First there was 25-year-old Luke Clausen. Then came 29-year-old Brent Ehrler. And today at the Forrest Wood Cup in Columbia, S.C., Michael Bennett from Lincoln, Calif. became the third western young gun in the past 5 years to win bass fishing's biggest payout. And he did it western-style.
As the anglers around him dwindled and imploded, Bennett blasted around the lake and fished tons of new water. He weighed four fish from brutally tough Lake Murray for 8-14 (after an 8-ounce dead-fish penalty) and smoked 2nd-place Dave Lefebre by 5-03. And he did it with a frog, with some help from a western-style handpour worm.
Another footnote: He also became the third westerner to win this year with a frog – Fred Roumbanis did it at Murray this spring, and Dean Rojas recently won at Oneida with a frog.
In fact, Bennett threw the same frog Roumbanis used to win here.
His 24-15 winning total was nearly twice what 6th-place Dion Hibdon weighed the past 2 days.
Bennett, as a Ranger owner, pocketed $1 million for the win, the second major victory of his career. His first was earlier this year at the Lewis-Smith FLW Tour. He's the youngest angler ever to reach the $1 million plateau in career winnings.
Dave Lefebre almost made it close. He weighed 6-08, but lost a 2 1/2, a 4 and a 5 today. And he lost the 5-pounder in the final 3 minutes.
Terry Bolton caught 8-10 and finished where he started the day – in 3rd.
Chris Baumgardner caught 6-00 and finished 4th (also where he started the day).
Kevin Vida made the most significant climb. He caught 9-11, the biggest sack of the day, and moved up three spots to finish 5th.
Bennett's win was certainly a testament to his strength – figuring out tough-bite, clear-water fish.
It also signifies a continuing trend where the Forrest Wood Cup visits challenging venues in the hottest parts of summer, which sets up perfectly for run-and-gunners like Bennett, Clausen and Ehrler.
Patterns have just not held up in the past several Cups.
Bennett Overwhelmed
"This has been a dream of mine my whole life," Bennett said moments after he won. "I know I'm young. To take the title and do it right - I'm so glad to be here. First off, I have to thank God. Without Him it would have never been possible. I've got to thank my family for coming out – thank you for being here. My girlfriend (Emily), (she) takes care of everything. (I) couldn't do it without you."
Bennett figured it would be closer, given his four fish, one of which was dead.
"You always hear rumors. I heard Lefebre had five. I knew I only had four, so if he had 10 pounds or a little more I'd probably be beat. I was stressing. I was excited to get it over with. I knew I did well. But not everyone has the opportunity to win the Forrest Wood Cup. You always want to try to capitalize and not let it slip away. I was very, very nervous.
"Today I worked harder than I've ever worked in a tournament – period," he added. "I went 110 miles an hour. I was rushing to the front to put the trolling motor down. I was fishing very hard. I burned both tanks of gas. My trolling motor had dead batteries. I was just fishing as much water as I could."
He noted that at the beginning of this season he had three goals – win an event, win the Cup, and win Angler of the Year. He accomplished two of them and said: "I have no idea what's going to happen in the future. To have two of (those goals) – it's just incredible. I'm very blessed."
He also noted that, when he came East to fish the FLW Tour 4 years ago, he wasn't sure what to expect. And it wasn't easy.
"You think you're an okay fisherman, but the first year was the biggest learning experience I've ever had. We fished places I'd never seen. You don't know what to do. You take everything you know and learned over the course of your life and apply it everywhere you go and you end up doing a little better.
"I'm just happy and fortunate with the way things are going."
He began the morning with a Snag Proof Fred frog – the same bait he used to sack 16-01 yesterday. He caught a fish at 8:30 on water he fished yesterday, then things slowed down and he started running new water. He pulled into a cut he'd never fished before and whacked back-to-back fish, including his biggest of the day.
He went 3 or 4 more hours without a fish, then caught his final fish on a 6" Berkley Power Finesse Hand Pour worm in oxblood light.
The full details of his winning pattern, plus pattern information for the other top finishers, will be posted soon. Note that the Snag Proof Fred Frog, according to Bennett, is available only through EliteBass.com.