By BassFan Staff

A complete handful of proven winners and a couple of newcomers to pro fishing's brightest spotlight will have the eyes of the sport on them Sunday at a big-fish venue that got stingy on day 2 of the 47th Bassmaster Classic. The top 7 in the standings are separated by just an ounce over 7 pounds, and that margin can be made up with a single bite at Texas' Lake Conroe.

Brent Ehrler, the 2006 Forrest Wood Cup champion who's in his second year on the Bassmaster Elite Series, caught a 20-01 stringer on Saturday to maintain the lead in the event. He'll begin the final day with a 2-01 advantage over fellow former FLW Tour stalwart Dave Lefebre, a three-time tour-level winner who boxed 20-11 for a 41-01 aggregate.

Defending Classic champion Edwin Evers was 3rd after a 20-13 stringer pushed his total to 39-00, which left him 4 1/4 pounds out of the lead. Another Oklahoman, third-year pro James Elam, was next with 37-13 (17-12 on day 2).

Kentucky's Bradley Roy, who's in his eighth pro season but competing in his initial Classic, rounded out the top 5 with 37-10 (15-09 on day 2). Right behind him was 2003 Classic kingpin Mike Iaconelli, who scrambled up a 16-06 sack for a 37-08 total.

And in 7th place is a man who'll pursue history on the final day. Kevin VanDam, who boxed 17-13 and now has 36-03, will try to overcome a 7-01 deficit and win his unprecedented fifth Classic.

Here's how the top 12 stacks up going into the final day (red numbers in parentheses indicate deficit margin from the leader):

1. Brent Ehrler: 43-04
2. Dave Lefebre: 41-01 (2-03)
3. Edwin Evers: 39-00 (4-04)
4. James Elam: 37-13 (5-07)
5. Bradley Roy: 37-10 (5-10)
6. Mike Iaconelli: 37-08 (5-12)
7. Kevin VanDam: 36-03 (7-01)
8. Steve Kennedy: 33-02 (10-02)
9. Justin Lucas: 31-07 (11-13)
10. Drew Benton: 31-01 (12-03)
11. Cliff Crochet: 30-10 (12-10)
12. Jason Williamson: 30-03 (13-01)

Post-frontal conditions following some strong thunderstorms on Friday night were likely the primary reason for the dramatic changes on the leaderboard. Three competitors (Alton Jones, Wesley Strader and Matt Herren) who were in the top 12 after day 1 zeroed on Saturday and two others (Cliff Pirch and Ish Monroe) managed just a single fish.

Weights fell off so hard across the board that it took only 21-11 to make the cut to the top 25 – the angler who'd occupied that position after day 1 had nearly 14 pounds. Just under one-third of the field (17 competitors) caught a limit on day 2, which was down from 26 the previous day.

While VanDam pursues a feat that would stand alone on day 3, Ehrler will try to become the sixth angler to win both the Cup and the Classic. The other four are Davy Hite, Dion Hibdon, David Fritts, Luke Clausen and George Cochran.

There's no dominant theme to how the seven anglers leading the pack are going about their business – there's a mix of shallow, mid-depth and offshore patterns for both spawning fish and post-spawners. Their collective primary areas are spread all over the 21,000-acre lake.

Following a sunny day 2, gray skies will return to east Texas for the final day. It'll be warm, with the air temperature set to reach a balmy 87 degrees, and a bit breezy (the wind will come out of the south/southeast and top out at about 14 mph).

Ehrler Hopes To Time It Right Again

> Day 2: 5, 20-01 (10, 43-04)

Despite carrying the lead into the final day, Ehrler isn’t brimming with confidence like you’d think someone with two straight 20-pound stringers would be. That’s how random and inconsistent the fishing has been at Conroe. He’s just hoping his timing is right one more day.

“They bite at different times,” he said. “Over the last 2 days, it’s not consistent. Normally, you get to a lake and you can tell when they’re going to bite, whether it’s around 10 o’clock or from noon on. Here it’s been different every single day. They definitely seem like they bite and then they don’t bite and when they don’t bite you’re not going to catch anything. When they start biting, it’s pretty easy. You just get little flurries and so far those have been at different times. I don’t know when it’s going to happen tomorrow.”

He wouldn’t mind if it happened like it did today, when he had a limit by 9 a.m. While he didn’t catch a 9-plus pounder (like he did on day 1), he was able to generate a string of quality bites out of shallow brush.

