KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Brent Chapman fished two very different patterns Saturday to hold on to the lead in the Bassmaster Elite Series Sunshine Showdown presented by Allstate Boat Insurance on Lake Tohopekaliga.
The Kansas pro caught a five-fish limit that weighed 12 pounds, 9 ounces, for a three-day total weight of 42-3 and a 1-pound lead over Ben Matsubu of Hemphill, Texas, in the season-ending Bassmaster Elite Series event.
All the drama of the Sunshine Showdown can be viewed on The Bassmasters on ESPN2 on Saturday, Sept. 29, at 9 a.m. ET.
Chapman, of Lake Quivira, Kan., is seeking his third BASS victory Sunday and the $100,000 prize that goes to the winner. Matsubu caught 17-8 Saturday to move from seventh to second at 41-3. Glenn DeLong of Bellville, Ohio, moved up a spot to third at 37-12, followed by first-day leader Bill Smith of Somerset, Ky., at 35-12, Bradley Hallman of Norman, Okla., at 35-10 and Scott Rook of Little Rock, Ark., at 34-11, who had the Berkley Heavyweight Bag of the Day at 19-6 to jump from 38th to sixth. The top 12 anglers fish Sunday.
An emotional Skeet Reese claimed the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title and $125,000 by edging Kevin VanDam of Michigan, a three-time angler of the year. Reese, of Auburn, Calif., basically needed a top-30 finish to clinch the crown. He caught a limit weighing 10-5, and his total weight of 29-3 was good for 14th place. VanDam, who went into the day in 13th place, two spots ahead of Reese, had 7-2 to finish 19th at 26-5.
"This trophy means my career to me," a tearful Reese said after weighing in before an appreciative crowd at Lakefront Park.
"For me, it validates my career as a professional bass fisherman. To come out on top after this many days of fishing out here, it's priceless. At least one time in my career, I was No. 1."
Chapman caught all his fish Saturday in four small but key areas at the south end of Lake Kissimmee.
"I'm doing the extremes," Chapman said. "I'm fishing a drop shot with a 6-inch Zoom finesse worm to catch the real lethargic fish that aren't real aggressive and I caught my biggest fish flipping a Zoom Super Hog with an ounce-and-a-quarter tungsten weight.
"I got probably eight or nine bites. I missed a couple, but everything I hooked I put in the boat."
Matsubu changed tactics Saturday to catch his limit, which was anchored by a fish weighing 7-4. He credited Mary Delgado, his co-angler Friday, who caught a limit weighing 14-7 by Carolina-rigging a trick worm. Matsubu caught only 7-10 Friday.
"Mainly I've been throwing a crankbait," Matsubu said. "I tied on a Carolina rig (Saturday) and started catching them. All but one of my fish came on the Carolina rig."
He said he caught his fish in 7 feet of water around scattered grass in Lake Kissimmee. His rig consisted of an 18-inch leader with a quarter-ounce sinker.
"It's all timing. First thing in the morning and the last two hours," Matsubu said. "We left fish biting."
Matsubu's co-angler Saturday was Alabama's Harry Potts, who caught a limit weighing 14-11 to go wire-to-wire and win the co-angler division with 10 fish weighing 35-3. Frank Mealer of Alabama was second at 17-14. Don Moore of California was third at 16-10. Potts won a fully-rigged Triton/Mercury boat package valued at $50,000.
Reese said his goal coming into the tournament was to win the angler of the year title, but "then I put it into perspective and said, 'I can't fish chicken.' I wanted to go out and try to win this thing."
Each morning Reese caught fish on a Carolina rig by a shallow point in Lake Kissimmee that fellow pro Kevin Wirth had told him about. Then he moved to the Kissimmee River, where he caught his fish burning a LuckyCraft SKT Trap.
Going into Saturday, Reese said his plan was to catch 4 or 5 pounds of bass, which he felt would be enough to win the title.
"That was the benchmark I set for myself," he said, "so when I got my fourth fish, I knew I had achieved that."
