SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Thirty-two-year-old Chad Griffin caught his first bass at 22 years old and instantly became addicted. Ten years later, the Cresson, Texas, resident who grew up in Alaska - a state reportedly with no largemouth bass population - cashed in on a dream, to the tune of $100,000, at the regular-season finale, the Champion's Choice bass fishing tournament on Oneida Lake. Griffin, an Elite Series rookie, worked Oneida for both relevant species - largemouth and smallmouth - and tallied 65 pounds, 10 ounces, enough to hold off hard-charging Jeff Kriet of Ardmore, Okla., by more than 2 pounds.
He credited his versatility, a must on Oneida, to his years of toiling in grassroots and lower-level tournaments in various states. His main bait for the final two days was a white XCalibur Zell Pop with chartreuse. Heading into the final day, Griffin carried a stout lead of 4-plus pounds and got off to a blazing start Sunday. But as the day progressed so did his troubles - including battery issues and a few missed fish.
"I thought I blew the tournament. I was really worried," said Griffin, who moved up to 42nd in the Angler of the Year standings. "Honestly, I'm not sure what the heck I just accomplished. This means the world to me."
While growing up in Alaska, Griffin followed The Bassmasters and idolized anglers like Kevin VanDam through hellacious winters. He said his passion was so strong that he used to tell family members that he was going to be a pro.
Seizing the lead Friday, Griffin didn't waiver, catching the biggest bass of the tournament, a 5-pound, 8-ounce largemouth, and landing the biggest limit of the tournament of 18 pounds, 8 ounces, Friday.
He wiped out two less-than-perfect days with two stellar days in the four-day event. On Thursday he failed to cash in on what he thought could have been more than 20 pounds, and Sunday he failed to land several fish that struck his lure. In the end, Griffin's Friday and Saturday performances were enough.
Throughout the tournament, he executed a pattern developed in practice - targeting smallmouth in the grass. It was something he has never done, on a lake he had never before seen. But the one-time BASS winner has spent considerable time in Texas scouring Lone Star fisheries, where an abundance of grass also exists, and that helped his cause in New York.
The victory netted Griffin $100,000 and peace of mind. Perhaps most important, after struggling through his rookie year, Griffin gained confidence in addition to the financial security.
"It certainly takes some pressure off," he said. "It's nice to be able to tell my family that it finally happened. I always wanted this so bad. It's just really special."
Kriet nearly toppled Griffin on Sunday with an 18-pound, 2-ounce limit. Despite some obvious disappointment in the finish, Kriet sewed up a qualifying berth into the 2010 Classic - his sixth - set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala.
Kriet strictly targeted smallmouth - despite the tournament being won on largemouth in previous visits. He said his bite didn't really turn on until Sunday, when he boated the event's second-largest catch. He was throwing jigs and a drop-shot rig to suspended fish in the grass.
Second is a familiar position for Kriet who has failed to land an Elite Series win despite being in contention numerous times.
"Sometimes I scratch my head and wonder why I haven't won one of these yet," said Kriet, 40. "I sure would like to. But I have been working it out, and when I win one of these I think the door is going to open and I'm going to get a few."
Last year's Oneida champion Dean Rojas of Lake Havasu City, Ariz., was third with 59 pounds, 3 ounces. Home-state favorite Matthew Sphar of Pavilion was fourth with 58 pounds, 14 ounces, while Jason Quinn of York, S.C., rounded out the top five with 57 pounds, 8 ounces.
Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala., finished ninth, which was good enough to sew up the final berth in the inaugural Elite Series postseason. Championship Week is set for Sept. 10-18 on two productive Alabama fisheries. The first of the two postseason tournaments, the Trophy Chase, will take place Sept. 12-13 on Lake Jordan out of Wetumpka; the finale, the Evan Williams Bourbon Trophy Triumph, is slated for Sept. 17-18 on the Alabama River from Montgomery.
Terry Butcher of Talala, Okla., sewed up his first Classic berth by way of his 10th-place finish at Oneida. The final regular-season Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings can be found below.