“I think it was a timing thing honestly,” he added. “You don’t know when it’s going to happen so if you’re there when they decide to start biting you have to be in the right place, too. I’ve been fortunate so far. I just keep waiting for that day when it’s not going to happen. I think the potential is there for it to go both ways. I think I could go in there and catch 20 pounds or 25 pounds. I also think I can catch 10.”



B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito
Photo: B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito

Dave Lefebre has a measure of confidence heading out on the final day.

Of the five he weighed in today, one was caught on a vibrating jig and the other four came flipping.

When asked what it would mean to close out the victory and become the sixth angler to win both the Classic and Forrest Wood Cup, he said it would be an emotional experience.

“I’m a nervous wreck just for the potential of it happening,” he said. “This is, I’d hate to say a career-changer, but it really is. This is something we all strive for. It solidifies yourself in the sport if you win a Classic. If you haven’t won a Classic or an AOY, it seems like you’re always that struggling angler out there or people might know who you are, but you’re not a Classic winner. I’d love to have the trophy and the title of being a Classic champion.”

2nd: Lefebre Locked In

> Day 2: 5, 20-11 (10, 41-01)

Lefebre was the first competitor in the water today at Lake Conroe Park. When he pulled up to the No. 18 placard by the dock, he sorted through waypoints on his electronics, hoping to eliminate some mistakes he made Friday, and tried to visualize how his day would play out.

“Every single cast matters and over the course of a 9-hour day, there’s a lot of room for bad things to happen,” he said.

Despite catching only six keepers today, it was a very positive day for the Erie, Pa., native. He said that if he’d been presented before the tournament with the scenario that has so far played out for him, he wouldn’t have believed it possible. Yet, here he sits a little more than 2 pounds behind Ehrler, a foe he’s competed against for more than 10 years.

“It feels good,” he said. “If you’d have told me Wednesday, ‘You’re going to go fish a jig on sea walls on Lake Conroe where there are 13-pounders and you’re going to do it all day and you’re going to weigh in your first 10 fish on one jig – not just one type of jig, literally one jig that has all kinds of teeth marks on it – if you would’ve told me that I’d have been like, ‘You’re kidding me.’ I’d have probably slapped you because that doesn’t happen in a tournament ever. For it to happen in the biggest one in the world is just crazy.”

While he doesn’t quite believe that he’s destined to overtake Ehrler and win tomorrow, he’s certainly going to carry a good amount of confidence into the final day.

“I’m as confident as I can be,” he added. “I’ve gotten mega-bites going behind the best fishermen in the world. I waited for two guys to get done with a place and went in there and caught two – a 4- and a 5-pounder today. That’s the confidence I have that I can pull up and make the same cast with my Power-Poles down.”

He compared the way he’s fishing to trying to hit a target in a room with the lights turned off.

“I don’t think you can fish bulkheads on this lake right now and catch five fish the way some guys have fished them,” he said. “Say there’s one light switch on a big, long wall and you’re going down this wall in the dark flipping your jig and not only do you have to hit it once, you have to hit it seven times. It’s not ever going to happen in a million years. That’s why it’s pretty cool.”

B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito
Photo: B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito

Edwin Evers is bidding to become the third angler to win back-to-back Classics.

3rd: Evers Building Momentum

> Day 2: 5, 20-13 (10, 39-00)

Evers went through eight keepers, many of which came before 8 a.m. as he filled his limit on what appeared to be a shad spawn flurry.

When asked if he thought that was the case, he said, “I don’t know, I didn’t ask any of them.”

Either way, he’s in contention to win a second straight Classic, a feat only Rick Clunn and Kevin VanDam have accomplished.

“I got a few better bites than I got yesterday,” Evers said. “The conditions were more conducive to move around and cover water.”

Evers was one of two anglers in the top 6 to catch a heavier stringer today compared to Friday.

“Momentum is everything,” he added. “It can happen for any of these guys. Lake is changing daily. We’ve had wind out of different directions each day and it’s going to be different again tomorrow. That’s the great thing about this lake. Everyone will have an opportunity. It you have something figured out, that opportunity will be a little better and you can catch a big’un at any time.

“I’m going to do what I’ve been doing for two days. I’m ready. There is nothing I’m worried about.”

