11-15-2005, 05:32 PM
CELEBRATION, Fla. - The closing of the Bassmaster Central Open on the Red River in Louisiana last week finalized another batch of anglers advancing to the Bassmaster Open Championship.
The top 25 boaters and non-boaters in the Central Open points standings advance to the championship, set for Dec. 1-4 on the Alabama River in Prattville, Ala. The pros are competing to be one of five anglers who move on to fish the Bassmaster Classic on Lake Tohopekaliga, Feb. 24-26.
"It's my only shot at the Classic and I'd sure like to fish on Lake Toho in February," said Ben Matsubu of Hemphill, Texas, who made the cut.
The Bassmaster Opens are divided into four divisions, Central, Northern, Southern and Western. Each division has three tournaments and points are awarded based on an angler's performance. The 25 anglers with the most points on both the boater and non-boater side are invited to the championship. In the Western division, only 15 anglers are invited. BASS is retiring the Opens next year and instead offering the Bassmaster Tour. The former Tour is being replaced by the Bassmaster Elite Series and is reserved for the world's top anglers.
Oklahoma's Jeff Kreit, a 2006 Bassmaster Elite Series angler, was leading the Central Open points standings before the last Central Open on Red River but fell to second behind David Wharton of Sam Rayburn, Texas. Though Kreit's already earned his berth into the Classic with his performance on the 2005 Bassmaster Tour, he's still looking for a challenge on the Alabama River. "I have no idea what it's going to look like out there," he said, "but I am looking forward to it."
Missing from the championship action is Bradley Stringer of Huntington, Texas, last year's Open Championship winner. In 26th
place in the points standings, he just missed the cut. 2006 Bassmaster Elite Series angler and former Classic champion Takahiro Omori edged Stringer after fishing just two of the three Central Opens. He was leading the Red River tournament after Day 2 and came in third to Sean Hoernke of Magnolia, Texas. Like Stringer, Hoernke also will not advance to the championship.
"I didn't dream of making the championship with just fishing two tournaments," said Omori. "It's hard to catch up, but I suppose I did well."
Ironically, non-boater points leader Rusty Harvey of Nederland, Texas, entered the Central Open division on a whim. A friend called and asked him to fish the first event, offering to pay his entry fee. Harvey obliged, placed 9th
in the Sam Rayburn event and went on to fish the other two events. "I'm hoping for a first-place finish in Alabama," said Harvey, 51. "At the beginning, I had nothing to lose and it really worked out for me."
Anglers who fished the Northern Open division have already been chosen for the championship, but the top 25 anglers from the Southern Open division and 15 anglers from the Western division still have not been finalized. Both divisions have their final tournament this weekend, Nov. 17-19. The Western Open is on Shasta Lake in Shasta, Calif., and the Southern Open is on Lake Tohopekaliga in Kissimmee, Fla., also site of the 2006 Bassmaster Classic in February.
BASS is the worldwide authority on bass fishing, sanctioning more than 20,000 events through the BASS Federation annually.
Guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans, BASS sets the standard for credibility, professionalism, sportsmanship and conservation, as it has for nearly 40 years.
BASS stages bass fishing tournaments for every skill level and culminates with the Bassmaster Classic. Through its clubs, youth programs, aquatic resource advocacy, magazine publishing and multimedia platforms, BASS offers the industry's widest array of services and support to its nearly 550,000 members. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.
For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit [url "http://www.bassmaster.com/"][#990000]www.bassmaster.com[/#990000][/url].
2005 CENTRAL Open Points Standings - Boater
Place Name State Pts
1 David Wharton Texas 790
2 Jeff Kriet Okla. 769
3 Gary Klein Texas 757
4 Terry Butcher Okla. 752
5 Jeremy Guidry La. 732
6 Tommy Martin Texas 726
7 Ben Matsubu Texas 723
8 Mike McClelland Ark. 720
9 Matt Reed Texas 713
10 Conrad Picou La. 704
11 Jeff Magee Miss. 697
12 Paul Ferguson Texas 690
13 Craig Dowling La. 686
14 Steve Kennedy Ala. 673
15 Jeff Connella La. 666
16 Cliff Pace Miss. 665
17 Tony Chachere La. 651
18 Jeff Buchanan Texas 648
19 Chad Brauer Mo. 647
20 Doug Garrett Ark. 637
21 Doc Seger Mo. 632
22 Brad Hallman Okla. 627
23 Homer Humphreys, Jr La. 615
24 Randy Dearman Texas 606
25 Takahiro Omori Texas 605
2005 CENTRAL Open Points Standings - Non-boater
Place Name State Pts
1 Rusty Harvey Texas 800
2 Bill Gift Ark. 753
3 Joe Lee Texas 744
4 Glenn Maxwell Ark. 675
5 Bennie Anderson Texas 674
6 Matthew Jones Mo. 657
7 Mike Aycock Miss. 615
8 Austin Banks Miss. 592
9 Allen Rhoden Texas 589
10 Brian Merrifield Texas 587
11 Adrian Coble Texas 579
12 Scott Darragh Texas 563
12 David Kayda Texas 563
14 Mike Wisenbaker Texas 543
15 Bill Bonner La. 535
16 Harry Durham Texas 534
17 Dell Brown Texas 517
17 Dean Perkins Texas 517
19 Ronny Bates Texas 508
20 Joel Mixon Texas 505
21 Ray Beck Texas 487
22 Nathan Bourque La. 484
23 Buck Buchanan Texas 481
24 Jeff Smith Texas 479
25 Jeary Wheeler Ark. 469
25 Mannie Lackey Texas 469
Media Contact:
BASS Communications
(407) 566-2208
[signature]
The top 25 boaters and non-boaters in the Central Open points standings advance to the championship, set for Dec. 1-4 on the Alabama River in Prattville, Ala. The pros are competing to be one of five anglers who move on to fish the Bassmaster Classic on Lake Tohopekaliga, Feb. 24-26.
