GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (Sept. 12, 2016) – Stephen Barga of Benton, Kentucky, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 19 pounds, 6 ounces, Sunday to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) LBL Division Super Tournament on Kentucky and Barkley lakes with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 40 pounds, 2 ounces. For his win, Barga pocketed $7,717. Barga said he spent the event focusing on wood, stumps and brush piles in the Jonathan Creek area.
“I had two key stretches that I ran between each day of the tournament,” said Barga, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “One was about 50 yards long, and the other was a 30-foot stake bed. The stake bed ended up being very valuable. I caught a key bass off of it each day.”
Barga said he used a chartreuse and white-colored War Eagle Spinnerbait to catch nearly 15 keepers over the two-day event.
“I just slow-rolled the War Eagle and caught five keepers on Day One,” said Barga. “Most of my fish were about six feet down. On Day Two, I followed the same pattern from Saturday and had every fish that I weighed in by 8 a.m.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Stephen Barga, Benton, Ky., 10 bass, 40-2, $5,717 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Matt Robertson, Central City, Ky., 10 bass, 35-4, $2,759
3rd: Josh Malone, Alma, Ill., 10 bass, 29-10, $1,839
4th: Tim Smiley, White Pine, Tenn., 10 bass, 29-4, $1,587
5th: Drew Boggs, Lebanon, Tenn., 10 bass, 28-5, $1,103
6th: Billy Schroeder, Paducah, Ky., eight bass, 28-2, $1,012
7th: Scott Patton, Paris, Tenn., eight bass, 26-9, $920
8th: Dan Morehead, Paducah, Ky., nine bass, 23-15, $828
9th: Gerald Andrews, Benton, Ky., nine bass, 23-12, $736
10th: Sam Boss, Paducah, Ky., eight bass, 23-5, $644
Edward Gettys of Paris, Tennessee, caught a bass weighing 6 pounds, 13 ounces – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the Boater Big Bass award of $720. Brian Futch of Vienna, Illinois, won the co-angler division and earned $2,759 with a two-day cumulative catch of six bass weighing 20 pounds, 6 ounces. The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Brian Futch, Vienna, Ill., six bass, 20-6, $2,759
2nd: Ricky Boehringer, Troy, Ohio, seven bass, 17-1, $1,479
3rd: Danny Nicklin, Highland, Ill., eight bass, 16-15, $919
4th: Thomas White, Iron City, Tenn., five bass, 16-7, $694
5th: Jeff Scrimager, Mattoon, Ill., five bass, 15-11, $552
6th: Jesse Gustafson, Gilbertsville, Ky., five bass, 15-7, $506
7th: Kevin Teitsort, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 14-14, $460
8th: Danny Robinson, Fairland, Ind., five bass, 14-6, $414
9th: Michael Luce, Ledbetter, Ky., four bass, 14-3, $728
10th: Billy Watson, Murfreesboro, Tenn., six bass, 14-3, $322
Luce caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 11 ounces, and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $360.