CLAYTON, N.Y. – Dave Lefebre of Erie, Pa., claimed the No. 1 qualifying spot Friday going into the final round of the $210,000 EverStart Series tournament on Thousand Islands with five bass weighing 20 pounds, 7 ounces.
Lefebre, who won a Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Northeast Division tournament Aug. 3, will compete Saturday against nine other finalists in the Pro Division for a top award of $15,000 cash and an Evinrude- or Yamaha-powered Ranger boat. If his boat is equipped with a fixed-mount GARMIN Fishfinder or combination GPS/Sounder, he will also receive a $1,000 bonus from GARMIN.
Finalists start on equal footing as weights from previous rounds are erased, and the winner is determined by the weight of Saturday’s catch. The original field of 156 pros was whittled to the top 20 Thursday and cut to the top 10 Friday.
Lefebre, who currently ranks third in EverStart Series Northern Division standings, said he wants to protect his top-10 ranking in order to realize his dream – fishing in the Wal-Mart FLW Tour.
“This tournament was my scary spot, my weak spot, because I don’t really do well here,” he said. “I’m overwhelmed.”
Lefebre caught his bass Friday flipping a jig in places up the river that he said he never got a bite on in practice. In the opening round, he caught a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 32 pounds, 6 ounces using a Senko in deeper water to make the opening-round cut in eighth place.
Dean Meckes of Clayton, N.Y. (five bass, 19 pounds, 4 ounces); Mark Zona of Sturgis, Mich. (five bass, 18 pounds, 10 ounces); Randy Ramsey of Battle Creek, Mich. (five bass, 17 pounds, 9 ounces); and Tom Dolin of Palatine Bridge, N.Y., (five bass, 17 pounds, 6 ounces) rounded out the top five pros.
Chris Wade of Preston, Conn., claimed the top co-angler spot Friday with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 14 ounces. He survived the semifinal round cut from 156 to 20 co-anglers Thursday in third place with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 25 pounds, 5 ounces.
“I kind of lagged behind Thursday and got just what I needed to make the cut,” said Wade, who caught his bass using a Senko. “I was worried, but I’ll tell you what, everywhere my partner and I went, we found fish.”
Trevor Jancasz of White Pigeon, Mich., qualified in second with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 5 ounces followed by Dan Luman of Manchester, Conn., with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 1 ounce.
Like their pro counterparts, co-anglers start from zero Saturday with the winner determined by the day’s heaviest catch. The winning co-angler receives $6,000 cash.
A total of 175 bass were caught Friday including 28 five-bass limits. More than 98 percent of the bass were released alive.
Saturday’s action begins at 6 a.m. at French Creek Marina in Clayton, N.Y. The final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 20823 State Route 3 in Watertown, N.Y., starting at 4 p.m.
Now in its fifth season, the EverStart Series features three divisions – Eastern, Central and Northern – with four events each plus the $325,000 EverStart Series Championship presented by Conseco. The top 50 pros and co-anglers from each division will be invited to the Championship for a shot at top pro awards of more than $60,000 in cash and prizes and top co-angler awards of more than $40,000 in cash and prizes. The top 10 pros and co-anglers from each division also receive priority entry into the 2003 Wal-Mart FLW Tour – bass fishing’s most lucrative tournament series – where they could win as much as $500,000 and $40,000 in cash, respectively.
More than $2.8 million will be awarded to bass anglers through the 2002 EverStart Series.