Aras Aces 'Survivor: Panama'

(CBS)  There were four players as Sunday's season finale of "Survivor: Panama — Exile Island" began but when the curtain came down, Aras Baskauskas, a 24-year-old yoga instructor from California, had emerged as sole Survivor.

In the end, Aras' insistence that he had played the game "honestly and with integrity" won over the members of the tribal jury. In the broadcast live from New York, "Survivor" host Jeff Probst read the final votes guaranteeing victory for Aras, and his family rushed towards him, cheering wildly.

On The Early Show Monday, Aras told co-anchor Rene Syler, "It's really exciting. It's overwhelming."

And, winning $1 million "hasn't sunk in. It's so hard to even fathom a million dollars in my mind, living with my dad and freeloading like I do. So it's an honor to be here. It's really overwhelming."

When the check was placed in his hand, he exclaimed: "I don't even know what to do! Like, where do I go with this?"

"Going into (the final) tribal council," Aras told Syler, "I had no idea how the vote was going to go. There were a lot of unknowns. How was Courtney going to vote? How was Shane going to vote? Sally and Austin were question marks. It ended up going my way. It could have easily gone the other way."

Interviewed by CBSNews.com Sunday night after his winning moment, Aras called the feeling of victory "awesome" and said he plans to use his prize money to open his own yoga studio, fund an apparel company he's starting and "just stay grounded."

But yoga, he said, is still his "passion."

"Survivor" host Jeff Probst had a little advice for Aras on his new millionaire status. "Pay your taxes!" said Probst, an obvious reference to the winner of the first "Survivor," Richard Hatch. Hatch is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday in Providence, R.I., for failure to pay taxes on his "Survivor" winnings and other income.

Aras also has advice for future "Survivor" contestants.

"The more real you can be out there," he says, "the more successful you'll be at it."

Probst says Aras' approach to the game was simple: "Aras' strategy was not to be voted out, not to be glib. But that's really the strategy — that's how you play this game. 'How do I get it off me and on to you? Off me and on to her. Just keep it off me.' Aras kept it off him for 16 weeks."

Aras had entered the final episode — Episode 14 — in a struggle against Terry, a 46-year-old airline pilot and retired Navy fighter pilot from Connecticut; Cirie, a 35-year-old nurse from South Carolina; and Danielle, a 24-year-old sales rep from Boston.

• 1
• 2
• Next Page »