LAWRENCEBERG, Ind. (June 27, 2022) – Boater Chris Wilkinson of Farmersburg, Indiana, caught five bass Saturday weighing 12 pounds, 9 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Tournament on the Ohio River. The tournament was the second event for the Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division. Wilkinson earned $4,938 for his victory.
“We started off with a bit of a fog delay and got off a bit later than we wanted to, but I went to an area where I felt like it had some better fish that I could catch,” said Wilkinson, who now has seven career BFL wins.
Wilkinson said he focused on creeks with current breaks that featured rock and wood. A buzzbait accounted for his fish early in the day before the sun was directly overhead.
“Later on in the day I caught two of my better fish on a Honey Creek Tackle tube,” Wilkinson said. “I caught eight keepers during the day.
“Every win is special,” Wilkinson added. “I’ve been lucky enough to win seven, and you never know when one is going to be your last.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Chris Wilkinson, Farmersburg, Indiana, five bass, 12-9, $4,938
2nd: Brian Wrobleski, Alexandria, Ky., five bass, 9-10, $3,714 (Includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
3rd: William Jackson, Lawrenceburg, Ind., five bass, 9-0, $1,646
4th: Ryan Collins, Fairfield, Ohio, four bass, 8-15, $1,352
5th: Nathan Brown, five bass, 8-3, $988
6th: Kenny Dials, Gallipolis, Ohio, four bass, 7-15, $905
7th: Jeremy Higgins, Union, Ky., five bass, 7-7, $782
7th: Pat White, Batavia, Ohio, five bass, 7-7, $982
9th: Mark Dove, North Vernon, Ind., four bass, 7-6, $617
9th: Trevor Howard, four bass, 7-6, $617
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Wrobleski caught a fish that weighing 4 pounds, 11 ounces that – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – earning him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $745. Brian Zelinskas of Beavercreek, Ohio, won the Strike King Co-angler Division and $2,469 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 8 pounds even.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:
1st: Brian Zelinskas, Beavercreek, Ohio, five bass, 8-0, $2,469
2nd: Ryan Zwick, Oxford, Ohio, four bass, 7-2, $1,435
3rd: Kyle Taylor, Sullivan, Ind., three bass, 5-12, $823
4th: Zach Smith, Flatwoods, Ky., three bass, 5-9, $948
5th: Austin Thome, Oxford, Ohio, four bass, 5-5, $494
6th: Brian Short, Oxford, Ohio, four bass, 5-4, $453
7th: Matt Luken, Independence, Ky., four bass, 4-15, $412
8th: Matt Fisher, three bass, 4-13, $820
9th: Douglas Shope, Troy, Ohio, three bass, 4-9, $329
10th: Marcus Dudley, Twinsburg, Ohio, two bass, 4-8, $288
Smith also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 3 pounds, 9 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $372.
After two events, David Fricke of Hamilton, Ohio, leads the Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division Boater Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 486 points, while Brian Zelinskas of Beavercreek, Ohio, leads the Strike King Co-Angler Division AOY race with 481 points.