Posted  August 9th, 2007  6:52pm CST

20-5 Limit Leads the Way.......Klein, Goldbeck Lurking

Story by Dru Smith & Mark Jeffreys - Photos by Mark Jeffreys

La Plata, MD – Put the world’s best anglers on any body of water, regardless of the conditions and they will undoubtedly figure out the bass. Such was the case at the Capitol Clash at the Potomac River in our Nation’s Capitol. Reports in the days leading up to the tournament had been sweltering heat, with temperatures rising over the century mark. 

However, put Bassmaster Elite Series anglers between the proverbial rock and hard place, and they will find a chisel and chip their way out of the crevice. As The Capitol Clash weigh-in progressed, the skill of the Elite Series anglers became evident even as the overbearing heat turned to thunderstorms.

No angler’s prowess was on display more than current Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points leader Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif. Reese came to the scales early on Thursday with a 20-pound, 5-ounce limit that grabbed the day one lead, and a five-point bonus in the Angler of the Year standings for leading a competition day.

The 38-year-old, veteran of eight Bassmaster Classics, looks to not only solidify his lead in the Angler of the Year Race, but also to leap into the Bassmaster Million Dollar Club. At the start of the Capitol Clash, Reese’s career earnings totaled $999, 708.30, a mere $291.70 cents from reaching the million-dollar mark. His heavy bag on day one makes that almost a certainty.

Another angler with a legacy of high finishes, Gary Klein of Weatherford, Tex. smashed a 20-pound, 2-ounce limit to leapfrog everyone but Reese and take a firm hold on 2nd place. The 49-year-old winner of eight Bassmaster tournaments also grabbed the Purolator Big Bass daily $1000 bonus with a huge 8-pound, 2-ounce Potomac largemouth.

Sophomore Elite Series pro Grant Goldbeck, of Gaithersburg, Md. relied on his hometown advantage to capitalize on the tough conditions. The 36-year-old pro connected with an 18-pound, five-ounce limit of Potomac bruisers to grab hold of 3rd place at the Capitol Clash.

Meanwhile, defending Capitol Clash Champion, Kelly Jordan of Mineola, Tex. and Elite Series rookie Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C. rounded out the top five of day one of the Bassmaster Elite Series Capitol Clash in a tie for 4th place. They each weighed 18 pounds, 0 ounces.

An additional side note for the 2007 Capitol Clash is that Jordan, like Reese is on the cusp of breaking into the Bassmaster Million Dollar Club. Jordan entered the capitol clash with $960,362.50 in career earnings, and a win this week would also push him over the Million Dollar mark for his career.

On the Angler of the Year front Reese seems poised to hold onto his lead. Kevin Van Dam, who started the Capitol Clash in second position in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Points Race weighed 12 pounds, 2 ounces and ended the day in 33rd place. Reese’s lead on Van Dam starting the Capitol Clash was 21 points.

The cut line was projected to be around 20 pounds for two days of competition. Jami Fralick of Martin, S.D. is currently in 50th place with 10 pounds, 14ounces.

Reese Leads the Race
With only two regular season events left in ’07, Skeet has yet to post an Elite Series win and he is trying to fend off the most dangerous angler on the water –KVD—who has 12 career wins including two Elites Series victories this year. Skeet missed winning last year’s Capitol Clash by a mere seven ounces. He relied on that past experience to propel him to the lead after day one. 

Although he is fishing the same spots as last year, Reese revealed the fish are different. “For some reason they are not as healthy as last year. I don’t know if it the salt content or the heat, but they are not the same.”

With a healthy limit in the live-well, Skeet went looking for new waters. “I have pretty much stuck with Mattawoman Creek in the past, but I thought that I would need some new water for this tournament,” Skeet revealed. “I have no plans to change anything tomorrow.”

“It took a load of pressure off,” Skeet answered when asked about his day one performance. “I hoped to catch a decent limit and stay in the top 30, but I was totally shocked to 20 pounds o the scales.” Skeet garnered five extra points for leading a day of this event and is in a strong position to notch his first victory on the Elite Series. “I would take the lead everyday and the money that goes along with the win,” he laughed. “Seriously, I think 15 pounds tomorrow will be phenomenal, 10 to 12 should keep me in the top ten.”

Klein Climbs into Second
Former apprentice of the king of flipping, Dee Thomas, Gary Klein used all his skills on Thursday to amass 20-2 pounds and settled into the number two spot. After a tough practice, Gary was surprised by his weight today. “I only found one small area in practice where I could get a bite,” said the 25 time Classic qualifier. “I caught four fish before 7 a.m. and I thought that was a good day.” Gary went on to catch 9 keepers including the Purolator Big Bass of the day at eight pounds, two ounces.

Grant Golden on the Potomac
Gaithersburg, Md. pro, Grant Goldbeck feels right at home on the Potomac River. “I have a lot of history on this water and it helped when the fishing got tough,” he said. “I had a couple of areas that I thought would be good and they weren’t, but there is still a lot of water that I am familiar with.”

Using a different technique – finesse fishing – than most of the other pros, Grant feels his chances are good for a repeat of last year’s performance. “After practice, I felt like I could catch 18 to 20 pounds today,” he said. I got my 18 and hopefully it will continue for the next three days.” Grant is sharing his water with fellow top ten, contestant John Crews, who boated 16-2 on Thursday.

Kelly keyed on an early bite to fill out a limit on Thursday. “I had culled a couple of times in the first hour and a half,” he said. “It got real slow after that, but I was able to catch a couple more fish later in the day.” Kelly credits the hot temperature for the slow down in activity. 

“The water temperature over 90 degrees in the area I was fishing.”

Kelly believes the late afternoon shower that passed through the area will help the other competitors more than it will help him. “It did the same thing here last year and my bite seemed to fall off,” he revealed. “I will run and gun early tomorrow and try to get a big bite.”

The fish Casey targeted in practice move further back in the grass and the right adjustments allowed him to boat a limit by 9 a.m. “I left that area early and did some pre-fishing,” he said. “If that place fails tomorrow, hopefully I can catch them somewhere else.”

Casey’s main spot is in the back of a creek and he feels the tide is crucial to his bite. ‘The high-outgoing tide was the best for me and we will have more of that on Friday.”

Crews Not Worried
John Crews fished an area he referred to as “Old Faithful.” and put 16-2 on the scale to finish day one in 8th. “I wasn’t too worried after the tough practice because of the history I have on this river,” said the third year pro from Salem, Va. “I basically eliminated water in practice and went to areas I knew held fish today.”

John plans to work his hometown advantage to the tune of 16 pounds on Friday. “I pulled off the spot early today and I will go back in there tomorrow and fish it until I have a good limit. If I can put 16 pounds in the boat, then I will going look at some other water.” Crews switched to a finesse style of fishing on Thursday and believed that was the difference. 

“This river gets so much pressure you have to throw something different in order to catch fish.”
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DAY ONE STANDINGS

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