A-Mart top pick for AOY

Elites head into home stretch with Martens near top

WADDINGTON, N.Y. — After almost a two-month mid-summer break, the Bassmaster Elite Series heads into the home stretch of the 2015 season beginning Thursday with the Evan Williams Bourbon event at the St. Lawrence River. Three of the eight regular season tournaments remain, plus the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship in September.

Increasingly, the AOY race will become the focus now. So Wednesday’s anglers’ meeting seemed like good time to take a sampling of who the pros think will ultimately win the 2015 AOY title – based on what’s happened already and what lies ahead.

It will come as no surprise that five of the eight Elite pros picked two-time AOY champion Aaron Martens to add another title. Martens enters this event in third place in the season standings, but only 4 points behind leader Dean Rojas. Justin Lucas is second, 3 points behind Rojas.

What might surprise you is some of the reasoning behind the picks, and the fact that everyone of those surveyed think this race will go down to the wire. Plus, there’s definitely a darkhorse lurking in the top five.

Only one guy picked current leader Rojas to close this thing out. But that guy was 2014 AOY champ Greg Hackney.

“I feel like it’s his time,” Hackney said. “He’s been in a lot of hard fights. He’s won a lot of stuff. He definitely has the experience and the ability. I think he’ll be more apt to catch them in these last events than Aaron. Those would be my top two, but I have to pick Dean. I feel that.”

Hackney wanted to include a “show horse” in the race as well – Brent Ehrler, who is in fifth place, 70 points behind Rojas.

“All three of those guys are capable of winning anything – tournament, AOY, whatever,” Hackney said. “That’s the problem with the whole (Elite Series) group now. They’re the best that’s ever been. Just look around. It’s all a who’s who of bass fishing.

“But, pressure-wise, I think Dean will do the best, more than the next two.”

Ehrler is yet another Elite Series rookie who is anything but a rookie. He joined the B.A.S.S. tour this season after consistently ranking among the top pros on the FLW circuit. Ehrler’s season got off to a rough start with an 87th place finish at the Sabine River. But that simply points to how strong he’s been since. Mike Iaconelli and Terry Scroggins also mentioned Ehrler as a likely contender at the end.

The Elite Series veterans polled aren’t dismissing the chances of the 29-year-old Lucas contending at the end. In fact, Iaconelli picked Lucas to win.

“He’s riding a high right now,” Iaconelli said. “A lot of times that will propel you to the end of the season.”

Jason Christie has also noticed the wave that Lucas is riding, saying, “Sometimes I think he doesn’t know the magnitude of the situation. He really doesn’t get shook up because he doesn’t know any better. He would be my second pick.”

Bill Lowen, Jacob Powroznik, Stephen Browning, Scroggins and Christie were the Martens votes to win, and all cited the same two reasons: 1) Martens has done it before – twice, and 2) three of these last four tournaments will be on smallmouth/drop shot waters, where Martens usually excels.

“The places we’re going suit his style,” said Christie, adding, “Anybody that can catch ‘em in the Red River on a drop-shot, well, it doesn’t make any difference where we go.”

It’s the following event that could shake up the AOY standings, according to those polled. It’s at the Chesapeake Bay, out of Cecil County, Md., where the Elite Series hasn’t been before.

“No doubt about it,” Browning said. “I think it’s going to fish extremely small. Guys just aren’t going to be able to have anything by themselves.”

Lowen added, “There’s going to be guys that train-wreck there. That one could have a lot to do with the tide. If you miss it, it could be a long tournament.”

But then it’s back to smallmouth waters. The regular season ends in Detroit at Lake St. Clair, Aug. 27-30. Then it’s Lake Michigan’s Sturgeon Bay for the AOY Championship.

There was one other first-place vote-getter among the eight anglers polled. Rojas picked Kevin VanDam, the seven-time AOY champ from Kalamazoo, Mich. KVD is currently in seventh place, 83 points behind Rojas.

“I mean, come on,” Rojas said. “That’s the guy right there. Those last events are in his backyard.”