Some two-year-old memories were rekindled in the BASSTrakk standings at 1:30 p.m. when Aaron Martens and Edwin Evers appeared tied for 19th (later 20th) place with estimated weights of 15-14 each. The last time the Elite Series was here, in 2013, Evers had a 30-point lead over Martens and was heavily favored to close out his first Toyota Angler of the Year title.
We all know how that turned out. But a couple of facts bear remembering:
– Evers hadn't finished lower than 30th place until the final event;
– Martens started the season with an 85th place finish at the Sabine River and rallied with five straight Top 12 finishes;
– Evers had a horrible start with 13-1 (75th place) on Day 1, but came back with 17-0 and missed the Day 2 cut by only 8 ounces, finishing 54th;
– With Evers out of the competition on Day 3, Martens had to finish 23rd or better to win the AOY title, and he did it easily by qualifying for the Top 12 in third place.
Evers fished in Lake St. Clair in 2013, when Martens gambled on making the run to Lake Erie. Everyone saw how big a gamble that was on Day 4 when Martens took a perfect storm of big waves and was left dead in the water, unable to weigh-in. But he'd already clinched the AOY title on Day 3.
To his credit, Evers is able to talk about that event with a smile on his face. When asked Wednesday where he was going to fish this week, Evers said, "I'm going to redeem myself. I'm going back to St. Clair and make them bite this time. It would make me feel a lot better about what happened last time."
The common thought was that Evers played it safe, sitting on the 30-point lead, in 2013. But he said that wasn't part of his thinking at all. He found a couple of good areas in Lake St. Clair during practice. He just couldn't trigger those bites during the tournament, particularly on Day 1.
It appears Evers might be redeeming himself a bit today, but the stakes aren't near what they were two years ago.