4th: Elam On Quality, Not Quantity

> Day 2: 5, 17-12 (9, 37-13)

Elam knows he’s targeting areas that have been hit by other anglers, but he still harbors confidence that he can trigger additional good bites on Sunday as he takes a run at his first major title.

“I’m on them a little better than I thought,” he said. “It’s still slim pickings. I could honestly catch one or two or three. So many people have fished through there. There were locals in there today. I know what I need to go to do.”

All of his fish have come shallow, but he’s not targeting skinny water like others.

“I’m fishing for deeper spawners,” he said. “Everybody is flipping bushes, but I’m fishing out in front of them. Instead of 18 inches of water, I’m out in 2 1/2 to 3 feet.”

He caught just five keepers, but started the day with a 5-12 that put his mind at ease.

“I felt like right there and then I was fishing on championship Sunday,” he said. “I had 20 (pounds) on day 1 and I’d just caught a 6. That settles you down and reassures you that you’re doing the right thing.”

Facing a 5 1/2-pound deficit, he’s going to fish for the win tomorrow because he knows how inconsistent the lake has been all week.

It’s stingy right now,” he said. “Anything can happen to Brent. He could’ve worn them out. It’s so hard to keep a lead. I wouldn’t know, but I can imagine. It’s Ehrler. He’s a stud. He’s got it between the ears. This is not his first rodeo.”

5th: Roy Fishing Alone

> Day 2: 5, 15-09 (10, 37-10)

Roy is plying offshore haunts in the mid-lake region and doesn't have any company. His weight was off by 6 1/2 pounds from day 1, but he'll likely stay with his program on the final day.

"We've yet to see a 25-pound bag and I think what I'm doing can produce it," he said. "That's the reason I feel like I have to stick to my guns.

"I may make some tweaks, but if I totally scrap it and go do something else, I don't know if I'll have a chance."

He caught only the five keepers he took to the scale. One of those was a 5 3/4-pounder.

"As tough as it got on me, I think it was probably (due to) the weather, but I don't know that for sure. It should've been getting better. I caught some big ones in practice and some yesterday that were post-spawn. I'm where they should be as they're going to their summertime deal."

B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito
Photo: B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito

James Elam is around quality fish. He's just not sure what he'll catch tomorrow.

Regardless of what occurs on the final day, he'll consider his Classic debut a success.

"Even if I zero tomorrow, I came up with a plan and gave it a shot."

6th: Ike had to Scramble

> Day 2: 5, 16-06 (10, 37-08)

The offshore program that produced 21 pounds for Iaconelli on day 1 was a complete bust on day 2, so he went to the bank and caught a decent sack that kept him in the hunt.

He had nothing in his livewell after the first 3 1/2 hours of the day.

"After I pulled out, it took me 20 minutes to get where I was going and about 35 minutes to figure out what I needed to do there," he said. "From noon to 2:30 I had six keeper bites, so even there it wasn't fast and furious.

"I'm not super-excited about the result, but at least I didn't take myself completely out of it."

His stringer was headed up by a 5 3/4-pounder. He had another in the 4-pound class and three that barely reached the 16-inch minimum-length requirement.

"All of them came shallow. I'd been fishing in 8 to 14 feet with a Carolina rig and a shaky-head, but I put all of that away and caught them in 6 to 18 inches of water today.

"I'm almost positive I'll gamble tomorrow and fish deep all day unless I go 3 hours without a sniff or anything to give me a clue. I have a feeling that things are going to stabilize and it's the best chance I have to make up that ground.

"With fewer guys on the water, I think it's going to happen," he continued. "They rarely go 2 days without biting and that bite did not happen today."

7th: KVD Needs Better Quality

> Day 3: 5, 17-13 (10, 36-03)

VanDam will likely need some bigger bites to make a serious run at his fifth Classic crown, as he's yet to catch a 5-pounder in the event.

"Today was tough," he said. "It took me a long time to catch my first one, but it seemed like it got a little better as the day went on. They were definitely biting a lot better yesterday when it was cloudy and super-windy; I had to work a lot harder at it today.

"You never want to be 7 pounds back going into the final day. The only good thing is it's Lake Conroe and you know the potential's there."

He's confident that he can catch a strong final-day bag, but he'll need several competitors in front of him to stumble.

