Coble captures $100,000 win in 2000 Red Man All-American
Narrowest margin of victory in championship history
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Jeff Coble, 37, of Henderson, N.C., won the 17th annual Red Man All-American Bass Championship and $100,000 Saturday on Lake Hamilton near Hot Springs, Ark., with a final round catch of five bass weighing 11 pounds, 6 ounces. Results & daily photos
Coble caught five bass weighing 12 pounds, 2 ounces on opening day of the three-day championship event, which features the best weekend anglers in the nation, to take the early lead. He then boated five bass weighing 11 pounds on day two to retain his lead. After starting from scratch with the other finalists on Saturday, he caught a five-bass limit using a jerkbait, crankbait and plastic worm to edge Keith Green of Arkadelphia, Ark., by 5 ounces – the narrowest margin of victory in Red Man All-American history.
“I caught a couple of fish on a jerkbait early, then switched to a crankbait,” said Coble, who was fishing his 4th All-American after 16 years on the tournament trail. “I was pretty confident that 10 pounds might win, 11 pounds would probably win and 12 pounds would definitely win.”
Coble’s highest All-American finish prior to Saturday’s win came in 1992 when he placed eighth on the Arkansas River near Muskogee, Okla.
In addition to the richest payday of his tournament career, Coble also receives priority entry into the 2001 Wal-Mart FLW Tour – the most lucrative bass fishing series in history. He will also be featured in an upcoming broadcast on ESPN2.
Rounding out the top five competitors were Green with five bass weighing 11 pounds, 1 ounce; Ricky Smith of Collinsville, Miss., with five bass weighing 9 pounds, 9 ounces; Gary Simpson of Gainesville, Fla., with five bass weighing 8 pounds, 7 ounces; and David Poort of Olathe, Kan., with five bass weighing 7 pounds, 3 ounces.
The 2000 All-American, which is the culmination of the 140-event, 1999 Red Man Tournament Trail, featured an elimination-style format. The full field of 51 anglers competed for two days with only the top five anglers based on heaviest total catch advancing to the final day.
Each competitor earned a berth in the championship by finishing the season as one of the top 30 anglers in one of 22 divisions nationwide. Each angler then had to finish eighth or better at one of five two-day regional championships. A sixth (Western) regional advanced five contenders, and six anglers who failed to qualify for a regional championship advanced through two Chevy Wild Card events.
In 2001, the Red Man Tournament trail, which opened competitive fishing to the masses in 1983, will become the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League (BFL) as the world’s largest retailer continues its expansion in the fishing market.
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Final Results – May 13, 2000
Red Man All-American: Lake Hamilton, Hot Springs, Ark.
Place — Name — City, State — Caught — Lbs. — Ozs. — Winnings
1 — JEFF L COBLE — HENDERSON, NC — 5 — 11 — 6 — 100000.00
2 — KEITH GREEN — ARKADELPHIA, AR — 5 — 11 — 1 — 20000.00
3 — RICKY SMITH — COLLINSVILLE, MS — 5 — 9 — 9 — 15000.00
4 — GARY SIMPSON — GAINESVILLE, FL — 5 — 8 — 7 — 12000.00
5 — DAVID W POORT — OLATHE, KS — 5 — 7 — 3 — 10000.00