Las Vegas, Nev. – September 8, 2014 – The King of Lake Mead is at it again.

Clifford Pirch, a two-time U.S. Open champion and multiple time top five finisher in the event has once again astounded the followers of the most prestigious bass fishing event in the Western United States.

On a day ruled by changing weather conditions that saw high temperatures well below last week’s 109 degree heats, Pirch managed to utilize his skills as an angler and his knowledge of the lake to scramble and find the kind of fish that leaves fans and competitors shaking their heads.

Pirch and his AAA partner Ronald Slack Jr. brought a 15.47-pound limit of bass to the scales that included Pirch’s 6.49-pound largemouth; which was the big fish of the day. The performance put Pirch in the driver’s seat to claim his third U.S. Open victory by nearly four pounds over Dixon, Calif. pro Brett Leber, who came to the scales with 11.54 pounds.

Pirch said that his game plan suffered an early demise, and he ran the conditions to improve. “I had a stretch that I thought I could get a pretty strong limit on first thing, but by one o’clock, I still only had seven pounds in the boat,” he said. “I saw the weather changing, and the wind and rain picking up and I started moving around more. Within a couple hours I had caught the big one and two other really good fish that got me to 15 pounds.”

Pirch also said that he had water that he couldn’t fish today because of the conditions. “The water I ran today was all stuff that I had planned on as my B grade tuff, and maybe it turned out to be a little better than I had thought,” he said. “I’ve got some other water that I am planning on running tomorrow and hopefully I will be able to put it together again tomorrow.”

Leber reported using reaction baits and covering a lot of water, but that he did not have the kind of day he had hoped. “I had over 13 pounds in practice on Friday and another good day on Saturday,” he said. “I didn’t do as well today because the wind wasn’t right for my areas – there was too much on it to do what I wanted to do. If I get a little bit better conditions tomorrow, I should be able to improve my weight.”

Following Leber in third place in the standings is longtime Western pro John Morrow from Brea, Calif. with 11.17 pounds, Zack Elrite from San Jose, Calif. is fourth with 10.84 pounds and Todd Woods from San Dimas, Calif. rounds out the top five with 10.80 pounds himself.

As stated before, Slack leads the AAA Division with 15.47 pounds, followed by Tom Nokes with 11.54 pounds in second place. Third place AAA Dale Howard fished with Morrow and had 11.17 pounds, followed by Kirk Beardsley with 10.84 in fourth place and Dominic Amato in fifth place with 10.80 pounds.

Day two of The WON Bass Nitro Boats / Mercury U.S. Open takeoff will occur at Callville Bay Marina on the shores of Lake Mead Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday beginning at 5:45AM, with daily weigh-ins starting at 2:00PM. Following the event’s conclusion on Wednesday, a champion will be crowned at Boulder Station Casino the final evening of the event.

Daily event coverage will begin following tournament take off with hourly updates at 9:00AM, 10:00AM and 11:00AM each day, followed by weigh-in coverage beginning at 2:00PM and finally a 7:00PM post game show; all show times are Pacific Standard Time and can be viewed at www.wonbass.com.

The WON Bass Nitro Boats / Mercury Marine U.S. Open Live Webcast is presented by Costa Sunglasses, the event is also brought to you by Nitro Boats, Mercury Outboards, Costa Sunglasses, Bass Pro Shops, Bridgford Foods, Daiwa, Seaguar, Plano Molding, Cousins Tackle, YoZuri, Pro Mar, Eagle Claw TroKar, Lowrance, St.Croix Rods, Frabill, Okuma, Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits, Reactor, Zip Baits, Big Hammer, Fishing for Adoption, Global Fish Mounts, A&M Graphics, Savage Gear and Storm