"I'm not out of it by any means, but it's going to be hard. I'm a little disappointed because I'm not catching the quality I saw in practice. It's gotten a lot warmer and a lot of the fish have moved up to spawn. The big ones aren't where I found them earlier in the week."

8th: Kennedy Executed Better

> Day 4: 4, 15-11 (9, 33-02)

Unlike the previous day, Kennedy capitalized on every bite he got on day 2. He just didn't get quite enough of them.

"I feel better about catching four fish today than I did about five yesterday," he said. "I got four good bites today and one was a bonus – I caught a 6-05 from a place I didn't expect. I could've sworn it was a mudfish and it took me around the boat and all the way back to the Power-Poles, and danged if it wasn't a bass."

He's been sharing some water with Ehrler and was somewhat conflicted as to whether he should just give it all to the leader even though he's still on the fringe of contention.

"At a place like this, I'm only one fish out and the biggest fish that's been caught (Ehrler's 9-12 on day 1) was caught from that area. I haven't decided what I'm going to do. I'll have to talk to Ehrler and see what he thinks. It was my best area by far from practice and it's what's gotten me here.

"I've still got a deep spot I want to try and I've got a spawning cove that had some little ones (during practice), but I don't know if any big ones have moved up or if anybody else has been fishing there. You can't look at everything every day."

Notable

> Day 2 stats – 52 anglers, 17 limits (9 fewer than day 1), 5 fours, 5 threes, 12 twos, 7 ones, 6 zeroes (5 more than day 1).

> Cliff Crochet dropped from 3rd to 11th with a three-fish, 9-02 haul, but fared better than several of his fellow competitors who were also fishing the far north end of the lake. "I have no regrets and I'm fully confident in the decisions I've made and the pressure didn't get to me," he said. "At a certain point, it's just fishing. You can't put them in the boat if they don't bite."

Day 2 Standings

1. Brent Ehrler -- Newport Beach, CA -- 10, 43-04
Day 1: 5, 23-03 -- Day 2: 5, 20-01

2. Dave Lefebre -- Erie, PA -- 10, 41-01 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 20-06 -- Day 2: 5, 20-11

3. Edwin Evers -- Talala, OK -- 10, 39-00 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 18-03 -- Day 2: 5, 20-13

4. James Elam -- Tulsa, OK -- 9, 37-13 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 20-01 -- Day 2: 5, 17-12

5. Bradley Roy -- Lancaster, KY -- 10, 37-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 22-01 -- Day 2: 5, 15-09

6. Michael Iaconelli -- Pitts Grove, NJ -- 10, 37-08 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 21-02 -- Day 2: 5, 16-06

7. Kevin VanDam -- Kalamazoo, MI -- 10, 36-03 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 18-06 -- Day 2: 5, 17-13

8. Steve Kennedy -- Auburn, AL -- 9, 33-02 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 17-07 -- Day 2: 4, 15-11

9. Justin Lucas -- Guntersville, AL -- 9, 31-07 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 17-12 -- Day 2: 4, 13-11

10. Drew Benton -- Panama City, FL -- 10, 31-01 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 13-00 -- Day 2: 5, 18-01

11. Cliff Crochet -- Pierre Part, LA -- 8, 30-10 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 21-08 -- Day 2: 3, 09-02

12. Jason Williamson -- Wagener, SC -- 9, 30-03 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 17-01 -- Day 2: 5, 13-02

13. Ott DeFoe -- Knoxville, TN -- 10, 30-02 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 13-13 -- Day 2: 5, 16-05

14. Ryan Lavigne -- Gonzales, LA -- 10, 29-13 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 16-10 -- Day 2: 5, 13-03

15. Jordan Lee -- Grant, AL -- 7, 29-06 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 08-06 -- Day 2: 4, 21-00

16. Bobby Lane Jr. -- Lakeland, FL -- 9, 27-13 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 16-08 -- Day 2: 4, 11-05

17. Jacob Powroznik -- North Prince George, VA 10 -- 27-09 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 14-09 -- Day 2: 5, 13-00

18. Brett Hite -- Phoenix, AZ -- 8, 27-03 -- 0
Day 1: 3, 08-11 -- Day 2: 5, 18-08

19. Jared Lintner -- Arroyo Grande, CA -- 10, 26-15 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 14-10 -- Day 2: 5, 12-05

20. Clifford Pirch -- Payson, AZ -- 6, 26-12 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 20-11 -- Day 2: 1, 06-01

