CARROLLTON, Ky. (August 4, 2008) - Boater Kaoru O'Bryan of Crestwood, Ky., won the Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division bass fishing tournament on the Ohio River Saturday with four bass weighing 11 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned O'Bryan $3,297 plus a $581 Ranger contingency bonus and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Kentucky Lake Regional Championship in Benton, Ky., Oct. 2-4, where he could ultimately win a new 198VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.
Rounding out the top five boaters are Dick Shaffer of Rockford, Ohio (five bass, 10-15, $1,940); Mark Hurst of Troy, Ohio (five bass, 10-03, $1,293); Dan Fry of Marysville, Ohio (five bass, 8-09, $905) and Gary Edwards of Milton, Ky. (five bass, 8-00, $776).
Shaffer took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $515 for a 4-pound, 10-ounce bass he caught on a Senko.
Michael Acton of Lewisburg, Ohio, earned $1,940 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to two bass weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces that he caught on a Lunker Lure buzzbait and a Bandit crankbait.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Mark Henderson of Martinsville, Ohio (two bass, 4-15, $808); Barry Ward of Louisville, Ky. (four bass, 4-15, $808); David Leggett of Beaver Creek, Ohio (five bass, 4-05, $453) and Jeff Bundenthal of Dayton, Ohio (four bass, 4-04, $388). Acton earned $257 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 3-pound, 9-ounce bass he caught on a white buzzbait.
Anglers will visit the Ohio River in Maysville, Ky., Aug. 23, followed by a two-day Super Tournament, the division's fifth and final event, on the Ohio River in Lawrenceburg, Ind., Sept. 20-21.