MONKEY ISLAND, Okla. (March 14, 2005) - Boater Greg Bohannan of Rogers, Ark., earned $4,553 Saturday as winner of the Bass Fishing League Ozark Division bass fishing tournament on Grand Lake. The tournament was the first of five regular-season Ozark Division events and featured 152 boaters vying for the win, which earned Bohannan 200 points in the Boater Division.
Bohannan's winning catch of three bass weighed 12 pounds, 12 ounces. He was fishing around shallow flats with a 1/2-ounce Rat-L-Trap when he caught his bass. Bohannan won an additional $760 as the Boater Division big-bass award winner with a 6-pound, 12-ounce bass.
Finishing second was Dirk Sluyter of Russellville, Mo., with four bass weighing 10 pounds, 4 ounces that earned him $2,277. James Young of House Springs, Mo., and Sheldon Gentry of Lohman, Mo., each claimed $1,325 with a tie third-place finish. Both anglers caught four bass weighing 9 pounds, 9 ounces. Young won an additional $500 as the Ranger Cup award winner. Andre Dickneite of Freeburg, Mo., and Laurence Bean of Union, Mo., tied for fifth, each earning $869. Dickneite caught four bass weighing 9 pounds, 6 ounces and Bean caught two bass weighing 9 pounds, 6 ounces.
Marlin Ritzman of Camdenton, Mo., earned $2,138 as the co-angler winner, thanks to two bass weighing 8 pounds, 14 ounces that he caught on a jig. Ritzman won an additional $350 as the Co-Angler Division big-bass award winner with a 4-pound, 11-ounce bass.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Johnny Porter of Springdale, Ark. (four bass, 8 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,069); Shannan D. Moseley of Lowell, Ark., (four bass, 8 pounds, $700); Kyle D. Hulsey of Bourbon, Mo., (two bass, 7 pounds, 8 ounces, $544); and Shannon Ingles of Taneyville, Mo., (three bass, 6 pounds, 5 ounces, $447).
The Ozark Division's next event will be held April 30 on Lake of the Ozarks near Osage Beach, Mo., followed by an event on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Mo., May 14. The fourth-qualifying event will be held June 25 on Truman Lake near Clinton, Mo. The Ozark Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 10-11 with a two-day Super Tournament on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Mo.