Joe Balog of Harrison Township, Michigan, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 21 pounds, 8 ounces Saturday to win the third Walmart Bass Fishing League Michigan Division tournament on Lake St. Clair. For his victory, Balog earned $6,418.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve won a BFL tournament so it feels pretty good,” said Balog, who has 36 career top-10 finishes in FLW competition. “I caught around 20 keepers so it was a great day of fishing.
“I spent my day targeting a deep-water area in the middle of the lake,” continued Balog. “The stretch I liked had isolated, sandy grass spots in about 20 feet of water.”
Balog said he used a variety of baits to catch his keepers including a green Yamamoto Shad Shape Worm on a drop-shot rig, a jig and a swimbait.
“I caught a big fish on the swimbait,” said Balog. “I was throwing some other lures and wasn’t getting any bites so I picked it up on a whim and caught a 5-pounder. That was a key move for me.”
With 30 minutes left in his day, Balog said he caught his final keeper and culled.
“I probably gained 8 ounces from that fish so it essentially gave me the win,” said Balog.
The top 10 boaters:
1st: Joe Balog, Harrison Township, Mich., five bass, 21-8, $3,418 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus + $1,000 Mercury Bonus
2nd: Chris King, South Amherst, Ohio, five bass, 21-1, $1,709
3rd: Jonathon Dewey, Port Huron, Mich., five bass, 20-2, $1,138
4th: Mark Dove, North Vernon, Ind., five bass, 19-5, $798
5th: Wayne Macklin, Fenton, Mich., five bass, 19-3, $684
6th: Matt Elkins, Spencerville, Ohio, five bass, 18-15, $627
7th: Tony Yancey, Harrison Township, Mich., five bass, 18-9, $570
8th: David Reault, Livonia, Mich., five bass, 18-0, $513
9th: Todd Steele, Port Huron, Mich., five bass. 16-12, $456
10th: Jennifer Degrie, Adrian, Mich., five bass, 16-9, $379
10th: Scott Dobson, Clarkston, Mich., five bass, 16-9, $379
Complete results can be found here.
Macklin caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $420.
Borsa wins co-angler division
Philip Borsa of Redford, Michigan, weighed in five bass totaling 20 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to win $1,709 in the co-angler division.
The top 10 co-anglers:
1st: Philip Borsa, Redford, Mich., five bass, 20-9, $1,709
2nd: David Michaelis, Commerce, Mich., five bass, 18-9, $855
3rd: Jay Shaffer, Bath, Mich., five bass, 17-14, $570
4th: David Bell, Edon, Ohio, five bass, 17-6, $399
5th: Jon Witt, Kalamazoo, Mich., five bass, 17-1, $342
6th: Kevin Paduk, New Boston, Mich., five bass, 16-8, $313
7th: Beau Bickford, Findlay, Ohio, five bass, 16-7, $285
8th: Jason Wallace, Lizton, Ind., five bass, 16-6, $256
9th: Bill Fox, Waterford, Mich., five bass, 16-0, $202
9th: Mark Lyons, Marion, Ind., five bass, 16-0, $202
9th: Paul Porento, Highland, Ind., five bass, 16-0, $202
Michaelis caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $210.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 8-10 Regional Championship on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.