting a four-day total of 65 pounds, 2 ounces,
which was enough to hold off hard-charging Kevin Langill of Terrell,
N.C., and 2006 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Mike
Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J.
Fishing fans can watch the on-the-water action
from the Aug. 7-10 Champion's Choice on The Bassmasters, which
airs Saturday, Aug. 16, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2.
Rojas found success rotating in three primary areas
throughout the tournament. Known for his proficiency with
a frog, he employed that technique throughout the tournament
while mixing it up with a Slurpee's brush beaver flipped to shallow,
grassy areas.
With changing weather conditions, Rojas said it
was important to adapt and be flexible. Through the four-day
event, anglers experienced rain and hail mixed with periods of
sunshine.
Known for its smallmouth, Oneida yielded largemouth
to most of the top competitors including Rojas. After narrowly
missing out on a victory and ultimately finishing second at the
Bassmaster Memorial staged on Oneida Lake and Lake Onondaga in
2007, Rojas was able to exact a measure of redemption on a New
York fishery.
"This is so awesome," said Rojas, 37.
"I've had my fair share of crash and burns over the years
but it just makes this so much sweeter. I had such a clean
practice and when the season started I knew that I would do well
on Oneida ."
With his solid showing at Oneida , Rojas moved
up to 7th in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year
standings, earning a $28,000 bonus for his placement. Sunday,
he landed the Purolator Big Bass of the Day, a 4-pound bass,
earning a $1,000 premium.
Rojas, who was born in New York , was presented
with a Kermit stuffed animal on stage due to his steady use of
the frog in Elite Series tournaments. Throughout the tournament,
he used two Spro frogs to entice the biggest bass.
A new bait that was introduced at ICAST, called
the popping frog, was Rojas' savior on Sunday. He threw
the bait after his flipping pattern came undone and was able
to catch 14 pounds, 8 ounces. The other bait was the Spro
Bronzeye frog.
"Everything went my way this week," said
Rojas. "I have been putting in the hard work all these
years and it's nice to see it pay off in a big way. It
was a wonderful week."
Moving up from third to second was Langill, who
posted a four-day total of 60 pounds, 7 ounces. The North
Carolina pro scored his highest finish ever in a Bassmaster Elite
Series event and closes the season in promising fashion.
The 35-year-old pro keyed in on schooling bass
all week. One of the indicators that he used to find his
fish were the circling birds. When he saw a group of birds,
he would cast to the areas they were near.
His pattern also relied heavily on his electronics
and most of his weight was caught during the early portion of
the day on Sunday. He was fishing a lipless crankbait over
grass.
"It was just an awesome morning," said
Langill. "The weather changed me though and that made
things tough. I'm tickled to end the season this way."
Slipping from second to third was Iaconelli with
59 pounds, 4 ounces. In fourth was Dustin Wilks of Rocky
Mount , N.C. , with 59 pounds, 0 ounces. Taking fifth
was Dave Wolak of Wake Forest , N.C. , with 57 pounds, 9 ounces.
Posting solid finishes were 2008 Bassmaster Classic
champion Alton Jones (6th) and Mike McClelland of Bella Vista
, Ark. (11th).
With the season ending today, 84 Bassmaster Elite
Series qualifying spots for 2009 were determined as well as 36
2009 Bassmaster Classic qualifiers, set for Shreveport-Bossier
City , La. , on Feb. 20-22. The spots were awarded based
on the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings,
which can be found below.
The 2009 Elite Series schedule, which will begin
next March, can be found on Bassmaster.com.
2008 Elite Series - Champion's Choice PRO 08/07-08/10
Oneida Lake, Syracuse N.Y.
(PRO Division) Standings Day 4
Angler
Hometown
No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Dean Rojas
Lake Havasu City , Ariz 20 65-02 310 $102,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-14
Day 2: 5 16-09 Day 3: 5
18-03 Day 4: 5 14-08
2. Kevin Langill
Terrell , N.C.
20 60-07 295 $30,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-03
Day 2: 5 16-01 Day 3: 5
14-10 Day 4: 5 14-09
3. Michael Iaconelli
Runnemede , N.J.
20 59-04 295 $36,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-11
Day 2: 5 20-01 Day 3: 5
14-04 Day 4: 5 12-04
4. Dustin Wilks
Rocky Mount , N.C. 20 59-00
285 $18,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-05
Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 5
15-13 Day 4: 5 15-07
5. Dave Wolak
Wake Forest , N.C. 20 57-09
280 $18,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-13
Day 2: 5 13-11 Day 3: 5
13-14 Day 4: 5 16-03
6. Alton Jones
Waco , Texas
20 56-07 276 $17,500.00
Day 1: 5 14-03
Day 2: 5 13-03 Day 3: 5
15-13 Day 4: 5 13-04
7. Casey Ashley
Donalds, S.C.
