Kevin VanDam Wins AOY!

[Glenn]

Woo Hoo! 

[CAdeltaLipRipper]

i thought skeet reese already won it?

[Big Tom]

Crazy.  KVD is just absolutely unstoppable.

I wonder how Skeet is feeling right now?  He was getting choked up at the weigh in.

[WoolleyBass]

Wow that's his sixth now. That guy is a flippin animal.

Roby

[hmongkidBee]

simply AMAZING.  KVD all the way.  Sorry Skeet Reese, but you got beaten by the best.

[Captain Obvious]

My heart goes out to Skeet, after the year he had to loose it at the end like that is almost unfair.

KVD is a freak, I'm putting him in there right now as one of the best ever.

I think he tops Jordon, Tiger, Kobe, Jimmy Johnson, Nadal, Pele etc......

In a sport where one Classic or AOY can make or break you and success is measured in how many times you finish in the top 12. No one should be able to do what he has done. KVD is the best ever period

Capt.O

[hookingem]

The guy is pure amazing! He is smartest angler out on the water and really knows his stuff!

[Glenn]

Here's the story

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bass-alabama-river1-10.html

[A-Jay]

Kevin VanDam IS THE MAN !

At the beginning of the week I didn't know if he could actually pull it off but I couldn't picture him losing either. Considering the phenomenal year Skeet Reese had and realize that at one point this year KVD was like 40th or something in the AOY points race - to see him win the thing almost defies logic.

I do feel bad for Skeet as well. But there always next year Mr. Reese.

A-Jay

[Hook Set]

He's at the top of his game for sure!

Gotta respect the guy.

[Bass_Akwards]

KVD DOMINATES!

The guy is almost just messing with the field at this point.   I obviously say this tounge and cheek but it's like the guy is purposely just trying to win AOY in as many different ways as he can before he dies so this year he chose to make everyone think he had no legit shot to win it until close to the end.  As if he was trying to prove he can come back from a near insurmountable lead just in the nick of time, only to surgically remove Skeets heart, and have it mounted on his wall.

Doesn't matter a lick if KVD wins or doesn't win when he WANTS to. What makes the wizard such a complete dominator is the fact that he almost always win when he NEEDS to.   Dude is just cold blooded and a true freak of nature.  Congrats Mr. VD.

[OHIO]

My heart goes out to Skeet, after the year he had to loose it at the end like that is almost unfair.

KVD is a freak, I'm putting him in there right now as one of the best ever.

I think he tops Jordon, Tiger, Kobe, Jimmy Johnson, Nadal, Pele etc......

In a sport where one Classic or AOY can make or break you and success is measured in how many times you finish in the top 12. No one should be able to do what he has done. KVD is the best ever period

Capt.O

He definatley does not top jordan.

[Bubba_Bruiser]

The man is flat out at an expert at what he does. I know it is off subject, but he kept talking at the Classic about how Kriet kept running up short a bad luck throughout the season and always coming up short. And the announcer dead eyed him and said, you wanna know his bad luck, you look at it in the mirror every morning, or something like that. The man is just a relentless machine on the water though. I wish I had a quarter of his know how and drive.

[Grey Wolf]

The cream rises to the top again.

[NBR]

I didn't think he had much of a chance and while I feel sad for Skeet I am a KVD fan. Many years ago I bought a boat from an absolutely super nice young man who at the time announced that he and Don were turning pro.

Little did I know that the youngster would be known far and wide in the bass world as KVD. More important is the last time I had a chance to talk with Kevin he remained a very nice person. Just a class act in every thing he does.

[Crestliner2008]

Fantastic job for KVD. A true competitor. However, this was very close for him. He performed poorly the first half of the season and I thought for sure Reese would pull it off. I think it's getting harder and harder for KVD to stay on top. I hope I wrong though....he's tops in my book.

[fishermantony]

He is the man.  We are fortunate to have him in this sport, he's got everything. Possibly the fiercest competitor bass fishing has ever seen, up there at the top of the list of fiercest competitors in all sports.  Man has got all my respect.   

[Scorcher214]

Well, i guess im gonna have to wait to go pro(What a joke lol)...I wont win anything with  him out there.

[slonezp]

How about changing the title of the thread to "Skeet Reese Loses AOY" As others have said Skeet had an incredible year. He just couldn't clinch it. That being said IMO KVD is a better angler and I'm glad he won.

[A-Jay]

How about changing the title of the thread to "Skeet Reese Loses AOY" As others have said Skeet had an incredible year. He just couldn't clinch it. That being said IMO KVD is a better angler and I'm glad he won.

I would tend to agree that this title was Skeet's to lose, but once he opened the door by not putting it away when he had the chance there were several anglers who COULD have taken the title but didn't - for what ever reason. And talk about bad luck ~ Arron Martins had some crazy fish kill thing going on the week before and that really hurt his chances. These guys catch, keep and release fish for A Living. What was that all about ?

A-Jay

[salmicropterus]

So where's that thread "What's the matter with KVD this Year" from a few months ago. Guess it doesn't matter what the score is in the 4th inning. A great feat as he just ground away the second half of the year. Mental toughness, not to say that Skeet doesn't have it too, it's just KVD has so much.

[K_Mac]

KVD is just a winner. He doesn't have to lead every lap, but come crunch time you know he is going to be there. I do feel a little bad for Reese. It was his to lose...

[Jake.]

What a bad format for Angler of the Year. Congrats to KVD, but BASS (read ESPN) needs to rethink this system....

[K_Mac]

What a bad format for Angler of the Year. Congrats to KVD, but BASS (read ESPN) needs to rethink this system....

I completely agree.

[mi_basser]

Congrats to Kevin, I *** his ability.  Just think if he ever figured out how to catch fish west of the Mississippi River he would be totally unstoppable.  He never seems to do well in California and the "Big Bass" fisheries of Texas.