(Note: As of 6:30 EST On Tuesday 9/11, this tournament appeared to be on. B.A.S.S. stated: "Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the victims of this morning's extraordinary tragedies and their families, and with the emergency personnel and government officials. The B.A.S.S. Tournament staff is meeting (with) the anglers and keeping them informed. We are monitoring the events as they unfold and will proceed accordingly.")

Though not top-tier tournaments, the BASSMASTER Opens typically are fished by a significant number of top pros, in part to give them a better shot at qualifying for the BASS Masters Classic. But many of the top names are absent from this week's Open on the St. Lawrence River/Lake Ontario.

A quick check of the roster turned up fewer than 20 nationally-known pros (see below) because many are at the FLW Championship or are practicing for the upcoming BASSMASTER Tour event on the Hudson River.

High Weights?

Nonetheless, the tournament may prove interesting if high weights are caught. And if recent and past weights are any indication, there's a good chance of that -- barring any interference from the weather in the region, which turn ugly.

The last time B.A.S.S. was at the St. Lawrence was in late September 1999. In that Invitational (Open) Kevin VanDam won with 51-4. The time before that, in 1997, New Hampshire pro Rick Lillegard won with 45 pounds in 1997.

And according to B.A.S.S., the winning weight in a recent 4-day tournament (the two tournaments above were over 3 days) was 76 pounds. So it would seem the weights are increasing.

Look Out For...

With VanDam and many other top pros not fishing this tournament, it's tough to say who will win. But look out for (in no particular order):

Chip Harrison Jr. (IN): Finished 2nd to Kevin VanDam in 1999 and finished 2nd at the recent BASSMASTER Tour event on Lake St. Clair.

Gerald Beck (NC): Finished 4th in 1999.

Roland Martin (FL): Great with smallmouth, and you can never count him out.

Kevin Wirth (KY): Fished well at St. Clair.

Mark Menendez (KY): Can do well around smallmouths.

Richard Skelly (OH): Thought not well-known, Skelly finished 4th in 1999.

Wild Cards

Rufus Johnson (TN): This is the first year on the BASSMASTER Tour for Johnson, who won the Eastern Opens last year. Will he step up?

Joe Thomas (OH): Can surprise you around smallmouths.

The Weather: Though the tournament is being held a few weeks earlier than in years past, anything can happen.

Past Patterns

In 1999, during high winds, the winning patterns were:

VanDam: Open-water areas near Grenadier Island (about 5 miles from the mouth of Lake Ontario) where subtle shoals rose a foot above the 14-foot depth of the surrounding flats. Lures he used were a 1/2-ounce white/chartreuse Strike King Elite spinnerbait, a KVD Pro Model watermelon/gold flake tube bait and an assortment of jerkbaits (gold/orange belly). Fluorocarbon line.

Harrison: Dragged a watermelon green/gold flake tube on a 1/4- to 3/8-ounce jighead, trying to imitate perch.

Beck: Shared some of VanDam's water (they were paired one day). Dragged a smoke/red tube on a 3/8-ounce jig slowly along the bottom. Caught a few on a black/gold Poe's Jackpot, an out-of-production cedar topwater plug.

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The tournament is the first of four eastern Open events, in which anglers can earn qualifying points for the 2002 BASS Masters Classic. Daily weigh-ins will begin at 3 p.m. at French Creek Marina in Clayton.

Following are a majority of the nationally known pros listed by B.A.S.S. as registered to compete in the Open.

FLORIDA -- Roland Martin, Terry Segraves

INDIANA -- Chip Harrison Jr.

KENTUCKY -- Mark Menendez, Kevin Wirth

MASSACHUSETTS -- Danny Correia

NORTH CAROLINA -- Chris Baumgardner, Gerald Beck

NEW JERSEY -- Pete Gluszek

OHIO -- Joe Thomas

PENNSYLVANIA -- Randall R. Romig

TENNESSEE -- Dwayne Horton, Rufus Johnson

VIRGINIA -- Woo Daves, Rick Morris