Monroe Answers With 31-Pound Sack To Win Going Away

By John Johnson
Senior Editor

Just look at this photo. Check out the expression on Ish Monroe's face Saturday afternoon. He'd just frittered away a huge lead at the Okeechobee Bassmaster Elite Series in Florida and the hottest angler in the game was breathing blue flames right into his backside. It was all he could do to force a half-smile for the cameras.

He was still the tournament leader, but an advantage of well over 13 pounds had been reduced to 10 ounces. He was stunned and dejected. And he was done. His day-by-day weights were descending like cannonballs while Chris Lane's were going up like bottle rockets. He wasn't going to win an event he'd dominated through the first 2 days.

Or so it seemed.

In a clutch day-4 performance that might be unrivaled in the 7-year history of the Elite Series, the Californian easily outdueled the sizzling native son today. In a near-complete reversal of day 3, it was Monroe who weighed the 30-pound sack and Lane who limped in with less than 20.

The result was Monroe's second career Elite triumph, and first since the inaugural event at Amistad in 2006. And with a 4-day total of 108-05, his margin of victory nearly equaled the massive lead he'd surrendered a day earlier.

"I had to clear my head and I woke up with a good, positive attitude," he said. "I just went fishing and it worked out. It feels good to win, and it also feels good to win by that margin."

Lane, the reigning Bassmaster Classic champion who was shooting for his third B.A.S.S. victory of the first quarter of 2012, caught 18-13 to finish 2nd with 95-09. Skeet Reese maintained his hold on the No. 3 position with a 22-08 bag today for an 84-12 total.

Shaw Grigsby boxed 22-05 for a 79-02 total that left him in 4th – right where he began the day. Brent Chapman, like Reese a Top-5 finisher in both Florida events, caught 21-06 and ended up 5th with 77-08.

Here are the final totals for the Top 12 who competed today:

1. Ish Monroe: 108-05
2. Chris Lane: 95-09
3. Skeet Reese: 84-12
4. Shaw Grigsby: 79-02
5. Brent Chapman: 77-08
6. Jeff Kriet: 75-12
7. Scott Rook: 75-05
8. Kevin VanDam: 72-06
9. Tommy Biffle: 71-00
10. Terry Scroggins: 69-10
11. Todd Faircloth: 68-02
12. Kyle Fox: 63-15

Monroe's final total was his best ever, topping the 104-08 he scaled at Amistad in '06. The win came on the heels of one of the worst finishes of his career (he was 96th at the St. Johns River the previous week).

Reese, the Toyota Tundra B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year (AOY) in 2007 who lost that title to Kevin VanDam in the now-defunct postseason in both 2009 and '10, tops that list with a quarter of the campaign in the books – he's 1 point ahead of Chapman (to see the standings, click here). His start (5th at the St. Johns River, 3rd here) is reminiscent of 2 years ago, when he opened with a 2nd at the California Delta and a 5th at Clear Lake, and then won two of the next three events.

Chapman is fishing free and easy with his 2013 Classic berth already secured via his win at the Lewisville Central Open last month. His start is easily his best ever on the Elites.

The circuit takes 3 weeks off before resuming at Bull Shoals Lake in Arkansas April 19-22.

Third Stop Charm for Monroe

> Day 4: 5, 30-15 (20, 108-05)

Monroe never made it to Pelican Bay – where he'd amassed more than 59 pounds over the first 2 days to build his massive lead – on the final day. He'd intended to get there eventually, but wanted to try a few places near Clewiston where he'd gotten some bites in practice but hadn't visited during the tournament.

His first two stops were unproductive, but the third was a bonanza. He never left.

He missed a fish on his first flip, then got a couple of decent keepers on his next two. A short while later that duo was joined by three that dwarfed them – a 4-pounder, a 6 and a 7. All of that happened by 11:00.

"There was no reason for me to leave," he said. "There was one other guy in there and he wasn't fishing anything that I was and he was staying completely away from me. I knew I had to stay because it was quiet."

He made his final cull at about 1:30, when he replaced a 3-pounder with an 8. He was happy to have 31 pounds, but not totally content with it.

"I wanted to catch more – I wanted 35 pounds. I knew the 31 that Chris caught yesterday was his biggest bag ever and it's real hard to do that twice in the same tournament, but I still wanted more."

He threw a Missile Baits D Bomb all week, either attached to a jig or underneath a River2Sea Trash Bomb weight. Full details of his winning pattern, as well as those of the other top finishers, will be published soon.

2nd: Lane not Bummed

> Day 4: 5, 18-13 (20, 95-09)

Failing to overtake Monroe today was one of the few things that hasn't gone right for Lane in awhile. He didn't seem too bothered by it.

"If I'd lost by just a few ounces, then it would've been disappointing," he said. "Even if I'd caught everything that bit, I don't think I could've kept up with Ish – he crushed them today.

"I'm going to celebrate my (Harris Chain Southern) Open win and my Bassmaster Classic win by going to the beach with my family for a week, and I'm just stoked to come out of Okeechobee with a 2nd-place finish."

He said the change in wind direction today (it blew out of the west) caused the water level in his area near Observation Shoal to go down nearly a foot, and that pushed the bigger fish out. A pair of 5-pounders were the best fish he managed.

"I missed my goal of getting into the century club, but 95 pounds is my best (4-day) total ever and I caught my biggest stringer ever (31-03 on day 3). I'm happy with it."

4th: Fun Time for Grigsby

> Day 4: 5, 22-05 (20, 79-02)

The veteran Grigsby, a Floridian, thoroughly enjoyed his week. It didn't rival his victory last year at the Harris Chain, but his combined finishes for the Florida swing this year (he was 23rd at the St. Johns) were better than those from 2011.

