Chris Lane won the Bassmaster Elite Series Plano Championship Chase Sunday with a 4-day total weight of 82 pounds 4 ounces. The former Floridian, current Alabamian sacked 4 consecutive limits of smallmouth bass. His margin of victory was 5-7 over Mark Davis of Mount Ida, Ark.

Through the win, Lane, the 2012 Bassmaster Classic champ, got his 2014 Bassmaster Classic ticket punched — what he came into the Chase to achieve. From Guntersville, Ala., he was set on qualifying for the 2014 world championship on his home water of Lake Guntersville.

The win was also his first in the Bassmaster Elite Series and a $100,000 payday. Lane got the ball rolling around midday.

“I got that killer instinct,” he said. “I got focused in. I said, ‘I need to catch some big ones, I need to catch a good one.’ And that’s when I caught my biggest fish of the day.”

It weighed about 4 1/2 pounds, he estimated. With 17 to 18 pounds already in the livewell, he was on his way to building his day’s total to 19-11.

“Mark’s been catching 20-plus pounds a day, and I was a pound behind,” Lane said. “I figured he was going to come in with another 20, and I would need more. I knew I had to gear up and not be content.”

Lane’s winning pattern was drifting a drop shot rig with a 1/4-ounce weight in current at the Lake Huron mouth of the St. Clair River. The current held baitfish, and smallmouth bass were feeding on them.

Davis, the 1995 Classic winner who also owns three Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year trophies, led on Days 2 and 3. On Day 4, one bass shy of a five-fish limit, Davis’ weight was 13-3. He finished at 76-13 in the runner-up spot.

Davis made the dicey run to Lake Erie each day. He headed to one area that held big smallmouth bass, but not many of them. To catch them, he drop shotted a Strike King Dream Shot or a 6-inch Roboworm.

Sunday, unlike the other three days, he could not boat a fifth keeper.

“That fifth fish got off twice today,” Davis said. “I about cried. A 4 1/2 was right at the boat; I fought it forever. The other one was a 3 1/2-pounder. Those two fish would have won for me.”

But Davis pinned his failure to take the trophy on four other lost smallmouth bass. They came unbuttoned on the first day, when Lane led the full field of 99 pros. Davis said they were two 4-pounders, a 5 and one more than 6.

“You just cannot do that and win an event like this,” he said.

It wasn’t for lack of trying that Davis did not win. He made a brave run daily to his fish – a move that surprised many, as it was uncharacteristic for him.

The trip to Erie entails leaving from Harrison Township, covering much of Lake St. Clair, navigating the Detroit River, where big yachts and even bigger commercial ships produce wakes that can easily swamp a low-profile bass boat. If the wind kicks up, the waves of Erie make for a ‘sporty’ ride. The run can jar the bones, and eat away precious fishing time.

In fact, Davis said, the highlight of his second day was his safe return to the check-in point on Lake St. Clair.

Saturday’s run was again hard, but not because of high winds on Erie.

“The trip back was fine until you got to the river (Detroit River),” he said. “That river was horrendous. It was so bad, I stopped three times just to take a break and keep water on my fish. The water (in the livewell) bounces around so much, it runs out the overflow.”

Particularly hard was the stretch on the river with concrete walls that ricochet huge wakes produced by big boats. It’s called the Miracle Mile.

“I think it ought to be called the Miracle 20 Miles.” he said. “For 20 miles, it was as bad a water as you can imagine.”

The 2008 Classic champ Alton Jones of Lorena, Texas, jumped from 12th place to take third with 76-6. Jones weighed the day’s largest bag of 22-3.

2004 Classic winner, Takahiro Omori of Emory, Texas landed in 4th place with 76-0, including the day’s biggest bass at 5-11. Michigan native Nate Wellman of Newaygo rounded out the Top 5 at 75-11.

photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala. was awarded the 2013 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year trophy after the Day 3 weigh in.

