Fourth place is holy ground

Seth Feider and Gerald Swindle

The “point” of this whole tournament is the points: Points that can be won or lost.

That may not be the case for the guy who wins the Plano Bassmaster Elite at the Mississippi River presented by Favorite Fishing. That angler will be focused on the money and the trophy that comes with winning an Elite Series event. But tomorrow there will be a special focus on fourth place.

In any other event, fourth place is considered third loser. But in the intricacies of the Elite Series, where points decide careers and who goes to the Bassmaster Classic, the points that come with fourth place here are the golden ticket on two fronts.

At the top of that list is Gerald Swindle, who currently sits in 10th place in this event. His strong finish has made it virtually impossible for Keith Combs to make up any ground in the Toyota Angler of the Year race. On Sunday if Swindle were able to jump six places and finish fourth, then he would shut the door on Combs.

A fourth-place finish would give him the perfect cushion to lock up AOY and allow him to coast during the AOY Championship at Mille Lacs next weekend.

Fourth place, though, isn’t just important to Swindle. Seth Feider, who has been battling all week to make the AOY Championship in his home state of Minnesota, is actually in as of today. After three days of competition he’s second here at La Crosse, which moves him in 50th place in AOY points. And he will stay there as long as he doesn’t fall below fourth place. The top 50 finishers in AOY points will go to the AOY Championship next week.

The interesting nature of the points has changed the complexion of fourth place. At least for a day “third loser” becomes holy ground for two anglers.