FINAL STANDINGS
(PRO Division) Standings Day 4
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Chad Griffin Cresson, Texas 20 65-10 315 $101,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 5 18-08 Day 3: 5 16-05 Day 4: 5 15-10
2. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla. 20 63-06 295 $25,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 15-09 Day 3: 5 15-15 Day 4: 5 18-02
3. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, Ariz 20 59-03 290 $20,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 15-15 Day 3: 5 14-02 Day 4: 5 14-10
4. Matthew Sphar Pavilion, N.Y. 20 58-14 285 $15,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 17-09 Day 3: 5 14-08 Day 4: 5 14-12
5. Jason Quinn York, S.C. 20 57-08 280 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 16-05 Day 3: 5 13-03 Day 4: 5 12-09
6. Steve Kennedy Auburn, Ala. 20 57-04 276 $13,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 17-04 Day 3: 5 14-12 Day 4: 5 14-07
7. Greg Hackney Gonzales, La. 20 57-02 272 $13,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 17-04 Day 3: 5 15-01 Day 4: 5 11-06
8. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, Okla. 20 56-05 268 $12,500.00
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 12-13 Day 3: 5 14-10 Day 4: 5 13-01
9. Gerald Swindle Warrior, Ala. 20 56-04 264 $12,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 13-04 Day 3: 5 16-03 Day 4: 5 11-04
10. Terry Butcher Talala, Okla. 20 56-04 260 $11,500.00
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 14-01 Day 3: 5 13-11 Day 4: 5 13-02
11. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, Fla. 20 55-06 257 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 16-12 Day 3: 5 12-11 Day 4: 5 10-08
12. Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas 20 55-04 254 $10,500.00
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 5 13-04 Day 3: 5 12-12 Day 4: 5 12-09
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Big Bass
Day
1 Chad Griffin Cresson, Texas 5-08 $.00
2 Bernie Schultz Gainesville, Fla. 4-13 $.00
3 Randy Howell Springville, Ala. 4-03 $.00
3 Alton Jones Waco, Texas 4-03 $.00
4 Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, Ariz. 3-14 $.00
Big Bass of Tournament
Chad Griffin Cresson, Texas 5-08 $1,000.00
Angler of the Year Leader
Skeet Reese Auburn, Calif. $1,000.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 96 480 1251-09
2 98 490 1274-03
3 48 244 650-10
4 12 60 162-00
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254 1274 3338-06
BASSMASTER ANGLER OF THE YEAR STANDINGS - REGULAR SEASON
Pro Points After Oneida Lake
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Place Name St Pts
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1 Skeet Reese Calif. 2043
2 Kevin VanDam Mich. 2033
3 Alton Jones Texas 1979
4 Kelly Jordon Texas 1819
5 Todd Faircloth Texas 1799
6 Randy Howell Ala. 1796
7 Gary Klein Texas 1789
8 Tommy Biffle Okla. 1778
9 Mark Menendez Ky. 1775
10 Cliff Pace Miss. 1765
11 Michael Iaconelli N.J. 1754
12 Gerald Swindle Ala. 1740
13 Steve Kennedy Ala. 1717
14 Jeff Kriet Okla. 1692
15 Greg Hackney La. 1689
16 Aaron Martens Ala. 1679
17 Takahiro Omori Texas 1673
18 Kevin Short Ark. 1667
19 Shaw Grigsby Fla. 1661
20 Brent Chapman Kan. 1637
21 Byron Velvick Texas 1634
22 Mike McClelland Ark. 1629
23 Kevin Wirth Ky. 1625
24 Casey Ashley S.C. 1598
25 Dean Rojas Ariz. 1571
26 James Niggemeyer Texas 1567
27 Billy McCaghren Ark. 1561
28 Matt Herren Ala. 1553
29 Russ Lane Ala. 1547
30 Stephen Browning Ark. 1540
31 Boyd Duckett Ala. 1525
32 Denny Brauer Mo. 1517
33 John Murray Ariz. 1514
34 Bobby Lane Fla. 1513
35 Terry Butcher Okla. 1491
35 Jason Quinn S.C. 1491
37 Jami Fralick S.D. 1481
37 Mark Tucker Mo. 1481
37 Matt Reed Texas 1481
40 Timmy Horton Ala. 1478
41 Fred Roumbanis Okla. 1466
42 Chad Griffin Texas 1464
43 Jason Williamson S.C. 1462
44 Edwin Evers Okla. 1460
44 Bradley Hallman Okla. 1460
46 Bernie Schultz Fla. 1454
47 Davy Hite S.C. 1451
48 Todd Auten S.C. 1448
49 Dave Wolak N.C. 1446
50 Terry Scroggins Fla. 1442
51 Brian Snowden Mo. 1438
52 Rick Morris Va. 1422
52 Pat Golden N.C. 1422
54 Marty Stone N.C. 1385
55 Dustin Wilks N.C. 1380
56 Greg Vinson Ala. 1378
56 J Todd Tucker Ga. 1378
58 Brian Clark Texas 1377
59 Jeff Connella La. 1371
60 Bill Lowen Ohio 1370
61 Kotaro Kiriyama Ala. 1366
62 Jared Lintner Calif. 1363
63 Rick Clunn Mo. 1354
64 Matthew Sphar N.Y. 1350
65 Mark Tyler Okla. 1334
66 Britt Myers S.C. 1323
67 Mark Davis Ark. 1322
68 Morizo Shimizu Japan 1314
69 Scott Campbell Mo. 1273
70 Derek Remitz Ala. 1264
71 Chris Lane Fla. 1255
72 Pete Ponds Miss. 1242
72 Vince Fulks Okla. 1242
74 John Crews Va. 1236
75 Wade Grooms S.C. 1232
76 Jim Murray Ga. 1228
77 Kenyon Hill Okla. 1224
78 Peter Thliveros Fla. 1208
79 Ish Monroe Calif. 1204
80 Marty Robinson S.C. 1178
81 Guy Eaker N.C. 1158
82 Charlie Hartley Ohio 1134
83 Jeff Reynolds Okla. 1108
84 Ken Cook Okla. 1102
85 Paul Elias Miss. 1097
86 Scott Rook Ark. 1084
87 Clark Reehm Ark. 1078
88 Jimmy Mize Ark. 1064
89 Yusuke Miyazaki Texas 1056
90 Grant Goldbeck Md. 1029
91 Luke Gritter Mich. 1028
92 Jeremy Starks W.Va. 1022
93 Mike Wurm Ark. 1016
94 Mark Burgess Mass. 994
95 Zell Rowland Texas 974
96 Elton Luce Texas 970
97 Brent Broderick Ohio 844
98 David Smith Okla. 785
99 Jon Bondy Canada 495
100 Kevin Langill N.C. 484