HomeNewsKeith Combs Maintains Day Two Lead at Falcon Falcon Lake Day Two Leader Keith Combs – Photo Courtesy B.A.S.S. Keith Combs of Huntington, Texas, catches 28-1 on Day 2 of the Bassmaster Elite Series Rigid Industries Falcon Slam, earning a total weight of 62-14 and retaining his lead in the tournament. Photo above by James Overstreet/Bassmaster FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 22, 2013 Texan Keith Combs Captures Catbird Seat Again At Lake Falcon In Bassmaster Elite Series Event ZAPATA, Texas — Do the math: 33 pounds x 4 days = 132. You can bet Texan Keith Combs is doing the multiplication. Combs weighed 28 pounds, 1 ounce Friday, and while not duplicating his 34-13 smash of Thursday, he still amassed 62-14 after two days in the Rigid Industries Falcon Slam out of Zapata, Texas. Such a weight after two days is enough to dream of the possibility of coming close to or busting the 132-8 Bassmaster Elite Series all-time, five-fish-limit, four-day weight record set five years ago on Falcon. And now with a 7-pound, 7-ounce lead, Combs can also set his sights for his first win on Lake Falcon, where he’s been a guide for years. It would also be his first win in the Elite Series. He’s headed the right way. The Huntington, Texas, pro’s two heavyweight bags added up to the leader spot for the second day in a row in a four-day tournament. Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., put up 55-7 after Friday against the leader’s 62-14, coming up far short of knocking Combs off the catbird seat. But Evers felt good about his Friday weight of 28-15, which boosted him from ninth place into second. Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., pushed himself up one place into third with his 54-0 two-day weight. One of the biggest moves of the day was by Cliff Crochet of Pierre Part, La., who shot from 50th place on the first day into fourth on the second. The rocket ship he rode was the day’s largest bag: 35-3. In fifth Friday with 53-9 was Cliff Prince of Palatka, Fla., the pro who had never seen Falcon Lake before this week, but has managed two impressive sacks of largemouth bass two days running. Combs needs to boost his daily weights Saturday and Sunday to go for the win and the record, but as his fellow Elite pro Hank Cherry put it, “Any cast here can be a double-digit fish.” Combs isn’t close to being cocky about his chances, though. “I don’t even want to talk about winning, not on the second day,” he said after Friday’s weigh-in. “Maybe tomorrow.” Combs had a limit by noon Friday, but the count was “two decent fish,” and “three real small fish,” he said. Probably not enough to keep his Day 1 lead. Then, to his relief, he managed a late rally, including a last cast that came back with a 6-pounder attached. The catch allowed him to cull a 2-pounder. He had started on his primary offshore spot Friday — the same that produced for him Thursday — but without a keeper, ran to different spot. He returned to his two hot spots from Thursday, hoping things would change, and moved again. He estimated he made 12 to 15 moves all day. On Friday morning, in the area holding his two key spots about 100 yards apart, he had to try to share it with other competitors. “I had unwanted company this morning,” he said. “That didn’t help. It was not so much that I couldn’t fish my water, but that there are two key deals. If I can let one rest, then I can go to the other one and come back later.” Fishless, he left his prime spots about 10 a.m. He went to water he’d practiced on, but had not hit the first day, and fished them aggressively. “And I caught a big one and two other keepers, went back to where I started and didn’t catch any, then moved to a new spot and caught a 5-pounder,” Combs said. He then hooked into his largest of the day, about a 7-pounder, followed by a 4-1/2 pounder. He ended the day with a limit made up of a 7, two 6s, a 5 and a 4 1/2, all postspawn largemouth. Evers brought in 28-15 Friday, including a 9-13 even bigger than his first-day lunker, a 9-11 that tied for Thursday’s largest bass. “I caught them both in the exact same spot,” Evers said. “That big one came on something completely different than I’d been doing. And it came on the second cast.” Otherwise, he said, the day was “slow, horribly slow.” “Yesterday I had a limit by nine. Today I didn’t have a limit until probably 10, 11 o’clock,” he said. Evers is rolling a successful practice day into a strong tournament. “I had the best day of my [fishing] life one day in practice,” he said. “I’d pull up and catch one, it’d be a giant, I’d move and catch one; it’d be a giant. I was really excited.” The field was cut to the Top 50 for Day 3 Saturday. Those 50 will shoot to be among Sunday’s Top 12, the finalists who will compete for the first-place prize of $100,000, a win-you’re-in berth in the 2014 Bassmaster Classic and 100 points toward the 2013 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title. Combs earned the Slam’s $500 Livingston Lures Leader Award, a bonus for the leader after the second day of competition in an Elite event. The largest bass of the day was a 10-13 weighed by Matt Greenblatt of Port St. Lucie, Fla. It leads the event’s contest to bring in the Carhartt Big Bass and collect an award worth $1,000, plus another $750 if the angler was wearing Carhartt apparel. Crochet’s bag of 35-3 became the top candidate for the event’s Berkley Heavyweight Award competition for a $500 bonus. The Top 50 Elite pros will return to Falcon Lake Saturday for the third of four days of competition. The pros will leave the docks at the Zapata County Public Boat Ramp (3079 County Road, Zapata, TX 78076) at 7:15 a.m. CT. The weigh-in is scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. CT. Starting at noon, the Bassmaster Elite Series Expo will showcase new boats, tackle, Rigid Industries LED lighting systems, vehicles and other equipment for fishing and boating. All Bassmaster events are free. Bassmaster.com will provide extensive coverage of the event all four days. Access to all Bassmaster.com content is free. The event’s title sponsor is Rigid Industries of Mesa, Ariz., maker of LED lighting products for vehicles, boats and boat trailer: www.rigidindustries.com. The local sponsor is the Zapata County Chamber of Commerce; www.zapatachamber.com. 