GOLCONDA, Ill., (Aug. 12, 2013) – Marcus Sykora of Osage Beach, Mo., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 13 pounds, 11 ounces Saturday to win the Bass Fishing League Illini Division tournament on the Ohio River at Golconda. For his victory, Sykora earned $4,756.
Sykora secured the seventh BFL win of his career by flouting conventional wisdom and running up the Cumberland River for his limit. “I’m very proud of it,” Sykora said of his seventh win. “This one was probably more special than any of my other victories. I’m fishing in the Illini Division for the first time because the regional is on Kentucky Lake. This one is a sweet one. It proves to me that I can win outside of my comfort zone.
“Everybody told me that this event was going to be won in the Tennessee River,” said Sykora. “But it was a lot easier for me to catch ten pounds in the Cumberland River. I caught 6 keepers in the upper end of the Cumberland River. Then I ran down to the lower end of the Cumberland. The lower end was really muddy, but I caught my three biggest fish there.”
Sykora said he was fishing current seams around rocks, in both the upper and lower portions of the river. He said he used a 3/16th-ounce Chompers shaky-head jig with a green pumpkin Zoom Trick Worm and targeted the seams in 8 feet of water in the upper river. In the lower river, Sykora said he was using a black and blue-colored 3/8-ounce Chompers jig with a sapphire blue Zoom Super Chunk and targeted the seams in 3 feet of water.
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Luke Budde, Waterloo, Ill., five bass, 13-5, $1,878
3rd: Travis Boley, Weldon, Ill., five bass, 12-13, $1,253
4th: Marion Cordes, Sullivan, Ill., five bass, 11-15, $876
5th: Michael McAtee, Waverly, Ky., five bass, 11-14, $720
5th: James Powell, Murphysboro, Ill., five bass, 11-14, $720
7th: Greg Hirsch, Saint Jacob, Ill., five bass, 11-12, $626
8th: Dan Shoraga, West Frankfort, Ill., five bass, 10-15, $563
9th: Jason Hodge, Marion, Ill., five bass, 10-14, $501
10th: Kyle Danhausen, Kankakee, Ill., five bass, 10-13, $438
Derek Marvel of Mount Vernon, lnd., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 11 pounds, 4 ounces Saturday to win $1,878 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Dany Danhausen, Kankakee, Ill., five bass, 11-3, $939
3rd: Brent Werries, Morton, Ill., five bass, 9-12, $627
4th: Frank McClendon, Robbins, Ill., five bass, 9-4, $438
5th: Charles Dammerman, Owaneco, Ill., five bass, 9-1, $376
6th: Brendon Delaney, Highland, Ill., five bass, 8-14, $344
7th: Michael Watson, Morton Grove, Ill., five bass, 8-10, $313
8th: Rick Peppers, New Athens, Ill., five bass, 8-5, $282
9th: Chris Clem, Auburn, Ill., five bass, 8-0, $250
10th: Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., five bass, 7-13, $219
The final BFL Illini Division tournament of 2013 is scheduled for Sept. 28-29 on Lake Shelbyville in Shelbyville, Ill. After that last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Ky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.