TRENTON, Mich. – The $2.8 million 2002 EverStart Series Northern Division opened Wednesday on the Detroit River with 306 bass anglers representing more than a dozen states. Pro Neil Vandebiezen of Portage, Mich., took the lead with a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 11 ounces.
The $210,000 tournament features 153 pros who supply boats, control boat movements during competition and fish for a top award of more than $50,000 in cash and prizes and 153 co-anglers who fish from the back deck of each boat for a top award of $6,000 cash. If the winning pro’s boat is equipped with a fixed-mount GARMIN Fishfinder or combination GPS/Sounder, he will receive a $1,000 bonus from GARMIN.
Richard Grosse of Hebron, Ohio, finished opening day in second with five bass weighing 20 pounds, 5 ounces. Kevin Vida of Clare, Mich. (five bass, 20 pounds, 1 ounce); James Bensch of Sandusky, Ohio (five bass, 19 pounds, 12 ounces); and Ken Jones of Shelby, Ohio, (five bass, 18 pounds, 12 ounces) rounded out the top five pros.
Co-angler Barry Baldwin of Dayton, Ohio, leads his division with five bass weighing 18 pounds, 13 ounces followed by Jerry Thompson of Bemidji, Minn., (five bass, 18 pounds, 11 ounces) in second and Robert Doster of Allegan, Mich., (five bass, 18 pounds, 9 ounces) in third.
A 5-pound, 2-ounce largemouth landed Roger Miller of Ottawa Lake, Mich., big-bass honors and $750 in the Pro Division. Two anglers, Ed Snook of Floyds Knobs, Ind., and Peter Merckx of Westland, Mich., tied for co-angler big-bass honors with a 5-pound, 6-ounce largemouth. They each received $125 for their big bass.
For a shot at victory, anglers in both divisions must secure one of 20 slots in Friday’s semifinal round with their two-day opening-round total. Anglers then start from zero and compete for one day to determine the top 10 pros and co-anglers who will fish in Saturday’s finale. Catch weights are cleared for the final day, and the winners are determined by that day’s catch.
Competition begins at 6 a.m. each morning at Elizabeth Park in Trenton, Mich. Thursday’s weigh-in will also be held at Elizabeth Park starting at 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 2155 N. Telegraph Road in Monroe, Mich., 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, where they could win as much as $500,000 and $40,000 in cash, respectively.
Sponsors of the 2002 EverStart Series are Wal-Mart, ALPO Pet Foods, BFGoodrich Tires, Castrol, Chevy Trucks, Conseco, Energizer, EverStart Batteries, Evinrude, Faded Glory, Frito-Lay, Fujifilm, GARMIN, Kellogg’s, Land O’Lakes, Minn Kota, Newell Rubbermaid, Pepsi, Poulan, Ranger Boats, Shop-Vac, Snickers, Stanley Works, U.S. Bank, Weed Eater and Yamaha Outboards.
FLW Outdoors is the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing tournaments. The organization operates 170 tournaments through the EverStart Series, Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit and Ranger M1. FLW Outdoors will award anglers as much as $22 million in 2002.