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Carhartt, Livingston Lures, Lowrance, Luck “E” Strike, Power-Pole, Ramada, Shimano 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series Proud Partner: Mustang Survival About B.A.S.S. For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has served as the authority on bass fishing. The organization advances the sport through advocacy, outreach and an expansive tournament structure while connecting directly with the passionate community of bass anglers through its Bassmaster media vehicles. The Bassmaster brand and its multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications — Bassmaster Magazine and B.A.S.S. Times — comprehensive website Bassmaster.com and ESPN2 and Outdoor Channel television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle. The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, B.A.S.S. Nation events and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bassmaster Classic. B.A.S.S. offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members and remains focused on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Birmingham, Ala. 2013 Falcon Slam 3/21-3/24 Falcon Lake, Zapata TX. (PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2 Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts 1. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 62-14 100 Day 1: 5 34-13 Day 2: 5 28-01 2. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 55-07 99 Day 1: 5 26-08 Day 2: 5 28-15 3. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 10 54-00 98 Day 1: 5 28-15 Day 2: 5 25-01 4. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 10 53-15 97 Day 1: 5 18-12 Day 2: 5 35-03 5. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 10 53-09 96 Day 1: 5 30-13 Day 2: 5 22-12 6. Josh Bertrand Gilbert, AZ 10 53-05 95 Day 1: 5 30-05 Day 2: 5 23-00 7. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 51-08 94 Day 1: 5 25-09 Day 2: 5 25-15 8. Rick Morris Lake Gaston, VA 10 50-10 93 Day 1: 5 27-14 Day 2: 5 22-12 9. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 50-07 92 Day 1: 5 21-11 Day 2: 5 28-12 10. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 50-06 91 Day 1: 5 25-15 Day 2: 5 24-07 11. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 50-03 90 Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 28-10 12. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 8 50-00 89 Day 1: 3 18-04 Day 2: 5 31-12 13. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 49-03 88 Day 1: 5 26-07 Day 2: 5 22-12 14. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 8 48-13 87 Day 1: 3 16-06 Day 2: 5 32-07 15. Kelly Jordon Palestine, TX 10 47-13 86 Day 1: 5 27-08 Day 2: 5 20-05 16. Alton Jones Lorena, TX 10 47-07 85 Day 1: 5 26-10 Day 2: 5 20-13 17. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 46-15 84 Day 1: 5 24-08 Day 2: 5 22-07 18. Jared Miller Norman, OK 10 46-05 83 Day 1: 5 25-05 Day 2: 5 21-00 19. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 46-04 82 Day 1: 5 23-12 Day 2: 5 22-08 20. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 46-02 81 Day 1: 5 19-02 Day 2: 5 27-00 21. Brandon Card Caryville, TN 10 45-15 80 Day 1: 5 20-03 Day 2: 5 25-12 22. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 45-11 79 Day 1: 5 23-09 Day 2: 5 22-02 23. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 45-06 78 Day 1: 5 22-05 Day 2: 5 23-01 24. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 8 45-05 77 Day 1: 3 12-12 Day 2: 5 32-09 25. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 45-02 76 Day 1: 5 20-15 Day 2: 5 24-03 26. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 45-01 75 Day 1: 5 22-05 Day 2: 5 22-12 27. Clark Reehm Shreveport, LA 10 44-07 74 Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 30-12 28. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 10 44-03 73 Day 1: 5 23-12 Day 2: 5 20-07 29. Grant Goldbeck Boerne, TX 10 44-02 72 Day 1: 5 18-10 Day 2: 5 25-08 30. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 9 43-12 71 Day 1: 4 11-08 Day 2: 5 32-04 31. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 10 43-10 70 Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 22-01 32. Morizo Shimizu Osaka JAPAN 10 43-03 69 Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 27-12 33. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 43-01 68 Day 1: 5 28-12 Day 2: 5 14-05 34. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 42-13 67 Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 22-08 35. David Walker Sevierville, TN 10 42-07 66 Day 1: 5 18-05 Day 2: 5 24-02 36. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 42-06 65 Day 1: 5 22-03 Day 2: 5 20-03 37. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 10 42-01 64 Day 1: 5 20-10 Day 2: 5 21-07 38. John Crews Salem, VA 10 41-11 63 Day 1: 5 26-03 Day 2: 5 15-08 39. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 10 41-10 62 Day 1: 5 25-09 Day 2: 5 16-01 40. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 41-09 61 Day 1: 5 22-06 Day 2: 5 19-03 41. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 10 41-03 60 Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 27-15 42. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 41-03 59 Day 1: 5 23-11 Day 2: 5 17-08 43. Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA 10 40-15 58 Day 1: 5 20-04 Day 2: 5 20-11 44. Fletcher Shryock Newcomerstown, OH 10 40-13 57 Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 23-00 45. Kelley Jaye Dadeville, AL 10 40-12 56 Day 1: 5 20-04 Day 2: 5 20-08 46. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 10 40-08 55 Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 20-03 47. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 10 40-07 54 Day 1: 5 26-00 Day 2: 5 14-07 48. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 40-03 53 Day 1: 5 24-09 Day 2: 5 15-10 49. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 10 39-04 52 Day 1: 5 22-05 Day 2: 5 16-15 50. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 10 39-04 51 Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 20-07 51. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 9 38-13 50 Day 1: 4 19-02 Day 2: 5 19-11 52. Michael Iaconelli Pittsgrove, NJ 10 37-09 49 Day 1: 5 08-11 Day 2: 5 28-14 53. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 10 37-09 48 Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 5 24-09 54. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 37-07 47 Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 20-02 55. Kevin Ledoux Choctaw, OK 10 37-03 46 Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 18-12 56. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 10 37-02 45 Day 1: 5 21-07 Day 2: 5 15-11 57. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 10 37-00 44 Day 1: 5 15-11 Day 2: 5 21-05 58. Casey D Ashley Donalds, SC 10 36-14 43 Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 19-08 59. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 7 36-05 42 Day 1: 2 07-14 Day 2: 5 28-07 60. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 36-04 41 Day 1: 5 20-00 Day 2: 5 16-04 61. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 36-03 40 Day 1: 5 23-11 Day 2: 5 12-08 62. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 10 36-00 39 Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 19-11 63. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 35-09 38 Day 1: 5 22-09 Day 2: 5 13-00 64. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 9 35-09 37 Day 1: 4 14-06 Day 2: 5 21-03 65. Matt Greenblatt Port St Lucie, FL 10 35-04 36 Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 23-07 66. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 35-02 35 Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 19-05 67. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 7 34-14 34 Day 1: 2 06-13 Day 2: 5 28-01 68. Hank Cherry Maiden, NC 10 34-07 33 Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 15-02 69. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 33-13 32 Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 20-00 70. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 8 33-11 31 Day 1: 5 22-12 Day 2: 3 10-15 71. Jeremy Starks Scott Depot, WV 10 33-06 30 Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 14-13 72. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 8 33-05 29 Day 1: 3 11-00 Day 2: 5 22-05 73. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 32-15 28 Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 15-10 74. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 8 32-05 27 Day 1: 5 23-15 Day 2: 3 08-06 75. Kevin Hawk Guntersville, AL 10 32-04 26 Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 19-02 76. Jamie Horton Centerville, AL 9 32-02 25 Day 1: 4 15-08 Day 2: 5 16-10 77. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 10 31-07 24 Day 1: 5 17-08 Day 2: 5 13-15 78. James Elam Tulsa, OK 10 31-01 23 Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 18-09 79. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 30-03 22 Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 13-05 80. Shaw E Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL 8 29-07 21 Day 1: 5 23-02 Day 2: 3 06-05 81. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 29-01 20 Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 5 14-01 82. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 9 29-00 19 Day 1: 5 20-08 Day 2: 4 08-08 83. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 7 28-07 18 Day 1: 2 11-10 Day 2: 5 16-13 84. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 10 28-00 17 Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 14-12 85. Kurt Dove Del Rio, TX 9 25-05 16 Day 1: 4 08-07 Day 2: 5 16-14 86. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 8 25-02 15 Day 1: 3 10-02 Day 2: 5 15-00 87. Casey Scanlon Lenexa, KS 7 24-14 14 Day 1: 2 02-13 Day 2: 5 22-01 88. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 7 24-14 13 Day 1: 3 05-10 Day 2: 4 19-04 89. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 24-07 12 Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 11-11 90. BJ Haseotes Centerville, MA 7 24-02 11 Day 1: 2 04-00 Day 2: 5 20-02 91. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 8 24-02 10 Day 1: 3 12-13 Day 2: 5 11-05 92. David Smith Del City, OK 10 23-05 9 Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 5 08-08 93. Chad Pipkens Holt, MI 6 22-10 8 Day 1: 2 07-03 Day 2: 4 15-07 94. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 8 20-07 7 Day 1: 3 05-14 Day 2: 5 14-09 95. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 18-13 6 Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 07-13 96. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 5 16-03 5 Day 1: 3 12-05 Day 2: 2 03-14 97. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 4 15-00 4 Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 4 15-00 98. Michael Simonton Fremont, OH 5 14-14 3 Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 14-14 99. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 4 12-08 2 Day 1: 3 10-09 Day 2: 1 01-15 100. Chip Porche Bixby, OK 4 06-00 1 Day 1: 3 04-11 Day 2: 1 01-05 ———————————————————————– Totals Day #Limits #Fish Weight 1 76 445 1797-13 2 90 479 1973-07 ———————————- 166 924 3771-04
