Illinois’ Samo Wins T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Tournament on Wolf River Chain of Lakes
Puterbaugh and Rockey Tie for Co-Angler Title
WINNECONNE, Wis. – Boater Curtis Samo of Rochelle, Illinois, won Saturday’s T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division tournament on the Wolf River Chain of Lakes with five bass weighing 15 pounds even. For his win, Samo took home $5,794.
According to post-tournament reports, Samo caught his fish flipping Chompers tubes and running buzzbaits on Lake Winneconne.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Curtis Samo, Rochelle, Ill., five bass, 15-0, $3,794 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Joe Pollak, Lake Geneva, Wis., five bass, 14-6, $2,097
3rd: Kyler Chelminiak, Franklin, Wis., five bass, 13-4, $1,565
4th: Clayton Reitz, Morton, Ill., five bass, 13-3, $885
5th: Jason Skutt, Menomonie, Wis., five bass, 12-10, $759
6th: Brian Fitzpatrick, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 12-9, $696
7th: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., five bass, 12-5, $982
8th: Chris Aswegan, Tiffin, Iowa, five bass, 12-3, $537
8th: William Schultz, Viroqua, Wis., five bass, 12-3, $537
10th: Dylan Drephal, Black Creek, Wis., five bass, 12-1, $593
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Mike Feldermann of Galena, Illinois, caught a bass weighing 4 pounds, 2 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $495.
Mike Puterbaugh of Montello, Wisconsin, and Joe Rockey of Schaumburg, Illinois, each caught 13 pounds, 4 ounces, worth of bass Saturday to tie for the win in the Co-angler Division. For their efforts, each angler took home $1,423.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Mike Puterbaugh, Montello, Wis., five bass, 13-4, $1,423
1st: Joe Rockey, Schaumburg, Ill., five bass, 13-4, $1,423
3rd: Josh Yonak, Big Lake, Minn., five bass, 12-0, $983
4th: Rick Ragner, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 11-8, $443
5th: Andy Heisler, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 11-6, $379
6th: Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., five bass, 10-14, $498
7th: Tom Lyskawka, Arlington Heights, Ill., four bass, 10-9, $316
8th: Gage Griffin, Lake Forest, Ill., five bass, 10-1, $285
9th: Andrew Hegerty, Colgate, Wis., five bass, 9-14, $253
10th: Brad Bernau, Caledonia, Minn., five bass, 9-13, $221
Josh Mohn of Lansing, Iowa, caught the heaviest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 3 pounds, 10 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $247.
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.
The 2019 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2020 BFL All-American will be held April 30-May 2 at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina, and is hosted by Visit Anderson. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2019 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct more than 290 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Namibia, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, and Zimbabwe. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
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