Advantage Doubles
Lane's Hot Spot Surrenders Another Massive Sack

Photo: ESPN Outdoors/Seigo Saito All of the fish Bobby Lane has weighed in this week have spent a great deal of time in his livewell.

And he's leading the Kentucky Lake Bassmaster Elite Series by nearly 9 pounds with 1 day left to fish.

The Floridian sacked 26-03 before 8:00 this morning, and then frittered away the rest of the day until it was time to come in for the 4:00 weigh-in. When that little party had concluded, he'd more than doubled his advantage over the field with a 3-day total of 80-10.

Skeet Reese caught 23-03 today and swapped places with Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year (AOY) leader Kevin Van Dam. If this had been the final day of the derby, they'd be in a flat-footed tie for the points lead.

Reese is 2nd with a 71-14 total. VanDam, who caught 21-03 today, is just 7 ounces behind him.

Russ Lane (no relation to Bobby) weighed 20-11 and moved up one spot to 4th with a 67-15 total. Byron Velvick also picked up one spot, as his 19-10 stringer moved him into 5th with 66-10.

Here's a look at the 12 anglers who'll fish tomorrow (red numbers in parentheses indicate deficit margin from leader):

1. Bobby Lane: 80-10
2. Skeet Reese: 71-14 (8-12)
3. Kevin VanDam: 71-07 (9-03)
4. Russ Lane: 67-15 (12-11)
5. Byron Velvick: 66-10 (14-00)
6. Britt Myers: 66-06 (14-04)
7. Fred Roumbanis: 65-13 (14-13)
8. Rick Morris: 65-11 (14-15)
9. Jeff Kriet: 65-05 (15-05)
10. Gerald Swindle: 65-02 (15-08)
11. Kelly Jordon: 64-04 (16-06)
12. Steve Kennedy: 63-06 (17-04)

Bobby Lane weighed the day's biggest bag for the second time in the tournament despite fishing for only about an hour. He's averaging nearly 27 pounds a day and shows no signs of faltering in pursuit of his initial tour-level victory.

Tomorrow is Saturday, though, which means a lot of competitors in local tournaments and hundreds of recreationists will take to the water, along with about 150 FLW Tour pros who'll begin practice for their own event next week. The forecast calls for sunny skies for the second straight day and a high temperature of 84 degrees.

Photo: ESPN Outdoors/Seigo Saito Lane saluted the fans before leaving the launch this morning. Just a short while later, his boat was 26 pounds heavier.

Those who fell out were Davy Hite (8th to 13th, 17-14), J. Todd Tucker (11th to 18th, 16-02) and Brian Snowden (12th to 24th, 13-00).

Lane Ready to Wail

Success in professional fishing is normally predicated on making adjustments, but Bobby Lane hasn't had to change anything all week. He just shows up in the morning, whacks a handful of 4 1/2- to 6-pounders, and then defends his magic ledge for the remainder of the day.

"Me being a pro fisherman, it just kills me to sit out there for 7 hours and do nothing," he said. "It's just so boring. Obviously it's the best spot in the lake.

"I've done a lot of talking with my marshals to find out what their lives are all about, and all of them have been great. But I cannot wait to get out there and fish for 8 hours. I shook about 50 (fish) off yesterday and another 20 today, and I'm ready to just swing, swing, swing and see what happens. If everybody stays back and lets me make a few good casts, I've got a real good shot at winning this thing."

His dominance has been predicated on a single cast, and he said he gets a big bite every time he executes it properly. When he arrives each morning, he makes a few practice tosses off to the side to limber up his arm and make sure all of his equipment is in working order.

"When it's time to get down to business, I've made sure everything is just right. Then when I set up and hit that exact mark, it's lights out."

Today's bag would've been even better had a 7-pounder not come unbuttoned. The best of his quintet weighed 5-13 and he had two others in the 5 1/2-range.

He's not overly concerned about locals beating him to the spot tomorrow. If it's covered up, he has three alternative places to try.

"I really want to fish that spot and catch them good, though. I think I've earned that.

"I want to catch at least 20 pounds, make the hundred-pound mark, make a hundred grand, pick up the trophy and drive to Iowa. This week has been very special and I don't really want to leave this place, but unfortunately I have to. I want to finish the job and get going."

3rd: VanDam Drops a Spot

VanDam did a lot of running and caught a bunch of fish, but failed to connect with any that topped the 5-pound mark.

"The five I weighed in were almost all the same," he said. "I ran some different places at some different times, but it was just one of those things. I know a lot of good spots on this lake, but at a lot of them I didn't even get a bite. And there was a lot of pressure out there today – from other competitors, and there were a lot more locals, too."