21. Timothy Klinger -- Boulder City, NV -- 9, 23-07 -- 0
Day 1: 4, 10-06 -- Day 2: 5, 13-01

22. Todd Faircloth -- Jasper, TX -- 10, 23-03 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 11-00 -- Day 2: 5, 12-03

23. Randall Tharp -- Port St. Joe, FL -- 8, 22-06 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 16-00 -- Day 2: 3, 06-06

24. Ish Monroe -- Hughson, CA -- 6, 21-13 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 19-04 -- Day 2: 1, 02-09

25. Chris Zaldain -- Laughlin, NV -- 7, 21-11 -- 0
Day 1: 5, 15-15 -- Day 2: 2, 05-12

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not fish on day 3.

26. Aaron Martens -- Leeds, AL -- 8, 20-15 -- $10,000
Day 1: 4, 10-10 -- Day 2: 4, 10-05

27. Alton Jones -- Lorena, TX -- 5, 19-13 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 19-13 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00

28. Wesley Strader -- Spring City, TN -- 5, 19-09 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 19-09 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00

29. Matt Herren -- Ashville, AL -- 5, 19-07 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 19-07 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00

30. Greg Hackney -- Gonzales, LA -- 7, 18-15 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 13-06 -- Day 2: 2, 05-09

31. Skeet Reese -- Auburn, CA -- 6, 18-06 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 15-13 -- Day 2: 1, 02-09

32. Dean Rojas -- Lake Havasu City, AZ -- 5, 18-04 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 04-10 -- Day 2: 3, 13-10

33. Jesse Wiggins -- Cullman, AL -- 6, 18-02 -- $10,000
Day 1: 4, 10-08 -- Day 2: 2, 07-10

34. Jason Christie -- Park Hill, OK -- 6, 17-11 -- $10,000
Day 1: 5, 15-03 -- Day 2: 1, 02-08

35. Keith Combs -- Huntington, TX -- 8, 17-09 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 07-11 -- Day 2: 5, 09-14

36. Casey Ashley -- Donalds, SC -- 6, 17-06 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 07-11 -- Day 2: 3, 09-11

37. Charlie Hartley -- Grove City, OH -- 5, 15-13 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 07-01 -- Day 2: 3, 08-12

38. Darrell Ocamica -- New Plymouth, ID -- 5, 15-10 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 09-03 -- Day 2: 2, 06-07

39. Alton Jones Jr. -- Lorena, TX -- 5, 15-06 -- $10,000
Day 1: 4, 12-13 -- Day 2: 1, 02-09

40. Boyd Duckett -- Guntersville, AL -- 4, 14-15 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 12-14 -- Day 2: 1, 02-01

41. Skylar Hamilton -- Dandridge, TN -- 3, 14-03 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 05-02 -- Day 2: 1, 09-01

42. John Garrett -- Union City, TN -- 5, 13-13 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 07-08 -- Day 2: 2, 06-05

43. Hank Cherry Jr -- Lincolnton, NC -- 5, 13-08 -- $10,000
Day 1: 3, 07-15 -- Day 2: 2, 05-09

44. Andy Montgomery -- Blacksburg, SC -- 4, 13-00 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 08-03 -- Day 2: 2, 04-13

45. Takahiro Omori -- Emory, TX -- 4, 13-00 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 06-03 -- Day 2: 2, 06-13

46. Randy Howell -- Guntersville, AL -- 4, 12-14 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 04-08 -- Day 2: 2, 08-06

47. Bill Lowen -- Brookville, IN -- 4, 12-03 -- $10,000
Day 1: 4, 12-03 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00

48. Shaw Grigsby Jr. -- Gainesville, FL -- 4, 10-09 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 05-01 -- Day 2: 2, 05-08

49. Brandon Palaniuk -- Hayden, ID -- 4, 09-10 -- $10,000
Day 1: 2, 04-10 -- Day 2: 2, 05-00

50. Scott Clift -- Aldrich, MO -- 2, 06-06 -- $10,000
Day 1: 0, 00-00 -- Day 2: 2, 06-06

51. Wil Hardy -- Harlem, GA -- 1, 02-08 -- $10,000
Day 1: 1, 02-08 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00

51. Gerald Swindle -- Guntersville, AL -- 1, 02-08 -- $10,000
Day 1: 1, 02-08 -- Day 2: 0, 00-00