Gary Klein is currently 29th in the Bassmaster Elite Series points, which means he's dangerously close to the 36th-place cutoff for 2007 Bassmaster Classic qualification. And remember that he missed qualification last year, then was granted entry through a special BASS ruling after a minor controversy that concerned points distribution.
How does Klein feel going into the final event at Table Rock Lake, which begins 3 weeks from now? He's competed in four previous BASS events there. Here's a look:
> 2005 – 112th
> 2004 – 74th
> 1999 – 17th
> 1996 – 1st
So he's won there before, and also tanked once. But note too that each of those four tournaments were in the spring.
"I'm excited about Table Rock," he said. "It's going to be a great tournament from a competitor's standpoint. This whole field is not going to whack them. You won't see everybody catching limits – it'll be tough like the Arkansas River. But I feel it really suits my style of fishing. If I can go there and execute one at a time, I'll do fine."
And he doesn't feel any pressure to preserve his Classic berth. "Whatever happens will happen. All I have to do is go be efficient with my practice, practice smart and get the job done. The most important thing is, when I leave Table Rock, I want to know I gave it my best.
"I'm not even thinking about the Classic. I'm just thinking about catching them. But with the position I'm in, I do know I need a Top 50 to be in for sure."