He's fishing north of the launch and said a lot of his water took on some color today that had been absent previously. He caught about 20 keepers, along with a fair number of short ones.

Photo: ESPN Outdoors/Seigo Saito Kevin VanDam fell one place in the standings today with this lightest bag of the tournament.

"But I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I love structure-fishing and this place fits my style, and it'll be nice to not have to worry about saving anything for the next day. Bobby's in the driver's seat and I like him a lot and he deserves to win, but you never know what's going to happen on a Saturday around here."

4th: Lane Will Hunt Big Game

Russ Lane's goal for the final day is to hold his position and maybe move up one spot – which would mean surpassing either Reese or VanDam.

"I want to catch five big ones like I have every day and hopefully I won't drop in the standings," he said. "It'd be great to pass one of those superstars in front of me – it's just unbelievable how good those guys are right now."

He thinks he'll probably have to find some new water because his best areas have gotten depleted.

"I have seven or eight places and I hit them all really hard today, and about half of them had other boats on them, too. I just didn't get as many bites and the only big one I got was a 6 1/2-pounder, and luckily I got that one in the boat.

"Hopefully I can get a limit pretty early, and then I can play around and try to find something else."

5th: Velvick Frustrated

Velvick caught a solid bag, gained a spot in the standings and made his third straight Top 12, but he said his day was frustrating. That was mainly due to a big one that didn't make it into the boat.

"I lost one about 6 pounds," he said. "It wouldn't have won me the tournament, but something like that is tough to come recover from.

"It was late in the day and (Peter Thliveros) was right there when it happened, and I said, 'Man, that probably cost me the Top 12.' I thought I only had 15 or 16 pounds – it really felt like I'd struggled. But I made it (to the final day) and I'll keep taking these."

He said he caught fewer keepers than on either of the previous 2 days. His bag was topped by a 5 1/2-pounder.

He's prepared to have to work his way around a lot of other boats tomorrow.

"I'm going to go out and try to make up for some of the mistakes I made today, but there's going to be a lot of local traffic and the FLW starts practice, so it'll be a zoo out there."

7th: Roumbanis Missed a Big 'Un

Like Velvick, Fred Roumbanis failed to capitalize on his best bite. But his occurred early this morning and he had to agonize over it all day.

"It was a gorilla," he said. "It was one of those that came up and shook its head, but it couldn't get its body out of the water. It was 6-plus.

"But I'm tickled to death to make the final cut at Kentucky Lake because this place has never been very good to me."

Photo: ESPN Outdoors/Seigo Saito Russ Lane has hung around the top of the standings all week, but thinks he'll have to find new water tomorrow.

"My goal for tomorrow is to get into the Top 5 because you get those bigger point increments. But even if I fall to 12th, I'm very pleased with my performance here. The name of the game tomorrow is to go have fun."

8th: Morris Bounced Back

Rick Morris weighed his second big bag of the tournament and would be higher on the leaderboard if he hadn't come in light on day 2.

"Yesterday I was fishing where I'd caught some really big ones the day before and Skeet wanted to fish it," he said. "He let me know that if I moved, he was going to fish there. We had a pleasant conversation about it, but I ended up staying longer than I should have and didn't move around enough."

He caught all of his weight today between 10:00 and 2:00. He visited five different spots during that timeframe and his bag was topped by a 6 1/2-pounder.

"What really helped was that I was more versatile, I bounced around to some places that had the same kind of stuff. I caught my biggest fish on a jig and I caught a couple of good ones on a Berkley PowerWorm."

Another 20-plus-pound bag is his goal for tomorrow.

"A good day would be not falling (in the standings). The hard part's done, so I'm going to go out and enjoy the day."

Notable

> Day 3 stats – 50 anglers, 45 limits, 2 fours, 3 threes.

> Russ Lane had an adventure with a 3 1/2-pounder that would've made his weigh-in bag. "I tried to swing one I'd caught on a jig that I probably should've lipped," he said. "It came off in the boat and I dove from the front to the back and knocked over (the BASS onboard camera) and smashed up my arm. I got my hands on it, but then it squirted out like a watermelon seed and dropped back in the lake."

> Gerald Swindle (10th), the 2004 AOY, will fish on Sunday for the first time in 26 regular-season events. His previous Top 12 was at California's Clear Lake in March 2007.

Weather Forecast

Here's the weather forecast for the final day of the tournament.

