Brandon Palaniuk is confident he won't let the Bassmaster Elite Series off his hook.

The Rathdrum 25-year-old is in 89th place out of 100 in the pro bass fishing circuit's Angler of the Year standings heading into the final two tournaments of the season, but he needs to finish in the top 73 to earn his fourth straight year on the elite tour next year.

"I'm not too worried about it," said Palaniuk, who is home for the first time since January and in between tournaments. "I feel pretty good about the two tournaments that are left."

Those include the Evan Williams Bourbon Showdown on the St. Lawrence River Aug. 8-11 in Waddington, N.Y., and the Plano Championship Chase Aug. 22-25 on Lake St. Clair in Detroit, Mich.

Palaniuk wouldn't likely be in the situation had he not been disqualified after leading the first two days of a recent tourney on the Mississippi River in LaCrosse, Wis., on the Wisconsin-Minnesota border.

Palaniuk culled from a five-fish limit while he was in Minnesota, which drew the disqualification. Both tournament officials and Palaniuk said it was an honest mistake.

"In dealing with a river system like the Mississippi and its numerous channels, it's easy to become confused about the state lines on the water," said Chris Bowes, tournament manager.

It was a costly mishap, Palaniuk said.

"If I would have won $150,000 had I won the tournament, and I would have received a berth into the Bassmaster Classic, which is our Super Bowl," he said.

Palaniuk, who was a two-time state wrestling champion at Lakeland High and is one of the youngest anglers on the fishing tour, finished 37th his first year as pro and 40th last year. If he doesn't qualify for next year with good finishes at the last two tourneys, he can still qualify through the Northern Open.

Palaniuk spent seven years trying to qualify to become a pro.

"I started trying to make it when I was 16," he said. "That's what I wanted to do."

Palaniuk has made a good living as a pro the past three years.

During his first year, his tournament earnings was $98,000, not including sponsorships. Last year the earnings soared to $170,000 before falling to $55,000 this year. He declined to say how much he takes in for sponsorships.

He said it costs $43,000 to enter the eight events of the elite series and there's about $30,000 in traveling expenses.

"I've been fortunate to make enough to not have to work a normal job," said Palaniuk, adding that he'd likely go back to building logging roads if fishing for a living comes to a halt.

He said fishing on the tour isn't the same as a leisure weekend on a local lake.

"It takes a lot out of you when you haven't been home for six months," he said. "When paying bills are dependent on you catching fish, it can get stressful. If you're not catching fish, you've got to figure out quickly how to. It's more of a mental game than people realize."

Palaniuk said some anglers rely on past experiences too much to catch fish rather than paying attention to the current conditions.

"They remember they caught fish on this lure in this spot yesterday when it was sunny, but wonder why they can't catch fish the next day when it's cloudy," he said. "The fish change with the conditions and you have to change with them. Don't force feed the fish; just listen to them."

Palaniuk said Lake Coeur d'Alene would be the perfect place to host a tournament in the elite series. He said it's been bantered between local officials and Bassmaster.

"We've got a lot to offer up here, so it may only be a matter of time," he said. "We have all the amenities. I'd love to see it."