Reese In Right Position And Still Leads Race

Kevin VanDam needed to catch them today, and he did. Skeet Reese needed to catch them pretty well, and he did. So the Angler of the Year (AOY) race is razor-close heading into the final day of the Toyota Trucks BASS Championship Week at the Alabama River.

VanDam leads the leg after day 1 with a 14-03 limit. His grip on 1st place is solid,

and he's a healthy 3-04 ahead of 2nd-place Kelly Jordon, who's mathematically eliminated from the race.

Mike Iaconelli remains alive in the race by a thread after he brought in a 10-05 limit today, good for 3rd place.

Skeet Reese, meanwhile, was surprised that his limit weighed 10-05, which put him in a tie with Ike for 3rd. Reese needs to finish 4th or better tomorrow to clinch the title, so he's ahead of that pace, but VanDam certainly brought the heat.

Here's a look at how the points would sit if the tournament ended today. Total weight is followed by distance from leader in red.

1. Skeet Reese -- 289
2. Kevin VanDam -- 283 (6)
3. Mike Iaconelli -- 265 (24)
4. Alton Jones -- 242 (47)
5. Gerald Swindle -- 238 (51)
6. Kelly Jordon -- 237 (52)
7. Tommy Biffle -- 236 (53)
8. Randy Howell -- 235 (64)
9. Mark Menendez -- 221 (68)
10. Gary Klein -- 217 (72)
11. Cliff Pace -- 215 (74)
12. Todd Faircloth -- 212 (77)

The river's been a changeling over the past 2 days. Reports are different, depending on which end of the river a pro was fishing, but the water seemed to drop today, which many felt spooked the shallow fish. Even Tommy Biffle fished out in the channel – that's how bad the shallow bite was.

And although Alabama Power did open the gates, the current never ripped like it did yesterday, which hurt the bite all the way around.

Reese Excited, Surprised

This morning, 11 of the 12 pros headed south out of the launch. Only Reese went north.

Reese spent a long time on his fish at the upper end of the pool, then eventually abandoned them and ran back downriver. In hindsight, he thinks that might have been a mistake – perhaps he should have stayed up there all day and "gone for the jugular." At the same time, he noticeably perked up after weigh-in when he saw he was tied for 3rd.

"Oh yeah, I'm happy," he said. "I was expecting less and it's a tight race now for tomorrow. To be still sitting in the lead, that's a damn good problem to have. I know Kevin's on a good pattern, and he's going to catch a good bag tomorrow. All I can do is try to catch enough to stay in the Top 4.

"I've got one area that's got good ones," he added. "If I can get five there I think I can weigh 14 or 15 pounds. But I might need to make some adjustments tomorrow. I don't think the standings will change how I fish. There's definitely pressure there, but it's not like I'm surprised. He is KVD. He's only done this about 4 billion times. I said last week it would come down to the final day of the tournament."

Reese said it's "more than likely" that he'll start at his far north spot tomorrow. "I don't have a choice but to go. It's all or nothing."

VanDam Says It 'Wasn't Easy'

All the pressure was on VanDam this morning, and he performed up to his standard. He said he changed to suit conditions, and didn't lose any fish that cost him.

He can't finish any higher than 1st, so tomorrow he needs to hold his ground and hope for some help from Reese.

"This isn't an easy fishery," VanDam said. "It's not the changing water levels – it's hard every day. It's got a lot of fish in it, but it's hard to catch good fish. I had to change a little bit today, definitely. The water came up and got a lot dirtier. I caught them on lures today that I hadn't even thrown (in practice).

"This place changes every day, so I'm kind of hoping it goes back to the way it was. Spotted bass don't like the mud – especially fresh mud – but we're getting a lot of rain so it's probably going to get muddier."

About the points race, VanDam said: "I know I need to win this to have a shot, so I was hoping to have a big day. You want to get more than a couple big bites and have a great day, but I did all right. Skeet's a great angler though. He didn't win AOY before by accident. And one of the things I've learned about this field is they don't stumble very often. You'll see a lot of the guys who didn't do so well today – they'll figure it out."

Iaconelli Changed

Ike came into the event needing not only a strong day, but a lot of help from Reese and KVD. He got neither.

He's still alive in the race, but would need Reese and KVD to crumble tomorrow to have a shot.

Iaconelli said he launched this morning convinced that he'd "be doing two things all day." He never caught a fish on either pattern. After a few hours he did figure them out, he said, so he's happy that he adjusted well and saved the day, but the race itself is a different story.

"I wish I had a little more," he said. "I never got a kicker bite. The closest I got to a kicker was one I lost, and it wasn't even really a kicker. But I feel like knowing what I know, I'll have a lot better day tomorrow. If I catch 14 or 15 pounds, you never know."

Notable

> Day 1 stats – 12 anglers, 12 limits.

> Randy Howell said today was the worst day he's ever had on the Alabama. "I got four little ones and one almost 4 pounds. That saved me from having a really bad day. I had the chances to have a 13-pound bag. I was swimming a jig in the grass, and I think because they were playing with the water – it was real high yesterday, and they were sucking it back down today – the fish pulled out."

> Tommy Biffle said of his day: "It was pretty slow and completely different from practice. I started out real good and caught four, but one was bleeding so I threw it back. After that it got tough as could be. I pulled out and fished deep. It's disappointing."

> Mark Menendez, who wasn't present at the day-2 Jordan weigh-in due to a family emergency, confirmed that his wife Donna is okay. She suffered a light stroke – something she's experienced in the past – but recovered quickly and drove herself home yesterday.

> During the final moments of weigh-in today, a serious downpour blew in. Periodic heavy rain and storms are expected through the night and all day tomorrow.

Day 1 Standings

1. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, Mich. -- 5, 14-03

2. Kelly Jordon -- Mineola, Texas -- 5, 10-15

3. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, Calif. -- 5, 10-05

3. Michael Iaconelli -- Runnemede, N.J. -- 5, 10-05

5. Gerald Swindle -- Warrior, Ala. -- 5, 9-04

6. Alton Jones -- Waco, Texas -- 5. 9-00

7. Gary Klein -- Weatherford, Texas -- 5, 8-15

8. Mark Menendez -- Paducah, Ky. -- 5, 8-11

9. Randy Howell -- Springville, Ala. -- 5, 8-10

10. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, Okla. -- 5, 8-09

11. Cliff Pace -- Petal, Miss. -- 5, 8-05

12. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, Texas -- 5, 6-10

Big Bass

> Day 1 -- Randy Howell -- Springville, Ala. -- 3-08