“This is one of the best days of my entire career,” Martens said as he accepted the huge piece of hardware. Then, as Martens started to say he regretted that his family wasn’t with him to share in his victory, his wife and children appeared on stage.

“It just got better,” Martens grinned.

Martens began the Chase 30 ticks behind points leader Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla. Evers, who led the AOY race after five consecutive events, fell out of the Chase Friday by missing the Top 50 cut. In 54th place, unable to earn more points, Evers left the door open for Martens.

“It is what it is,” Evers said on Friday. “I’ve had a great year, something to be proud of.”

Martens, who has been through several near misses in attempts to add a twin to his first AOY trophy in 2005, was thinking about Evers.

“I feel for Edwin,” the Alabama pro said. “I have a lot of respect for him. He’s a great angler.”

Fortunately, Martens won the AOY on Saturday because, while he qualified to fish in Sunday’s final round, he didn’t weigh in. Reportedly, a broken jackplate bolt left him unable to travel back to the check-in point.

He told tournament officials that he released the five fish in his livewell, which weighed about 20 pounds.

With the regular Elite Series season coming to a close, 38 Bassmaster Classic qualifiers were set in stone.

The first cut was at place No. 29 on the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points standings.

Double-qualifiers through wins in previous events or unclaimed Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens qualifications extended the cut to 38 which means Davis, now 32nd in AOY points, qualified to fish the Classic via his improved standing in the points race. Davis entered the Chase 47th in points.

Elite pros earned other awards at the Showdown:

* 2013 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year, $100,000: Martens for amassing the highest number of points over the eight events of the regular Elite season.

*2013 Bassmaster Rookie of the Year: Hank Cherry of Maiden, N.C.

* Carhartt Big Bass of the 2013 season, $2,000 and a Carhartt Green Jacket: Matt Greenblatt of Port St. Lucie, Fla., for his 10-13 on March 22, the second day of the Rigid Industries Falcon Slam on Falcon Lake out of Zapata, Texas.

* Second-place Carhartt Big Bass of the season, $1,250: Tommy Biffle of Wagoner, Okla., for his 6-12 on Day 1 of the West Point, Ga., event.

* Third-place Carhartt Big Bass of the season, $1,000: Kelly Jordon of Palestine, Texas, for his 6-4 on Day 1 of the Montgomery, Ala., event.

* Fourth-place Carhartt Big Bass of the season, $750: Terry Scroggins of San Mateo, Fla., for his 6-1 on Day 2 of the Orange, Texas event.

* Fifth-place Carhartt Big Bass of the season: A tie at 5-13 between Steve Kennedy of Auburn Ala., Day 3 of the Waddington, N.Y. event, and Alton Jones of Lorena, Texas, Day 3 in this week’s Detroit event; $250 each.

* Carhartt Big Bass of the Plano Championship Chase, worth $1,000 plus another $500 for wearing Carhartt apparel: Jones for his 5-13 on Day 3.

* Berkley Heavyweight Award of $500 for the best five-fish limit: Lane for his 22-15 bag of Day 3.

* Luck-E-Strike Comeback Award of $500: Lane, who moved up 19 places in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points standings, from 53rd place into 34th place.

* Power-Pole Captain’s Cash award of $1,000 to the highest finisher equipped with Power-Poles: Lane

* Livingston Lures Leader Award of $500 for heading up the leaderboard on the second day: Davis

About his Bassmaster Rookie of the Year title, Cherry said:

“I’m proud of it. I worked hard for it.” He won by 40 points over Cliff Pirch of Payson, Ariz.

Cherry’s solid Chase finish in 30th place helped him pass Pirch.

“I take my hat off to him; he’s a great fisherman,” said Cherry.

Cherry’s ROY award comes with an entry in the Sept. 27-29 postseason, the Toyota All-Star Week and Evan Williams Bourbon Championship on Muskegon Lake out of Muskegon, Mich.

Cherry will be up against 13 other Elite pros vying for a piece of $100,000. The postseason winner will take $50,000 of the purse.

Hank Cherry is the 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series Rookie of the Year