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Justin Kerr nips Gary Dobyns for 2008 U.S. Open title

Category: press release

 Aug 28th, 2008 by OutdoorsFIRST 

Modified Aug 28th, 2008 at 12:00 AM

Justin Kerr nips Gary Dobyns for 2008 U.S. Open titleLAS VEGAS-In a race going down to the final flight on Wednesday, pro Justin Kerr of Simi Valley, California nipped Gary Dobyns of Yuba City by .47 pounds to win the 2008 WON Bass U.S. Open tournament on Lake Mead.

	2008 US Open Champ Justin Kerr (Photo WON BASS)

Kerr, whose 9.16-pound sack today pulled him from fourth place to the lead, utilized a one-two punch of oxblood RoboWorms and Super Spooks each day of the contest to edge past Dobyns who weighed 8.23 pounds today.”It wasn’t as good a day,” Kerr said of Wednesday’s fishing, noting “I could only catch a limit in the morning all week. Today, I finally culled one in the last five minutes.” He finished with 27.31 pounds.Catching a bass that has swirled on his topwater, he followed with the plastic worm to catch a 2.2 pounder that allowed him to release a fish weighing just 1.2 pounds. “There’s no way I would have won without that fish,” said the champion, who takes home cash and prizes worth $150,000.Thwarted after another strong showing in the desert, Dobyns said, “I busted one off at the boat. I’m very disappointed in my fishing.” His runner-up total went 26.84 pounds.Holding down third place was former champion John Kerr of Ramona, Calif. (no relation to the winner) who finished with 25.38 pounds. His final day sack went 6.73 pounds and all week he relied on a mix of reaction baits and drop-shot worms. “I covered as much water as possible,” he said.Unable to secure a limit on the final day, Shaun Bailey of Lake Havasu City, Ariz. settled for fourth place after leading on Monday and Tuesday. His final tally was 25.24 pounds.Another Californian, Tom Matsunaga of Gardena held on to fifth place with a three-day weight of 23.10 pounds. “The better fish just didn’t bite,” he said of his drop-shot action in 30 feet of water.The tournament, which was held out of the Silverton Lodge Casino-Bass Pro Shops, experienced calm conditions and temperatures in the low 100’s.