Kevin VanDam went into the second day of the 2011 Bassmaster Classic in third place, but he had the No. 1 and No. 2 anglers fishing around him in Lake Cataouatche’s Tank Pond – and he expected the pressure from local anglers to have an impact on the catches.
And that turned out to be the case – for everyone in the Tank Pond but KVD.
VanDam actually upped his game, adding more than 3 pounds to his Day 1 sack of bass to bring his two-day total to 41-11. That was more than 3 ½ pounds more than his closest competitor.
“Luck counts,” the three-time Classic champion joked in press conference following the weigh-in. “Yesterday, I thought I should have had a lot better day than I did.
“I think you can catch a 30-pound bag there, if you’ve got the timing right.”
In second was Kansas’ Brent Chapman, who made the long run to Venice to bring 20 pounds, 1 ounce of bass to the New Orleans Arena. His two-day total was 38-1.
In third was Alabama’s Aaron Martens with a total of 33-2, in fourth was Idaho Bassmater Federation Nation qualifier Brandon Palaniuk (pronounced “Paula-nick”) with 32-8 and Arkansas pro Scott Rook rounded out the top five with 31-11.
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