Svebek takes overall lead in inaugural ESPN bass fishing tournament
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – By his own admission, Carl Svebek III of Sam Rayburn, Texas had a dream day of fishing. He caught his five-fish limit, had a lot of fun and took in the beautiful vista of Saranac Lake and the surrounding north woods area. And if that wasn’t good enough, he also captured the overall lead in the qualifying round of ESPN’s 1st Annual Bass Fishing Tournament with an impressive catch of 11 pounds, 14 ounces.
“I had a wonderful day,” said Svebek, who couldn’t stop smiling throughout the weigh-in held at the Olympic Oval in downtown Lake Placid. “You dream of having these days when everything goes right. It’s been great. There’s no other place that I’d rather be except right here.”
Svebek barely edged out fellow FLW angler Peter Thliveros of Jacksonville, Fla. who recorded a catch of 11 pounds, 13 ounces while fishing predominantly with a jig. Thliveros echoed Svebek’s sentiments that the lake was most impressive.
“I just fished hard all day,” said Thliveros. “This is a tremendous body of water. I got about 20 keepers today.”
Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla., son of fishing legend Roland Martin, came in third place with a catch of 10 pounds, 13 ounces. Martin said he was impressed by the quality of the smallmouth bass fishing on the lake.
“I love these smallmouth bass,” said Martin, who acknowledged that smallmouth bass are difficult to find in his hometown waters. “Can I borrow some of these and transplant them in Florida?”
Randy Blaukat of Lamar, Mo. finished in fourth place in the qualifying round with a catch of 10 pounds, 3 ounces. Rounding out the top five was Steve Daniel of Clewiston, Fla. who turned in a catch of 9 pounds, 15 ounces.
Only the top five anglers advanced to the second day of competition slated for Sun. July 23.
The remaining field turned in the following results: Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ariz. finished in sixth place with a catch of 8 pounds, 11 ounces; Randy Howell of Trustville, Ala. came in seventh place with a catch of 8 pounds, 5 ounces; 2000 Land O’ Lakes FLW Angler of the Year, Clark Wendlandt of Cedar Park, Texas recorded an eighth-place finish with a catch of 7 pounds, 7 ounces; Guido Hibdon of Gravois Mills, Mo. finished in ninth place with a catch of 7 pounds; and Keith Green of Arkadelphia, Ark. came in tenth place with a catch of 4 pounds, 13 ounces.
ESPN has allocated a total purse of $21,000 with the champion receiving a $5,000 payday.
According to the rules set by ESPN, the day one results will now be wiped clean and the angler with the largest fish total during Sunday’s competition will be declared the champion. ESPN officials said that camera crews will be assigned to each of the five finalists during the finals.
In an attempt to ensure that the tournament runs smoothly, ESPN has relied on the services and expertise of Operation Bass – the organization that conducts the FLW, EverStart and RedMan Tournament Trail (soon-to-be the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League) Tours. FLW weigh-in announcer, Charlie Evans, and ESPN’s Mark Malone will share the announcing duties throughout the tournament.
Championship weigh-in is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. eastern standard time on July 23.
Although television programming of the ESPN Great Outdoor Games will begin July 27 and last through Aug. 4 on ESPN and ESPN2 – with approximately 17 hours of total coverage – spectators are permitted to attend the games in person. Admission is free of charge and all events are open to the public.
For more information about the ESPN Outdoor Games, contact: Amy Cacciola ([email protected]) at: (860) 766-7362 or go to the ESPN Outdoor Games Web site at: gogmedia.com
OperationBass.com will continue to provide full daily coverage of the bass fishing tournament throughout the ESPN Great Outdoor Games.