WARSAW, Mo. (June 24, 2013) – David McCormick of Lees Summit, Mo., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 16 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to win the Bass Fishing League Ozark Division tournament on Lake Truman. For his victory, McCormick earned $4,466.
McCormick won by a wide margin on Lake Truman and described it as a “relief” to win on his home lake after many second-place finishes. He said he started the day targeting the banks behind flooded bushes and had a limit by 9:30. “I had a fish on my second cast” said McCormick.
“Later on I moved into the Grand arm,” McCormick continued. “The water was dirtier there, and the fish were positioned on the outside of the bushes. I noticed that the biggest fish were around the bushes with the most current, and that you could tell by how tight the mudline was to the bank.”
“It was almost like trout fishing, the way you could see your frog floating along in the current,” McCormick said.
According to McCormick he was using a Senko and a popping frog and caught most of his bigger fish around the edges of the bushes in 4 to 6 feet of water.
McCormick also caught the biggest fish of the tournament, a 5-pound 3-ounce largemouth. “I caught that around 12 o’clock,” he said. “I caught it and my other big fish right next to each other.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Matt Gunter, Wheatland, Mo., four bass, 12-1, $1,733
3rd: Bruce Parsons, Moravia, Iowa, five bass, 11-11, $1,155
4th: John Krewson, Overbrook, Kan., five bass, 11-2, $751
4th: Richie Marsh, Excelsior Springs, Mo., five bass, 11-2, $751 + $300 Evinrude Bonus
6th: Roger Fitzpatrick, Eldon, Mo., five bass, 11-1, $635
7th: B.J. Davis, Mountain Home, Ark., five bass, 10-9, $578
8th: Dennis Edmonds, Centennial, Colo., five bass, 10-8, $491
8th: Leland Judd, Rogers, Ark.., five bass, 10-8, $491
10th: Tim Fleetwood, Forsyth, Mo., five bass, 10-4, $404 + $300 Evinrude Bonus
Kevin Manion of Park Hills, Mo., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 11 pounds, 11 ounces Saturday to win $1,733 in the co-angler division. Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Michael Carter, Raytown, Mo., four bass, 9-8, $866
3rd: Craig Hulsey, Park Hills, Mo., four bass, 9-3, $577
4th: Brian Jones, Villa Ridge, Mo., five bass, 9-1, $404
5th: Dennis Spell, Bonne Terre, Mo., three bass, 7-7, $347
6th: Joe Waggoner, Carthage, Mo., four bass, 7-0, $318
7th: Dennis Meyer, Ballwin, Mo., three bass, 6-14, $274
7th: Ronald Smith, Kansas City, Kan., four bass, 6-14, $274
9th: Mike Foelsch, O’Fallon, Mo., three bass, 6-3, $231
10th: Corey Besgrove, Lee’s Summit, Mo., three bass, 6-4, $202
The final BFL Ozark Division tournament of 2013 is scheduled for Sept. 7 on Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Mo. After that last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 Regional Championship on Lake Texoma in Pottsboro, Texas. 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.