20 56-01 272 $15,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-11
Day 2: 5 15-02 Day 3: 5
13-05 Day 4: 5 13-15
8. Bill Lowen
North Bend , Ohio 20
55-04 268 $14,500.00
Day 1: 5 14-04
Day 2: 5 14-03 Day 3: 5
13-06 Day 4: 5 13-07
9. Terry Butcher
Talala , Okla.
20 55-03 264 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-09
Day 2: 5 14-07 Day 3: 5
11-05 Day 4: 5 12-14
10. Bernie Schultz
Gainesville , Fla. 20 54-15
260 $13,500.00
Day 1: 5 15-03
Day 2: 5 12-07 Day 3: 5
13-12 Day 4: 5 13-09
11. Mike McClelland
Bella Vista , Ark. 20 53-08
257 $72,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-03
Day 2: 5 17-14 Day 3: 5
15-00 Day 4: 5 10-07
12. Mark Davis
Mount Ida, Ark. 20
53-04 254 $12,300.00
Day 1: 5 13-13
Day 2: 5 15-05 Day 3: 5
12-05 Day 4: 5 11-13
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Purolator Big Bass
Day
1 Britt Myers
Lake Wylie, S.C.
4-14 $1,000.00
2 Ray Sedgwick
Cross, S.C.
5-00 $500.00
2 Kelly Jordon
Mineola, Texas
5-00 $500.00
3 Alton Jones
Waco , Texas
5-10 $1,000.00
4 Dean Rojas
Lake Havasu City , Ariz. 4-00 $1,000.00
Purolator Big Bass of Tournament
Alton Jones
Waco , Texas 5-10
$1,000.00
Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year Leader
Todd Faircloth
Jasper, Texas
$1,000.00
Berkley Big Bag
Day
1 Steve Kennedy
Auburn , Ala.
17-10 $1,000.00
2 Michael Iaconelli Runnemede,
N.J.
20-01 $1,000.00
3 Dean Rojas
Lake Havasu City , Ariz. 18-03 $1,000.00
4 Dave Wolak
Wake Forest , N.C.
16-03 $1,000.00
Berkley Big Bag of Tournament
Michael Iaconelli
Runnemede, N.J.
20-01 $10,000.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish
Weight
1 96
516 1215-07
2 89
491 1171-01
3 46
238 573-08
4 12
60 162-04
----------------------------------
243
1305 3122-04
2008 TOYOTA TUNDRA BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE
YEAR STANDINGS
Place Name
Hometown
Points
1 Kevin VanDam
Kalamazoo , Mich.
2691
2 Todd Faircloth
Jasper, Texas
2603
3 Mike McClelland
Bella Vista, Ark.
2577
4 Skeet Reese
Auburn , Calif.
2485
5 Alton Jones
Waco , Texas
2430
6 Edwin Evers
Talala, Okla.
2428
7 Dean Rojas
Lake Havasu City , Ariz.
2411
8 Randy Howell
Springville, Ala.
2372
9 Terry Scroggins
San Mateo , Fla.
2323
10 Michael Iaconelli
Runnemede, N.J.
2291
11 Bill Lowen
North Bend , Ohio
2285
12 Mark Davis
Mount Ida, Ark.
2261
13 Aaron Martens Leeds,
Ala.
2255
13 Dustin Wilks
Rocky Mount , N.C.
2255
15 Bobby Lane
Lakeland , Fla.
2247
16 Steve Kennedy
Auburn , Ala.
2209
17 Kenyon Hill
Norman , Okla.
2206
18 Fred Roumbanis
Bixby, Okla.
2196
19 Brian Snowden
Reeds Spring, Mo.
2194
20 Timmy Horton
Muscle Shoals, Ala.
2180
21 Scott Rook
Little Rock , Ark.
2159
22 Brent Chapman
Lake Quivira, Kan.
2149
23 Gary Klein
Weatherford, Texas
2132
24 Dave Wolak
Wake Forest , N.C.
2127
25 Kotaro Kiriyama
Moody, Ala.
2110
26 Casey Ashley
Donalds, S.C.
2071
27 Kevin Wirth
Crestwood, Ky.
2066
28 Kelly Jordon
Mineola, Texas
2057
29 Bryan Hudgins
Orange Park , Fla.
2053
30 Shaw E Grigsby
Gainesville , Fla.
2043
31 Ish Monroe
Hughson, Calif.
2039
32 Peter E Thliveros
St Augustine, Fla.
2032
33 Boyd Duckett
Demopolis, Ala.
2026
34 Bernie Schultz
Gainesville , Fla.
2023
35 Byron Velvick
Del Rio , Texas
2007
36 Greg Hackney
Gonzales , La.
1998
37 Davy Hite
Ninety Six, S.C.
1989
38 Rick Clunn
Ava, Mo.
1984
39 Rick Morris
Virginia Beach , Va.
1983
40 Mark Menendez
Paducah , Ky.
1975
41 Derek Remitz
Grant , Ala.
1974
42 Chris Lane
Lakeland , Fla.
1969
43 Denny Brauer
Camdenton , Mo.
