Kalen, Campbell Tie on Rough River

Thome takes Hoosier co-angler title

Brody Campbell of Oxford, Ohio, and Bryce Kalen of Greenwood, Indiana, each caught five bass Saturday weighing 12 pounds, 3 ounces, to tie for the win at the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Hoosier Division opener on Rough River Lake. After contingency awards, Kalen earned $2,328, while Campbell took home $2,128.

“I spent a lot of time bed-fishing, so I went and caught two I had right away – one cast each,” says Campbell, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “I stayed toward the dam because the water was a little bit clearer. I was only focusing on small pockets on the dam side of the lake and would stop once I got to the halfway back of them because of how flooded they were. I ran maybe 10 different pockets all day and caught around 20 keepers.”

Campbell said he caught his fish using a wacky-rigged, green-pumpkin-colored Yamamoto Custom Baits Senko. He preferred a 7-foot, 2-inch St. Croix Mojo Bass Spinning Rod with a Lew’s Speed Spin Mach 2 reel and 10-pound-test PowerPro braided line with a 10-pound-test Seaguar Red Label fluorocarbon leader.

“I threw the Senko weightless around the front and sides of bushes,” says Campbell. “I let it sink and caught a few here and there. It seemed like the biggest ones I caught were out in front of the bushes.”

“I spent all of my time in the North Fork area of the lake and fished two spawning bays side by side,” said Kalen, who also earned his first win in FLW competition. “I targeted shallow water bushes and flat spawning banks. The water had come up 2 feet from practice, so I couldn’t see the spawning fish I’d marked. I had to fish for them only knowing they were there. Fishing the old bank line was key for me.”

Kalen said he caught six keepers, weighing three from a 4-inch green-pumpkin-colored Secret Lures Stupid Tube and two on a Texas-rigged, green-pumpkin Strike King Rage Bug. He used a 7-foot, medium-heavy Powell Max rod and Lew’s Tournament Pro reel with 15-pound-test Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon line for the tube, and a 7-foot, 6-inch heavy-action Powell Endurance rod with 25-pound-test Seaguar AbrazX fluorocarbon line to flip the Rage Bug.

The top 10 boaters:

 1st: Bryce Kalen, Greenwood, Ind., five bass, 12-3, $2,328

 1st: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, five bass, 12-3, $2,128

 3rd: Danny Abrams, Greens Fork, Ind., five bass, 12-0, $1,048

 4th: John Melton, Corydon, Ind., five bass, 11-15, $662

 5th: Billy Doyle, Somerville, Tenn., five bass, 11-14, $568

 6th: Frank McClain, Scottsburg, Ind., three bass, 11-5, $835

 7th: Matt McCoy, Indianapolis, Ind., five bass, 11-2, $773

 8th: William Briere, Mooresville, Ind., five bass, 10-11, $426

 9th: Scott Bateman, Jasper, Ind., four bass, 10-7, $628

 10th: Richard Ison, New Washington, Ind., five bass, 9-7, $481

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

McClain caught a 5-pound, 14-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $315.

Thome wins co-angler title

Austin Thome of Oxford, Ohio, won the Co-angler Division and $1,419 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 9 pounds, 8 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers:

 1st: Austin Thome, Oxford, Ohio, five bass, 9-8, $1,419

 2nd: Robert Trey Lenear, Bedford, Ky., five bass, 8-0, $710

 3rd: Dyllan Grace, Scottsburg, Ind., three bass, 7-13, $473

 4th: Bo Bivins, Evansville, Ind., four bass, 7-8, $331

 5th: Dale Walton, Greenwood, Ind., two bass, 6-13, $362

 6th: Mark Redman, Pendleton, Ky., three bass, 6-12, $260

 7th: Thorne Martin, Franklin, Ind., two bass, 6-9, $465

 8th: Brian Short, Oxford, Ohio, three bass, 6-4, $313

 9th: Michael Pruitt, Martinsville, Ind., three bass, 6-3, $189

 10th: Billy French, Hamilton, Ohio, three bass, 5-7, $316

Walton and Martin both caught the bass weighing in at 5 pounds, 2 ounces – the largest of the day in the Co-angler Division – and split the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $156.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional Championship on Kentucky and Barkley lakes in Buchanan, Tennessee, presented by Evinrude. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.