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NEXT GENERATION.
JVD wants to follow in KVD's footsteps.
January 23, 2008 - KVD is, of course, Bassmaster
Elite Series pro Kevin VanDam, a two-time Bassmaster Classic
champion and three-time Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the
Year. JVD is Jonathan VanDam, KVD's nephew. Both are from Kalamazoo,
Mich.
Tall and fair like his famous uncle, 19-year-old
JVD is a college student and aspiring career angler who took
a third-place finish last week at the Bassmaster Southern Open
on the St. Johns River out of Palatka, Fla.
"I've placed higher in a lot events, but this
is definitely the biggest event that I've done so well in, and
definitely the most I've won," JVD said.
He earned a check for almost $20,000 at the St.
Johns event, his pro debut.
It was on the Southern Open weigh-in stage that
most fishing fans first heard the young VanDam's nickname. Later
he explained that JVD is not a hand-me-down from his uncle.
"I've been called that for a long time,"
he said. "All my friends call me that."
An avid angler who has competed in local and regional
events for years, he had his first taste of BASS competition
in July 2006, when he traveled with his uncle for back-to-back
Elite events in New York, where the younger VanDam competed as
a co-angler. The next summer he repeated the trip and scored
his best co-angler performance, fifth place.
JVD is a second-semester freshman at Western Michigan
University in Kalamazoo, where he is studying business and finance.
He plans to continue his education while he develops his fishing
career through the Southern Open circuit this year.
"I'm definitely looking toward fishing as
a career," he said. "That's been my dream forever."
Watch for at least two more fishing stars to emerge
from Kalamazoo. JVD has two younger cousins who want to compete
professionally, too. The boys' last name isn't VanDam, but they
have the genes and angling heritage, just like JVD.
"My uncle's definitely taught me a lot, but
it's my grandfather and dad who have taught me the most,"
he said.
His grandfather, Dick VanDam, drove from his winter
home in Florida to Palatka to watch JVD weigh in. JVD's father
(KVD's brother) is Randy VanDam, owner of D&R Sports, a 35-year-old
outdoor store in Kalamazoo. Randy is also a well-known and accomplished
angler.
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