By MLF Communications Staff

Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Michigan, caught 12 scorable bass weighing 30 pounds even to earn the win Monday and advance directly to his third Bass Pro Tour Championship Round in the event on Watts Bar Lake in Spring City, Tennessee. This will mark the first time VanDam – whose astounding career is comprised of 29 major wins and eight Angler of the Year (AOY) awards – has earned an automatic berth to the Championship Round on the BPT.

VanDam’s two-day Qualifying Round total of 21 bass weighing 51 pounds, 3 ounces earned him the Group A win by a solid 10-15 margin over second-place pro Takahiro Omori of Tokyo, Japan, who caught a two-day total of 18 bass totaling 40-04. Jordan Lee of Cullman, Alabama started in 16th place on Monday, before ending the day in third place with a two-day total of 16 bass weighing 34-13, while Tennessee pro Andy Morgan of Dayton finished the round in fourth place with a two-day total of 13 bass weighing 34-10. Mark Daniels, Jr. of Tuskegee, Alabama rounded out the Top 5 with a two-day total of 15 bass weighing 34-08.

“Things normally don’t go the way you plan them, but today was a perfect day for me,” VanDam said. “I knew I had a little ground to make up, so I decided to start in a creek to get away from the main river current and I got off to a good start.”

VanDam started the day in sixth place but moved quickly to the top spot by the end of Period 1. He began the second period with a 1-pound lead over the entire field, before gaining more ground to start Period 3 with a 10-01 advantage.

“I knew if I could make a run at it and be able to automatically qualify for the Championship Round, I’d be sitting in a great spot,” VanDam said. “The Knockout Rounds are one of the hardest rounds to get through on this tour because the weights zero and all the guys you are up against have been catching them for two days in a row. Anything can happen, so everything has to go well, and you’ve really got to be catching them. Being able to skip that day of competition and move on is key.”

VanDam has several big wins on Tennessee River lakes – including his 2021 Bass Pro Tour win on Lake Chickamauga – and more than 20 top-10 finishes on the TVA fisheries, so it’s no surprise to find him on top of the leaderboard midway through the event. What is surprising, however, is his technique.

“I’m junk-fishing, which is far different than I initially planned to fish on Watts Bar Lake and the Tennessee River,” said VanDam, “Fortunately I’ve been able to make it work so far.

“I expected to come here and throw crankbaits on offshore ledges – and that’s what I’d love to do, but that just didn’t happen in practice, so I’ve had to mix it up,” VanDam continued. “I’ve caught a lot of my fish flipping a Strike King KVD Perfect Plastics Game Hawg , watermelon-seed-colored with a little chartreuse on the tail, around shallow docks and shallow brush.

“I also caught some key fish on a Strike King KVD Jerkbait and skipping a Strike King Thunder Cricket around rocks and overhanging trees, just mixing it up and doing whatever fits what’s in front of me.”

VanDam said earning the automatic berth to the Championship Round is a really good feeling, especially after a tough tournament at Lake of the Ozarks last month, where he finished in 51st place.

“I’m happy to be able to bounce back here at Watts Bar Lake after a disappointing finish at the last event,” said VanDam. “Lake of the Ozarks was a place where I had a ton of confidence and I had a great practice, but I just didn’t execute and never made it past the Qualifying Round.

“I’m really focusing on AOY points, so that event cost me a lot right there for the season,” VanDam went on to say. “In spite of that, we’re going to end up with a good finish here, regardless of how things go on Thursday, and I’m looking forward to taking a shot at the win.”

Covington, Georgia pro Jared Lintner also made a big run Monday afternoon, catching a total of 18-08 on the day to finish with a two-day total of 27-14, moving him from 25th place into 11th and securing his spot in Wednesday’s Knockout Round. Paul Elias of Laurel, Mississippi caught a 2-13, followed by a 1-10 in the final hour to move from 29th place to 20th for the day and squeeze into the Top 20. Elias was only one of two anglers to move into the Top 20 during Day 2 of the Group A Qualifying Round.

“This thing took a toll on me, let me tell you,” Elias said after the round concluded. “My practice was pretty bad, and the first day of competition just crushed me, but thankfully I got on a smallmouth deal that saved me and we made it in the Top 20.

“I ended up having to go to some spinning stuff and I started throwing a little 6-inch worm on a 1/4-ounce dropshot,” Elias said. “I caught a largemouth weighing 4-13 with that on Saturday, and one or two on it today, but most of my fish were caught on a wacky-rigged stickbait, and I’m just not that style of fisherman.

“I made so many mistakes today, just trying to skip that thing under stuff, but it worked out and I’m thankful to be moving on to the next round,” Elias concluded.

The top 20 anglers from Group A will now enjoy an off day, while the 40 anglers in Qualifying Group B will complete their two-day Qualifying Round of competition on Tuesday. The Knockout Round, featuring 38 anglers competing to finish in the Top 8, will take place Wednesday. Thursday’s Championship Round will feature VanDam, Tuesday’s Group B winner, and the eight surviving anglers from the Knockout Round competing in a final-day shootout for the top prize of $100,000.

