Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., earns the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title at the Plano Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair. Martens surpassed his closet points competitor, Dean Rojas, by more than 100 points Sunday, earning him the 2015 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title.
August 30, 2015
Martens Wakes Up Late, Still Wins Toyota Bassmaster Angler Of The Year Title Early
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DETROIT — Aaron Martens slept through his alarm clock Sunday morning, got on the water 30 minutes late and still clinched the 2015 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title three weeks early.
By finishing sixth in the Plano Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair, the 43-year-old Leeds, Ala., angler built an insurmountable 102-point lead over his next closest competitor. It sealed possibly the most dominant season in Elite Series history. And it made the Toyota Angler of the Year Championship on Lake Michigan’s Sturgeon Bay next month a foregone conclusion.
“Now I feel bad,” said Martens. “If I wouldn’t have done that, (the AOY race) officially wouldn’t have been over.”
Martens was only halfway kidding. There was very little chance anyone was going to catch him, even if it had been mathematically possible, at Sturgeon Bay next month. Now it’s impossible.
In the eight-tournament Elite Series season, Martens won twice and finished lower than 15th only once. His one hiccup came in the second tournament of the year when he was 66th at Alabama’s Lake Guntersville. His victories came at Lake Havasu and Chesapeake Bay. He finished second at the Sacramento River/California Delta, third at Sabine River, 13th at the St. Lawrence River, 15th at Kentucky Lake.
“It’s getting better every day,” Martens said of the 2015 season. “I’ve definitely been blessed this year.”
This marked Martens’ third AOY championship. He previously won in 2005 and 2013. He was fourth in 2014.
“It has been an amazing three years,” said Martens, who has won over $2.5 million in his B.A.S.S. career.
It was a sign of how diligently Martens has prepared for every tournament day this season that he slept through his alarm clock and several wakeup calls Sunday morning. From working on tackle and preparing his nutrition shakes each evening, Martens has been averaging four hours sleep per night. Exhaustion may have caught up with him before Sunday’s final day on Lake St. Clair.
“I never heard an alarm go off,” Martens said. “I’ve never done that before. When you wake up and see it’s light outside you know you’re in deep (trouble).”
Even spotting the other 11 finalists a half-hour before he got on the water, Martens still moved up in the standings Sunday, starting in 11th place and finishing in sixth. It was just the latest example of how dominant he has been all season.
The final AOY standings won’t be determined until the Sturgeon Bay event, but going into it, Dean Rojas is second with 601 points, Justin Lucas is third (598), Jacob Powroznik is fourth (565) and Edwin Evers is fifth (564). There will be 35-plus 2016 Bassmaster Classic berths decided by the final AOY standings after Sturgeon Bay.
2015 Points Report
PROFESSIONAL ELITE SERIES
as of 30-Aug-2015
Angler Points Lbs-Oz 1 Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 703 2 Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 601 3 Justin Lucas Guntersville, AL 598 4 Jacob Powroznik Port Haywood, VA 565 5 Edwin Evers Talala, OK 564 6 Brent Ehrler Newport Beach, CA 548 7 Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 531 8 Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 526 9 Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 517 10 Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA 516 11 Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 513 12 Matt Herren Ashville, AL 513 13 Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 501 14 Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 500 15 Jordan Lee Vinemont, AL 500 16 Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 499 17 Keith Combs Huntington, TX 495 18 Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 493 19 Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 489 20 Alton Jones Lorena, TX 483 21 Randy Howell Springville, AL 480 22 John Crews Jr Salem, VA 468 23 Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL 464 24 Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 462 25 David Walker Sevierville, TN 451 26 Russ Lane Prattville, AL 437 27 Micah Frazier Newnan, GA 432 28 Boyd Duckett Guntersville, AL 429 29 James Elam Tulsa, OK 428 30 Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 423 31 Brett Hite Phoenix, AZ 417 32 Chad Pipkens Holt, MI 415 33 Brandon Card Caryville, TN 414 34 Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 413 35 Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 412 36 Josh Bertrand Gilbert, AZ 407 37 Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 407 38 Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 404 39 Brandon Coulter Knoxville, TN 404 40 Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 403 41 Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 402 42 John Murray Phoenix, AZ 401 43 Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 400 44 Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 398 45 Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 396 46 Morizo Shimizu Suita, Osaka, JPN 392 47 Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 388 48 Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 385 49 Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 381 50 Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 380