> Sat., June 6 - Sunny - 83°/60°
- Wind: From the E/SE at 5 mph

Day 3 Standings

1. Bobby Lane -- Lakeland, FL -- 15, 80-10 -- 315
Day 1: 5, 29-14 -- Day 2: 5, 24-09 -- Day 3: 5, 26-03

2. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 15, 71-14 -- 295
Day 1: 5, 25-15 -- Day 2: 5, 22-10 -- Day 3: 5, 23-05

3. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 15, 71-07 -- 290
Day 1: 5, 28-11 -- Day 2: 5, 21-09 -- Day 3: 5, 21-03

4. Russ Lane -- Prattville, AL -- 15, 67-15 -- 285
Day 1: 5, 26-02 -- Day 2: 5, 21-02 -- Day 3: 5, 20-11

5. Byron Velvick -- Del Rio, TX -- 15, 66-10 -- 280
Day 1: 5, 27-06 -- Day 2: 5, 19-07 -- Day 3: 5, 19-13

6. Britt Myers -- Lake Wylie, SC -- 15, 66-06 -- 276
Day 1: 5, 22-00 -- Day 2: 5, 19-15 -- Day 3: 5, 24-07

7. Fred Roumbanis -- Bixby, OK -- 15, 65-13 -- 272
Day 1: 5, 23-07 -- Day 2: 5, 23-01 -- Day 3: 5, 19-05

8. Rick Morris -- Virginia Beach, VA -- 15, 65-11 -- 268
Day 1: 5, 26-00 -- Day 2: 5, 16-10 -- Day 3: 5, 23-01

9. Jeff Kriet -- Ardmore, OK -- 15, 65-05 -- 264
Day 1: 5, 23-07 -- Day 2: 5, 24-14 -- Day 3: 5, 17-00

10. Gerald Swindle -- Warrior, AL -- 15, 65-02 -- 260
Day 1: 5, 21-00 -- Day 2: 5, 22-01 -- Day 3: 5, 22-01

11. Kelly Jordon -- Mineola, TX -- 15, 64-04 -- 257
Day 1: 5, 18-03 -- Day 2: 5, 26-05 -- Day 3: 5, 19-12

12. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 15, 63-06 -- 254
Day 1: 5, 17-09 -- Day 2: 5, 26-14 -- Day 3: 5, 18-15

13. Davy Hite -- Ninety Six, SC -- 15, 63-02 -- 251 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 21-08 -- Day 2: 5, 23-12 -- Day 3: 5, 17-14

14. Michael Iaconelli -- Runnemede, NJ -- 15, 62-06 -- 248 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 23-03 -- Day 2: 5, 19-03 -- Day 3: 5, 20-00

15. Jimmy Mize -- Ben Lomond, AR -- 15, 61-07 -- 245 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 21-10 -- Day 2: 5, 17-07 -- Day 3: 5, 22-06

16. Paul Elias -- Laurel, MS -- 15, 60-15 -- 243 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 17-12 -- Day 2: 5, 22-09 -- Day 3: 5, 20-10

17. Aaron Martens -- Leeds, AL -- 15, 60-14 -- 241 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 21-14 -- Day 2: 5, 20-03 -- Day 3: 5, 18-13

18. J Todd Tucker -- Moultrie, GA -- 15, 60-05 -- 239 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 22-03 -- Day 2: 5, 22-00 -- Day 3: 5, 16-02

19. Alton Jones -- Waco, TX -- 15, 58-13 -- 237 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 21-05 -- Day 2: 5, 17-04 -- Day 3: 5, 20-04

20. Jason Quinn -- York, SC -- 15, 58-11 -- 235 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 18-07 -- Day 2: 5, 17-12 -- Day 3: 5, 22-08

21. Cliff Pace -- Petal, MS -- 15, 57-02 -- 233 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 23-01 -- Day 2: 5, 20-05 -- Day 3: 5, 13-12

22. Kevin Wirth -- Crestwood, KY -- 15, 57-01 -- 231 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 17-12 -- Day 2: 5, 21-04 -- Day 3: 5, 18-01

23. Grant Goldbeck -- Gaithersburg, MD -- 15, 57-01 -- 229 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 19-04 -- Day 2: 5, 20-08 -- Day 3: 5, 17-05

24. Brian Snowden -- Reeds Spring, MO -- 15, 56-06 -- 227 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 22-06 -- Day 2: 5, 21-00 -- Day 3: 5, 13-00

25. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, TX -- 15, 56-00 -- 225 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 16-09 -- Day 2: 5, 22-00 -- Day 3: 5, 17-07

