Kevin VanDam (born October 14, 1967), often called simply "KVD," is a professional bass fisherman from

Otsego, Michigan Otsego is a city in Allegan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,956 at the 2010 census. The city is within Otsego Township, but is administratively autonomous. Otsego is situated on M-89 about three miles (5 km) we ...

. He is the all-time money winner in professional bass fishing, having earned $7,089,388 through August 2022 according to Major League Fishing. He has captured four

Bassmaster Classic The Bassmaster Classic (known as the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic for sponsorship) is a tournament in the sport of professional bass fishing. It was first held in 1971 on Lake Mead, Nevada. Originally it was a fall event, (1971-1983 ...

titles (2001, 2005, 2010, 2011), seven Toyota Tundra Angler of Year titles (1992, ‘96, ‘99, ‘08, ‘09, '10, '11) and was also the FLW Angler of the Year in 2001. VanDam has predominantly fished the

Bass Anglers Sportsman Society The Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) is a fishing membership organization with more than a half a million members. It is geared toward bass fishermen, mainly in the United States but with members located worldwide. The society publishe ...

(BASS) Bassmasters tournament series during his career but was also a founding member of Major League Fishing.

Career

VanDam began his career in 1990 at the age of 23. In 1992, he became the youngest person to win the BASS Angler of the Year title, at age 25. He and

Rick Clunn Rick Clunn (born July 24, 1946) is a professional bass fisherman. Biography Clunn has won the Bassmaster Classic tournament four times, in 1976, 1977, 1984, and 1990, tying him with Kevin Van Dam for the most Bassmaster Classic wins. Clunn is ...

are the only anglers to have won four

titles. His 25 career BASS tournament series wins are the most career wins on the Bassmasters tournament trail. His win of the Bassmaster Elite at Grand Lake on April 29, 2018, marked his 25th Elite Series victory. Vandam also has 111 top 10 finishes, 173 top 20 finishes, and 214 top 30 finishes through July 23, 2017. VanDam was honored with the first-ever Outdoorsman of the Year

ESPY Award An ESPY Award (short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award) is an accolade currently presented by the American broadcast television network ABC, and previously ESPN (as of the 2017 ESPY Awards the latter still airs them in the for ...

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

in 2002. VanDam is sponsored on the BASS Bassmasters tournament trail by Busch Beer, Nitro, Mercury Marine,

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

, Strike King, Mustad, Plano, MinnKota, Lew's,

Bass Pro Shops BPS Direct, L.L.C, doing business as Bass Pro Shops, is an American privately held retailer which specializes in hunting, fishing, camping, and other related outdoor recreation merchandise. With headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, Bass P ...

, Humminbird, Oakley, D&R Sports, Hydrowave, and RMR Industries.

Stats

* 3 Major League Fishing Cup * 4 Bassmaster Classic Titles * 8 Angler of the Year Titles ( 7 B.A.S.S. , 1 FLW) *Career winnings: more than $6,300,000 (B.A.S.S. and FLW) *Career Top Ten finishes: 111 *Times in the BASSMASTER Classic: 26 *Tournaments Won: 25 (B.A.S.S.) *Tournaments Runner-Up: 16

Personal life

Born in

Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

, and graduated from Otsego High School, VanDam still resides there with his wife, Sherry, and sons Jackson and Nicholas.

References

External links

Official WebsiteAnglers' Legacy featureBass Fan bio
(extensive stats)
Kevin VanDam CATT/Outdoor Alliance Fishing seminarThe Woman Behind the Man
(ESPN story)
Bassmaster.com profile
*(http://www.outdoors365tv.com) {{DEFAULTSORT:Vandam, Kevin 1967 births Living people Sportspeople from Michigan American fishers