North Carolina’s Coble takes opening day lead in Red Man All-American
Anglers representing 20 states cast for $100,000
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Jeff Coble, 37, of Henderson, N.C., has been eyeing the prestigious Red Man All-American Championship crown since his first title shot in 1984. Thursday, he took the first of three final steps toward winning it in this, his fourth championship appearance.
Coble caught five bass weighing 12 pounds, 2 ounces out of Lake Hamilton near Hot Springs, Ark., on opening day of the championship to lead a field that features the nation’s top weekend anglers.
“During practice I would catch a limit of 2-pounders and maybe a 3-pounder,” said Coble, who caught his limit Thursday on a Zoom crankbait. “That’s what I did again. I’ve probably caught a hundred fish on this lake, but I’ve yet to catch a 4-pounder. Either I don’t know how to do it, or there aren’t that many of them out there.”
Other top finishers were Michael Black of Toledo, Ill., with five bass weighing, 11 pounds, 15 ounces; Gary Simpson of Gainesville, Fla., with five bass weighing, 11 pounds, 11 ounces; Mark Tyler of Concord, Calif., with five bass weighing, 10 pounds, 12 ounces; and Ricky Smith of Collinsville, Miss., with five bass weighing, 10 pounds, 12 ounces.
The day’s big bass award of $500 went to Mike Day of Diana, Texas, for a 3-pound, 12-ounce bass.
The 2000 All-American, which is the culmination of the 140-event, 1999 Red Man Tournament Trail, features an elimination-style format. The full field competes for two days with only the top five anglers based on heaviest total catch advancing to the final day. The angler with the heaviest one-day catch on the final day of competition will be crowned the champion.
One contender, however, is already a winner. Robert Walser of Lexington, N.C., will receive $10,000 Saturday as the CITGO National Points Champion. Walser, who dominated the Carolina Division in 1999, is the only divisional points champion to qualify for the All-American. Therefore, he will receive the CITGO award, which annually goes to the highest finishing points champ at the All-American.
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.
Competition resumes at 7 a.m. Friday on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs. The weigh-in will commence at 3 p.m. at the Hot Springs Convention Center. Saturday’s final take-off begins at 7 a.m. at the Clarion Hotel Boat Launch in Hot Springs and the championship weigh-in starts at 3 p.m. at the Convention Center. The event is being taped for broadcast on ESPN 2.
Known as the series that opened tournament bass fishing to the masses, the Red Man Tournament Trail introduced the sport’s first six-figure award in 1984 when Shaw Grigsby of Gainesville, Fla., won $100,000 at the All-American Championship in Kissimmee, Fla.
The winner of the 17th annual Red Man All-American will receive $100,000 and priority entry into the 2001 Wal-Mart FLW Tour – the most lucrative bass fishing series in history.