What a weekend of tournament bass fishing!
Sunday was no day of rest; it was a day of drama. First, Dan Morehead made a comeback using the still-hot Alabama rig to win the EverStart Championship on Kentucky Lake. Then, Keith Combs topped him at the PAA Toyota Texas Bass Championship with the only thing better than a comeback: sudden death. Combs and Michael Iaconelli were tied after four days of fishing, forcing a fish-off where the angler who caught the first keeper won. That angler was Combs, who notched his second Major-level victory.
As for the Pro Angler World Rankings, there was more jostling than actual moving thanks to a limited number of anglers fishing. Though there were some noteworthy trends.
Brent Ehrler turned in another solid performance at the TTBC (15th), and yet his score continues to slip. That shows just how impressive he has been the last two years when he can beat 71.4 percent of the field at Conroe and actually hurt his score.
While Ehrler has remained static as king of the mountain, those behind him continue to jockey for position. Mark Rose (5th to 2nd), Kevin VanDam (2nd to 3rd) and Bryan Thrift (3rd to 5th) shuffled up and down, with David Dudley being the only angler in the top five to stay put. However, Todd Auten continues to quietly climb, moving into 8th.
And while he finished runner up to Combs in the event, Iaconelli still resides a slot higher in the rankings – he’s 15th, while Combs is 16th – after both anglers climbed. We doubt it will ease the pain of finishing second, but it’s something.
Prough Leaps into Top 10
A top 10 at the EverStart Championship now has Chad Prough in the top 10 in the Minors-Only World Ranking. Prough’s sixth-place finish catapults him to eighth.
Meanwhile, second-place finisher Jeff Hippert saw his score increase dramatically, from 479.416 to 543.736. He resides in 141st.
