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Zapata,
TX. – If Kevin VanDam's illustrious tournament career didn't already intimidate many of his competitors, then his recent Florida victory no doubt put some of them over the top. Competing in a state that was deemed to be his Achilles Heel, he put any doubts to rest about whether he could win when a lake didn't appear to fit his strengths.
We've all heard it before: "Don't let Kevin get mad at them." When he doesn't do well, or struggles on Day 1, he often comes back to crush the field as the tournament progresses. But how does he make that happen?
"I practice for our type of events," he said. "The transition can be tough for a lot of rookies who are used to fishing one or two day events. In a three or four day event, you don't want to burn up your spots in practice. I may miss the mark on the first day, but the way I practice, by covering a lot of water, I have a lot of options as the tournament goes on. I might catch 10 pounds, then 15, then 18, then hopefully 20, while a spot fisherman will start at 20, then drop to 15, to 12, then seven. He'll run out of fish or spots."
He understood why the fishing public may have been surprised by his most recent victory: "When you think of Florida, you don't think of KVD, you think of Peter T, who's a superstar down there. But I can adapt myself to the style of fishing. It's different today than it was five years ago. You can't hop around as much as you used to. I know that and I practice for that."
But despite those perceptions, Kissimmee might not have been his most rewarding recent win.
"I've had some good finishes in Florida, some seconds and thirds," he said. "I've also had some bad ones. But winning at Guntersville last year actually meant more to me than most. I had always done well at Guntersville, lots of top fives, and I'd been in position to win several times."
Would it be especially meaningful to him to win with a technique other than his famous power fishing one-two punch of cranking and spinnerbaiting? Perhaps with a dropshot or swimbait?
"It doesn't matter to me what I have to do to win. Over the years, I've learned my strengths and weaknesses and I adapt my style to the conditions. Power is my strength, but I grew up fishing finesse. Everyone remembers that at the E50 at Lewisville, I won on a spinnerbait, but I dominated the early rounds on a shakey head. I caught one almost 12 pounds and had a 15 pound lead."
Ultimately, it's all about winning, whether it's a slugfest or a grinder, whether it's won shallow or deep, during cold weather or the heat of the summer.
"I want to win all of the team. I don't think of it as Florida or just one lake. I always want to do good," he said. "Right now, Falcon and Amistad are in front of me, so I'd love to win there. Clarks Hill, too. I'd like to win on one of the lakes with the bluebacks, which are intriguing and different."
Here's food for thought – despite the numerous recent weight-fests on the Elite Series, like Amistad, Santee Cooper and Clear Lake, the greatest angler of the modern era has never cracked the century mark in four-day tournament competition.
"At Amistad I've done well two years in a row, but I haven't come close to the winners," he said.
Look for it to happen in the near future. There are only so many ways to hold KVD back.
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