BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - July 24, 2002 - Fifty-two of America's brightest fishing stars invade Alabama's Lay Lake Thursday in search of a piece of professional fishing immortality as the 32nd Bassmasters Classic unfolds.
At stake is a $200,000 top prize and the most important title in fishing. A Classic championship solidifies some careers, skyrockets others into a different financial stratum and makes household names out of its winners.
Lay Lake, a 12,000-acre impoundment of the Coosa River located near Birmingham, was the site of the 1996 Classic, which was won by Arkansas pro George Cochran. Cochran, a two-time Classic champion, is hoping that history will repeat itself this week.
"I'd love to win again here at Lay Lake, but I think it's going to be an entirely different kind of tournament this time," Cochran said. "I think the lake is a lot different than it was back in '96. There are more bass in the lake now, and everybody knows that you can catch them shallow in Lay Lake. That was an advantage that I had back in '96."
Michigan's Kevin VanDam is the defending Classic champion.
"I think the Classic this year is going to be one of the closest ever," VanDam said. "The fishing could be good, but one element that we're going to have to deal with is the spectator boat pressure. That could really hurt a lot of patterns. So I've put together a game plan with that in mind."
"Let's face it, this is not a good time to catch fish anywhere in the South," said South Carolina's Davy Hite, the reigning B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year. "They don't call them the dog days of summer for nothing. You're not supposed to be able to go out there and really catch them.
"But everybody is on a level playing field and facing the same challenge. That's what makes it interesting."
In the Classic, which runs through Saturday, the pros will be searching for the heaviest five-bass limit of largemouth and spotted bass possible each day.