Five members of YUM Bait Company’s elite pro staff will cap off outstanding fishing seasons by competing in the Bassmaster Classic Feb. 22-24 on Lake Hartwell. Terry Scroggins, Edwin Evers, Tim Horton, Alton Jones, and Dave Wolak all earned invitations into the exclusive field to compete in what is commonly dubbed the "Super Bowl of Bass Fishing."
Terry "Big Show" Scroggins finished the BASS Elite Series season fourth in the Angler of the Year points race, easily securing his place in the Classic field. However, Big Show put on an even bigger show in the Southern Opens by winning two of three events, which were his fourth and fifth BASS victories. He also captained the team that won the inaugural Toyota Texas Bass Classic on Lake Fork. "Big Show" also has become a buzzword among fishermen in baits stores and on chat boards because of two baits Scroggins designed – the YUM Big Show Craw and Big Show Paddle Worm.
Edwin Evers earned his eighth Classic bid through a quality season that included a win at Lake Erie, where Evers drop-shotted a YUM Houdini Worm over deep structure to put together three huge bags of Great Lakes smallmouths. Interestingly, Evers, who eclipsed the million-dollar BASS earnings mark with that win (his fourth), has never considered smallmouth fishing a strength.
Tim Horton extended the second longest active string of Bassmaster Classic bids by qualifying for his ninth consecutive title event. Horton first qualified for the Classic during his rookie year, when he won the prestigious BASS Angler of the Year title, and he has qualified every year since. Horton’s ’07 campaign included a runaway win at Lake Champlain, where he used a combination of a YUM Craw Papi rigged on BOOYAH Football Jig, a YUM Vibra King Tube and a Bomber Fat Free Shad Jr. to outpace the No. 2 finisher by nearly 13 pounds.
Alton Jones, another member of the million-dollar earnings club and a four-time BASS winner, earned his Classic bid though quiet consistency in 2007. His highest finish was eighth place (Lake Guntersville), but he finished in the money on 10 separate occasions. Jones also captained the team that placed second to Scroggins’ team in the Toyota Texas Bass Classic.
Dave Wolak, a former Toyota Rookie of the Year and BASS Major champion, finished the Elite Series season just outside the Classic cut. However, Wolak also fished the Bassmaster Central Opens in ’07, and his first-place finish in the Opens points earned him his third Classic bid. Wolak also took advantage of a small gap in the Elite Series schedule and fished an FLW Series event on Lake Champlain, where he finished second.
Photos courtesy of ESPN Outdoors