26. Randy Howell -- Springville, AL -- 15, 55-14 -- 223 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 20-03 -- Day 2: 5, 19-04 -- Day 3: 5, 16-07

27. Jeff Connella -- Bentley, LA -- 15, 55-13 -- 221 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 24-04 -- Day 2: 5, 17-05 -- Day 3: 5, 14-04

28. Brent Chapman -- Lake Quivira, KS -- 15, 55-10 -- 219 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 20-01 -- Day 2: 5, 18-02 -- Day 3: 5, 17-07

29. Timmy Horton -- Muscle Shoals, AL -- 15, 55-03 217 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 18-01 -- Day 2: 5, 23-05 -- Day 3: 5, 13-13

30. Peter E Thliveros -- St Augustine, FL -- 15, 55-02 -- 215 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 20-03 -- Day 2: 5, 17-04 -- Day 3: 5, 17-11

31. Jason Williamson -- Aiken, SC -- 15, 53-14 -- 213 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 19-07 -- Day 2: 5, 16-10 -- Day 3: 5, 17-13

32. Greg Vinson -- Wetumpka, AL -- 15, 53-12 -- 211 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 19-08 -- Day 2: 5, 18-03 -- Day 3: 5, 16-01

33. John Crews -- Salem, VA -- 15, 53-04 -- 209 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 23-00 -- Day 2: 5, 12-15 -- Day 3: 5, 17-05

34. Derek Remitz -- Grant, AL -- 15, 53-01 -- 207 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 18-08 -- Day 2: 5, 16-14 -- Day 3: 5, 17-11

35. Pete Ponds -- Madison, MS -- 15, 52-09 -- 205 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 17-05 -- Day 2: 5, 17-02 -- Day 3: 5, 18-02

36. Rick Clunn -- Ava, MO -- 15, 52-03 -- 203 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 20-11 -- Day 2: 5, 15-15 -- Day 3: 5, 15-09

37. Casey Ashley -- Donalds, SC -- 15 51-14 -- 201 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 16-13 -- Day 2: 5, 17-07 -- Day 3: 5, 17-10

38. Dave Wolak -- Wake Forest, NC -- 15, 51-04 -- 199 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 18-13 -- Day 2: 5, 17-13 -- Day 3: 5, 14-10

39. Matt Reed -- Madisonville, TX -- 15, 50-05 -- 197 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 17-07 -- Day 2: 5, 17-04 -- Day 3: 5, 15-10

40. Terry Scroggins -- San Mateo, FL -- 15, 50-05 -- 195 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 22-00 -- Day 2: 5, 16-00 -- Day 3: 5, 12-05

41. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 15, 50-02 -- 193 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 18-09 -- Day 2: 5, 18-02 -- Day 3: 5, 13-07

42. Kotaro Kiriyama -- Moody, AL -- 15, 49-04 -- 191 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 19-01 -- Day 2: 5, 15-04 -- Day 3: 5, 14-15

43. Chad Griffin -- Cresson, TX -- 15, 48-15 -- 189 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 20-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-12 -- Day 3: 5, 14-09

44. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, KY -- 15, 48-13 -- 187 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 19-12 -- Day 2: 5, 14-12 -- Day 3: 5, 14-05

45. Jami Fralick -- Martin, SD -- 15, 47-02 -- 185 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 14-07 -- Day 2: 5, 20-01 -- Day 3: 5, 12-10

46. Morizo Shimizu -- Osaka, Japan -- 13, 46-13 -- 183 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 21-11 -- Day 2: 5, 17-11 -- Day 3: 3, 07-07

47. Bradley Hallman -- Norman, OK -- 14, 45-13 -- 181 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 17-08 -- Day 2: 5, 16-15 -- Day 3: 4, 11-06

48. Shaw E Grigsby -- Gainesville, FL -- 14, 45-04 -- 179 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 24-03 -- Day 2: 5, 11-01 -- Day 3: 4, 10-00

49. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, OK -- 13, 45-00 -- 177 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 13-12 -- Day 2: 5, 21-07 -- Day 3: 3, 09-13

50. Guy Eaker -- Cherryville, NC -- 13, 43-11 -- 175 -- $9,506
Day 1: 5, 13-05 -- Day 2: 5, 23-11 -- Day 3: 3, 06-11

Big Bass
Day 3: Michael Iaconelli -- Runnemede, NJ -- 6-10
Day 2: Fred Roumbanis -- Bixby, OK -- 8-04
Day 1: Bobby Lane -- Lakeland, Fla. -- 7-15