Anglers launch each day at 7:30 a.m. ET from the Spring City Boat Ramp, located at 417 Toestring Valley Road. Takeouts are held at the ramp, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLF NOW! livestream and ScoreTracker coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

The tournament features anglers competing with a 1 1/2-pound minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. Minimum weights are determined individually for each competition waters that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.

The MLF NOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee, Marty Stone and J.T. Kenney breaks down the extended action on all six days of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. MLF NOW! is livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.



Group A Qualifying Round – Day 2

(Figure at far right indicates weight of angler's heaviest fish for the day)

1. Kevin VanDam -- 21-03 (9) -- 30-00 (12) -- 51-03 (21) -- 4-13

2. Takahiro Omori -- 29-11 (13) -- 10-09 (5) -- 40-04 (18) -- 3-02

3. Jordan Lee -- 14-02 (7) -- 20-11 (9) -- 34-13 (16) -- 4-06

4. Andy Morgan -- 15-11 (7) -- 18-15 (6) -- 34-10 (13) -- 5-14

5. Mark Daniels Jr. -- 20-06 (9) -- 14-02 (6) -- 34-08 (15) -- 4-01

6. Randall Tharp -- 24-09 (11) -- 7-12 (3) -- 32-05 (14) -- 3-05

7. Brandon Coulter -- 30-06 (12) -- 1-14 (1) -- 32-04 (13) -- 1-14

8. Brent Ehrler -- 14-01 (7) -- 17-10 (8) -- 31-11 (15) -- 4-10

9. Andy Montgomery -- 21-11 (11) -- 8-06 (4) -- 30-01 (15) -- 2-15

10. Michael Neal -- 18-05 (9) -- 9-10 (6) -- 27-15 (15) -- 1-12

11. Jared Lintner -- 9-06 (5) -- 18-08 (8) -- 27-14 (13) -- 3-15

12. Gary Klein -- 17-02 (7) -- 10-09 (5) -- 27-11 (12) -- 2-04

13. Alton Jones -- 18-03 (10) -- 7-08 (3) -- 25-11 (13) -- 3-00

14. Timmy Horton -- 22-07 (11) -- 3-03 (2) -- 25-10 (13) -- 1-10

15. Bobby Lane -- 14-11 (6) -- 10-07 (5) -- 25-02 (11) -- 3-09

16. Ryan Salzman -- 14-04 (8) -- 10-12 (6) -- 25-00 (14) -- 2-07

17. Wesley Strader -- 15-12 (9) -- 8-15 (4) -- 24-11 (13) -- 2-15

18. Dakota Ebare -- 11-09 (5) -- 12-10 (5) -- 24-03 (10) -- 3-15

19. Mark Davis -- 20-12 (7) -- 3-05 (2) -- 24-01 (9) -- 1-13

20. Paul Elias -- 8-00 (3) -- 13-09 (7) -- 21-09 (10) -- 2-13

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not advance to the Knockout Round

21. James Elam -- 10-11 (6) -- 9-05 (5) -- 20-00 (11) -- 2-02

22. Greg Vinson -- 9-08 (4) -- 9-06 (5) -- 18-14 (9) -- 2-11

23. Mark Rose -- 11-01 (5) -- 7-11 (4) -- 18-12 (9) -- 2-10

24. Boyd Duckett -- 6-11 (3) -- 10-14 (5) -- 17-09 (8) -- 2-11

25. Dean Rojas -- 12-14 (6) -- 3-15 (2) -- 16-13 (8) -- 2-07

26. David Dudley -- 8-08 (3) -- 7-06 (4) -- 15-14 (7) -- 2-01

27. Britt Myers -- 3-03 (2) -- 12-10 (5) -- 15-13 (7) -- 3-13

28. Keith Poche -- 6-11 (4) -- 8-12 (5) -- 15-07 (9) -- 2-03

29. Cody Meyer -- 8-05 (4) -- 7-02 (4) -- 15-07 (8) -- 2-03

30. Randy Howell -- 12-09 (5) -- 2-11 (1) -- 15-04 (6) -- 2-11

31. Shin Fukae -- 9-00 (5) -- 6-01 (3) -- 15-01 (8) -- 2-05

32. Cliff Crochet -- 11-05 (6) -- 3-02 (2) -- 14-07 (8) -- 1-10

33. Fred Roumbanis -- 5-01 (3) -- 9-04 (4) -- 14-05 (7) -- 3-04

34. Edwin Evers -- 3-00 (1) -- 10-13 (5) -- 13-13 (6) -- 2-07

35. James Watson -- 6-05 (3) -- 6-07 (3) -- 12-12 (6) -- 2-12

36. John Murray -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-03 (4) -- 10-03 (4) -- 3-04

37. Shaw Grigsby -- 4-09 (2) -- 5-08 (3) -- 10-01 (5) -- 2-06

38. Anthony Gagliardi -- 0-00 (0) -- 9-02 (3) -- 9-02 (3) -- 3-04

39. Marty Robinson -- 6-01 (3) -- 1-10 (1) -- 7-11 (4) -- 1-10

40. Mike McClelland -- 2-10 (1) -- 4-04 (2) -- 6-14 (3) -- 2-10