He raved about the condition of the fishery.

"Anytime you can catch a 30-pound stringer – I don't care when or how you do it – that's pretty awesome," he said, referring to his haul on day 3. "That lake is spitting them out. What I saw today and yesterday, it'll compare to any lake in the country.

"There aren't a lot of the 10-, 11- or 12-pounders, but the number of 5- to 8-pounders is stupid. There's so many it's unbelievable."

His bag today contained a 7-14, but he also brought one to the scale that went just over a pound.

"It was a much slower day because of the wind. I hadn't lost anything the first 3 days, but I got a big one today to eat the (Strike King) Rodent and she just pulled off when I set the hook. It might've been a 5- or 6-pounder."

5th: Chapman Likes His Position

> Day 4: 5, 21-06 (20, 77-08)

With next year's Classic slot stowed away, Chapman has designs on winning the AOY. He certainly laid a solid foundation for a run at it in Florida.

"It's definitely one of the best starts to a season I've had in a long, long time," he said. "I just hope I can keep the momentum going."

His final bag was 5 1/2 pounds lighter than his day-3 haul. Like Lane, he was hindered by the lower water level on the west side of the lake.

"Yesterday I caught 25 fish, but today it was only about nine. It definitely got a lot tougher. When the wind shifted directions, it not only pushed a lot of water to the other side of the lake, but it also made the stained water I was fishing super-clear and made the fish spooky.

"I still got some of the right bites, which was good, but I was anticipating another day like yesterday. Maybe it didn't matter in the end, but I might've been able to climb another place or 2 if I'd caught a really big bag."

6th: Three Stages for Kriet

> Day 4: 5, 20-12 (20, 75-12)

Kriet camped in an area on the west side that he said contained fish in all three stages of the spawn, and he had to use various approaches to catch them.

"I had to keep mixing it up and changing all the time," he said. "They'd want something one minute, and then the next minute they'd want something else.

"Once I stopped to fish, I'd never start my engine again all day. There was so much stuff to fish and I saw some giants cruising around. I caught two or three of the biggest ones sight-fishing, but my main thing was dollar pads."

The list of baits he used included a Jewel swimjig with a Big Bite Baits Cane Thumper trailer, a Big Bite Trick Stick, a frog and a Picasso Shad Walker topwater.

"I had two 7-pounders today, but I also weighed in two pound-and-a-halfers. There was no in between – every day I'd get four to six bites from absolute Kongs, but the first five I'd catch would weigh 5 pounds total."

Notable

> Day 4 stats – 12 anglers, 11 limits, 1 four.

> Monroe, who fishes more tour-level events than any angler, will compete in the Table Rock FLW Tour Major this week.

Day 4 (Final) Standings

1. Ish Monroe -- Hughson, CA -- 20, 108-05 -- 99 -- $102,000
Day 1: 5, 34-05 -- Day 2: 5, 24-15 -- Day 3: 5, 18-02 -- Day 4: 5, 30-15

2. Chris Lane -- Guntersville, AL -- 20, 95-09 -- 98 -- $25,000
Day 1: 5, 21-15 -- Day 2: 5, 23-10 -- Day 3: 5, 31-03 -- Day 4: 5, 18-13

3. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 20, 84-12 -- 97 -- $21,000
Day 1: 5, 19-06 -- Day 2: 5, 20-08 -- Day 3: 5, 22-06 -- Day 4: 5, 22-08

4. Shaw E Grigsby Jr. -- Gainesville, FL -- 20, 79-02 -- 96 -- $15,000
Day 1: 5, 11-07 -- Day 2: 5, 14-15 -- Day 3: 5, 30-07 -- Day 4: 5, 22-05

5. Brent Chapman -- Lake Quivira, KS -- 20, 77-08 -- 95 -- $14,000
Day 1: 5, 12-10 -- Day 2: 5, 16-10 -- Day 3: 5, 26-14 -- Day 4: 5, 21-06

6. Jeff Kriet -- Ardmore, OK -- 20, 75-12 -- 94 -- $13,500
Day 1: 5, 19-05 -- Day 2: 5, 21-14 -- Day 3: 5, 13-13 -- Day 4: 5, 20-12

7. Scott Rook -- Little Rock, AR -- 20, 75-05 -- 93 -- $13,000
Day 1: 5, 20-15 -- Day 2: 5, 14-10 -- Day 3: 5, 18-14 -- Day 4: 5, 20-14

8. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 20, 72-06 -- 92 -- $14,000
Day 1: 5, 14-07 -- Day 2: 5, 12-02 -- Day 3: 5, 28-11 -- Day 4: 5, 17-02

9. Tommy Biffle -- Wagoner, OK -- 20, 71-00 -- 91 -- $12,000
Day 1: 5, 16-03 -- Day 2: 5, 14-04 -- Day 3: 5, 22-14 -- Day 4: 5, 17-11

10. Terry Scroggins -- San Mateo, FL -- 20, 69-10 -- 90 -- $11,500
Day 1: 5, 12-01 -- Day 2: 5, 19-12 -- Day 3: 5, 24-11 -- Day 4: 5, 13-02

11. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 20, 68-02 -- 89 -- $11,000
Day 1: 5, 19-06 -- Day 2: 5, 17-12 -- Day 3: 5, 16-02 -- Day 4: 5, 14-14

12. Kyle A. Fox -- Lakeland, FL -- 19, 63-15 -- 88 -- $10,500
Day 1: 5, 18-01 -- Day 2: 5, 20-04 -- Day 3: 5, 16-04 -- Day 4: 4, 09-06