Ott DeFoe, the hometown favorite, realized a childhood dream Sunday when he won the 49th Bassmaster Classic, considered the Super Bowl of bass fishing.
DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn., totaled 49 pounds, 3 ounces in three days on the Tennessee River in Knoxville to capture the coveted title and pocket a whopping $300,000 of the $1 million purse.
It was the fourth time in the last six years that an angler has won the Classic in his home state. This wasn’t always commonplace. The first time it happened was in the 37th Classic in 2007.
“This is a dream come true — a dream I’ve had since I was a 9-year-old kid,” said DeFoe, who now has six career victories with B.A.S.S, according to a B.A.S.S. blog post. “When we came over here and did the walk-through the day before the tournament, I actually imagined hearing my name after the words ‘Bassmaster Classic champion.’
“For it to happen now…I just keep thinking I’m gonna wake up.”
Though he was the obvious favorite, DeFoe sat in fourth place going into the final day after a subpar catch of five fish for 10 pounds, 5 ounces on the second day for a 30-5 total.
“If I would have had a good Day 2 — if I’d had even 14 or 15 pounds — I might have been totally committed to what I was doing,” DeFoe said. “It was working. Why would I not stay with it?
“But the fact that it just didn’t work for me, that caused me to just scrap it all. I just went fishing today, and that’s exactly what I needed to do.”
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DeFoe caught five fish for 18 pounds, 14 ounces and beat second-round leader and second-place finisher Jacob Wheeler by nearly four pounds.
“I knew it was going to be hard to beat Ott on this fishery,” said Wheeler, who took home $50,000. “If I just had to come up a little short, I’m glad to see Ott win it.”
Photos courtesy of B.A.S.S.