"It's my only shot at the Classic and I'd sure like to fish on Lake Toho in February," said Ben Matsubu of Hemphill, Texas, who made the cut.
The Bassmaster Opens are divided into four divisions, Central, Northern, Southern and Western. Each division has three tournaments and points are awarded based on an angler's performance. The 25 anglers with the most points on both the boater and non-boater side are invited to the championship. In the Western division, only 15 anglers are invited. BASS is retiring the Opens next year and instead offering the Bassmaster Tour. The former Tour is being replaced by the Bassmaster Elite Series and is reserved for the world's top anglers.
Oklahoma's Jeff Kreit, a 2006 Bassmaster Elite Series angler, was leading the Central Open points standings before the last Central Open on Red River but fell to second behind David Wharton of Sam Rayburn, Texas. Though Kreit's already earned his berth into the Classic with his performance on the 2005 Bassmaster Tour, he's still looking for a challenge on the Alabama River. "I have no idea what it's going to look like out there," he said, "but I am looking forward to it."
Missing from the championship action is Bradley Stringer of Huntington, Texas, last year's Open Championship winner. In 26th
place in the points standings, he just missed the cut. 2006 Bassmaster Elite Series angler and former Classic champion Takahiro Omori edged Stringer after fishing just two of the three Central Opens. He was leading the Red River tournament after Day 2 and came in third to Sean Hoernke of Magnolia, Texas. Like Stringer, Hoernke also will not advance to the championship.
"I didn't dream of making the championship with just fishing two tournaments," said Omori. "It's hard to catch up, but I suppose I did well."
Ironically, non-boater points leader Rusty Harvey of Nederland, Texas, entered the Central Open division on a whim. A friend called and asked him to fish the first event, offering to pay his entry fee. Harvey obliged, placed 9th
in the Sam Rayburn event and went on to fish the other two events. "I'm hoping for a first-place finish in Alabama," said Harvey, 51. "At the beginning, I had nothing to lose and it really worked out for me."
Anglers who fished the Northern Open division have already been chosen for the championship, but the top 25 anglers from the Southern Open division and 15 anglers from the Western division still have not been finalized. Both divisions have their final tournament this weekend, Nov. 17-19. The Western Open is on Shasta Lake in Shasta, Calif., and the Southern Open is on Lake Tohopekaliga in Kissimmee, Fla., also site of the 2006 Bassmaster Classic in February.
BASS is the worldwide authority on bass fishing, sanctioning more than 20,000 events through the BASS Federation annually.
Guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans, BASS sets the standard for credibility, professionalism, sportsmanship and conservation, as it has for nearly 40 years.
BASS stages bass fishing tournaments for every skill level and culminates with the Bassmaster Classic. Through its clubs, youth programs, aquatic resource advocacy, magazine publishing and multimedia platforms, BASS offers the industry's widest array of services and support to its nearly 550,000 members. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.
For more information, contact BASS Communications at (407) 566-2208 or visit [url "http://www.bassmaster.com/"][#990000]www.bassmaster.com[/#990000][/url].
2005 CENTRAL Open Points Standings - Boater
Place Name State Pts
1 David Wharton Texas 790
2 Jeff Kriet Okla. 769
3 Gary Klein Texas 757
4 Terry Butcher Okla. 752
5 Jeremy Guidry La. 732
6 Tommy Martin Texas 726
7 Ben Matsubu Texas 723
8 Mike McClelland Ark. 720
9 Matt Reed Texas 713
10 Conrad Picou La. 704
11 Jeff Magee Miss. 697
12 Paul Ferguson Texas 690
13 Craig Dowling La. 686
14 Steve Kennedy Ala. 673
15 Jeff Connella La. 666
16 Cliff Pace Miss. 665
17 Tony Chachere La. 651
18 Jeff Buchanan Texas 648
19 Chad Brauer Mo. 647
20 Doug Garrett Ark. 637
21 Doc Seger Mo. 632
22 Brad Hallman Okla. 627
23 Homer Humphreys, Jr La. 615
24 Randy Dearman Texas 606
25 Takahiro Omori Texas 605
2005 CENTRAL Open Points Standings - Non-boater
Place Name State Pts
1 Rusty Harvey Texas 800
2 Bill Gift Ark. 753
3 Joe Lee Texas 744
4 Glenn Maxwell Ark. 675
5 Bennie Anderson Texas 674
6 Matthew Jones Mo. 657
7 Mike Aycock Miss. 615
8 Austin Banks Miss. 592
9 Allen Rhoden Texas 589
10 Brian Merrifield Texas 587
11 Adrian Coble Texas 579
12 Scott Darragh Texas 563
12 David Kayda Texas 563
14 Mike Wisenbaker Texas 543
15 Bill Bonner La. 535
16 Harry Durham Texas 534
17 Dell Brown Texas 517
17 Dean Perkins Texas 517
19 Ronny Bates Texas 508
20 Joel Mixon Texas 505
21 Ray Beck Texas 487
22 Nathan Bourque La. 484
23 Buck Buchanan Texas 481
24 Jeff Smith Texas 479
25 Jeary Wheeler Ark. 469
25 Mannie Lackey Texas 469
Media Contact:
BASS Communications
(407) 566-2208
[signature]