LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — Gary Klein weighed only the fourth largest stringer in the Bass Fishing event of the ESPN Great Outdoor Games. But the way he did that not only provided a good fishing tip, but may have set him up to take home the gold in Sunday's final.

Klein, of Weathorford, Texas, saw the tournament waters of the Saranac Chain of Lakes for the first time on Friday during the 8-hour practice period. "I spent most of that time just trying to become familiar with the water," Klein said. "I went into every lake, went through every lock, just looking to see what was there, trying to develop a feeling for the best fishing water."

Consequently, he didn't get in much fishing time. By the end of the practice, he'd only caught one small keeper, a smallmouth that barely measured the 12-inch minimum.

"I didn't have anything to go on," Klein said. "And when you are in that situation you have to fish with an open mind and stay with your strengths."

For Klein, that meant what might be considered an unconventional approach to the standard bass tournament blast off. While the rest of the field sped off to points unknown, Klein never started his motor. Instead, he dropped his trolling motor and began his fishing day right there.

"I knew that as I went along, the fish would give me the clues and allow me to build a game plan," Klein said.

Staying with his strengths Klein pitched and flipped a jig and tube bait in shallow water, concentrating on shallow-water cover like stumps and rocks. By concentrating on the water in front of him and not running around trying to hit the high points of the fishing system, Klein feels like he may have put together a game plan for catching a bigger stringer of fish in the final.

"The weather will be a big key," Klein said. "It was cloudy today, and I was moving along the banks, I occasionally ran up on stumps or rocks because I couldn't see them. But if I could get at the right angle and see them, I'd flip up there and catch one."

Klein said if the sun were to shine, then the targets would be easier to see at long distances, allowing him to cover the water thoroughly. "I'm getting a good feeling for what the fish are doing," said Klein. "By the end of the day, I could almost call which stretches of banks I was going to get bit on."

"The only thing I don't know is what the population of the lake is and what kind of weight it can produce," continued Klein, who said that based on the 3-pound, 12-ounce largemouth he caught, it could produce a much heavier weight.

It will have to if he expects to win the gold. The advantage is the top three anglers are concentrating on individual grassbeds, while Klein will be moving and searching more water. "I like the odds of me finding a big fish, rather than sticking around and waiting for one to find me," said Klein.