1968
44 Morizo Shimizu
Osaka , Japan
1966
45 Marty Stone
Fayetteville , N.C.
1950
46 Jason Williamson
Aiken , S.C.
1941
47 Jared Lintner
Arroyo Grande, Calif.
1932
48 Bradley Hallman
Norman , Okla.
1922
49 Jeff Kriet
Ardmore , Okla.
1920
50 John Murray
Phoenix , Ariz.
1915
51 Ray Sedgwick
Cross, S.C.
1910
52 Jason Quinn
York , S.C.
1907
53 Kevin F Short Mayflower,
Ark.
1886
53 Gerald Swindle
Warrior, Ala.
1886
55 Matt Reed
Madisonville , Texas
1856
56 Jon Bondy
Windsor , Canada
1846
57 Tommy Biffle
Wagoner, Okla.
1843
58 Cliff Pace
Petal, Miss.
1836
59 Terry Butcher
Talala, Okla.
1828
60 Scott Campbell
Springfield , Mo.
1817
61 Britt Myers
Lake Wylie, S.C.
1815
62 Jami Fralick
Martin, S.D.
1803
63 Matthew Sphar
Pavilion, N.Y.
1793
64 Jeff Connella
Bentley, La.
1780
64 Jeremy Starks
Charleston , W.Va.
1780
66 Jeff Reynolds
Idabel, Okla.
1779
67 Mark Tucker
Saint Louis, Mo.
1776
68 Takahiro Omori
Emory, Texas
1757
69 Kevin Langill Terrell,
N.C.
1742
70 Russ Lane
Prattville , Ala.
1726
71 Mike Wurm
Hot Springs , Ark.
1698
71 John Crews
Salem , Va.
1698
73 Glenn Delong
Bellville , Ohio
1685
74 Grant Goldbeck
Gaithersburg , Md.
1666
75 James Niggemeyer
Van, Texas
1661
76 Wade Grooms
Bonneau , S.C.
1651
77 Jimmy Mize
Ben Lomond, Ark.
1649
78 Stephen Browning
Hot Springs , Ark.
1640
79 Paul Elias
Laurel, Miss.
1609
80 Preston Clark
Palatka, Fla.
1587
81 Brian Clark
Haltom City , Texas
1581
82 Billy Brewer
Bruceville, Texas
1578
83 Ben Matsubu
Hemphill, Texas
1550
84 Mark Tyler
Vian, Okla.
1544
85 Todd Auten
Lake Wylie, S.C.
1543
86 Ken D Cook
Lawton , Okla.
1539
86 Marty Robinson
Lyman, S.C.
1539
88 Clark Reehm
Russellville, Ark.
1530
89 Jim Murray
Arabi, Ga.
1505
90 Zell Rowland
Montgomery , Texas
1503
91 Pat Golden
High Point , N.C.
1497
92 Kurt Dove
Fairfax, Va.
1492
93 David Smith
Del City , Okla.
1488
94 Yusuke Miyazaki
Forney, Texas
1483
95 Elton Luce
Brookeland, Texas
1477
96 Corey Waldrop
Fort Worth , Texas
1417
97 Charlie Hartley
Grove City , Ohio
1407
98 Pete Ponds
Madison , Miss.
1371
99 Jay Fuller
Kingston , Okla.
1361
100 Steve Daniel
Clewiston, Fla.
1355
101 Guy Eaker
Cherryville, N.C.
1333
102 Rick Ash
Pottstown, Pa.
1264
103 Randy Allen
Shreveport , La.
1184
104 David Sherrer
Shreveport , La.
1181
105 James Kennedy Lacombe,
La.
1143
106 Paul Hirosky
Guys Mills, Pa.
1021
107 Greg Gutierrez
Red Bluff, Calif.
914
108 Matt Amedeo
Clinton , Ohio
875
109 Bobby Myers
Broken Arrow , Okla.
438
ADVANCE AUTO PARTS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
2008 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
After Oneida Lake, Syracuse , NY ending 08-10-2008,
Day 4
-------------------------------------------
Place Name
St
Pts
-------------------------------------------
1 Bobby Lane
Fla. 2247
2 Wade Grooms
S.C. 1651
3 Brian Clark
Texas 1581
4 Billy Brewer
Texas 1578
5 Clark Reehm
Ark. 1530
6 Pat Golden
N.C. 1497
7 Corey Waldrop
Texas 1417
8 Jay Fuller
Okla. 1361
9 Randy Allen
La. 1184
10 David Sherrer
La. 1181
11 Bobby Myers
Okla. 438
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT STANDINGS
Place Name
Lbs-Ozs
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 Mike McClelland
368-09
2 Kevin VanDam
352-10
3 Todd Faircloth
344-00
4 Michael Iaconelli
341-12
5 Mark Davis
341-03
6 Terry Scroggins
340-09
7 Edwin Evers
338-12
8 Skeet Reese
337-01
9 Aaron Martens
336-05
10 Randy Howell
336-03
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