OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (March 31, 2025) – Boater Thomas Rallo of Eldon, Missouri, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 1 ounces, Saturday to win the Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Lake of the Ozarks. The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Ozark Division. Rallo earned $7,041, including the lucrative $2,500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Rallo kicked off the morning in a shallow pocket to get away from fishing pressure. Things went fast. He had a limit by 8 a.m., which allowed him to spend the rest of the day hunting bigger bites. Also, Rallo abandoned what he’d found in practice because the fish had already transitioned in shallower.
“I had noticed a warming trend,” Rallo said. “The fish were getting from their winter patterns into their spawning patterns, and I want to say something happened overnight because the fish that I caught today (Saturday) were not there in practice. In practice, I was seeing them out a little deeper using my LiveScope, and today I didn’t see a single one using LiveScope. They were all in less than 8 feet.”
Once he had a limit, Rallo ran spawning pockets and flats, keying on pea gravel banks, to pick up a few more quality fish. The best spots were located right at the transition areas where the banks bent to go into the pockets – near the mouths, rather than in the backs.
Rallo caught most of his weight on an Alabama rig with Bojangle Baits Jangle Shad swimbaits, slow-rolling the rig down the bank. He also caught some fish on a homemade 3/8-ounce jig with a Bojangle Z-Daddy trailer.
The top 11 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Thomas Rallo, Eldon, Mo., five bass, 22-1 $7,041 (includes $2,500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Ronnie Kane, Spring Hill, Kan., five bass, 20-8, $2,270
3rd: Eric Olliverson, Shell Knob, Mo., five bass, 17-6, $1,514
4th: Jonathan Pimentel, Camdenton, Mo., five bass, 16-5, $1,060
5th: Ricky Crawford, Shell Knob, Mo., four bass, 16-2, $908
6th: Chase Fitzpatrick, Eldon, Mo., five bass, 15-14, $833
7th: Brian Hansen, Fenton, Mo., five bass, 15-10, $757
8th: Greg Proffitt, Kansas City, Mo., five bass, 15-5, $643
8th: Jason Weast, Macks Creek, Mo., five bass, 15-5, $643
10th: Chad Allison, Carl Junction, Mo., five bass, 14-14, $503
10th: Lawson Hibdon, Versailles, Mo., five bass, 14-14, $503
Justin Luetkemeyer of Osage Beach, Missouri, caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces, and earned the Big Bass Boater award of $660. Dennis Spell of Bonne Terre, Missouri, won the co-angler division and $2,270 Saturday, after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 13 pounds, 15 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Dennis Spell, Bonne Terre, Mo., three bass, 13-15, $2,270
2nd: Morgan McLain Lenexa, Kan., three bass, 12-15, $1,135
3rd: Wes Proctor, Manhattan, Kan., three bass, 12-14, $757
4th: William Koerber, Phillipsburg, Mo., three bass, 12-5, $530
5th: Christopher Becker, Kansas City, Mo., three bass, 11-5, $454
6th: David Honey, Hollister, Mo., two bass, 9-4, $416
7th: Jamie McCain, Lake Lotawana, Mo., three bass, 9-2, $378
8th: Brian Davis, Bethalto, Ill., three bass, 9-1, $341
9th: Steve Treiber, Eureka, Mo., two bass, 8-13, $633
10th: Paul Davis, Hollister, Mo., three bass, 8-11, $265
Steve Treiber of Eureka, Missouri, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $330, catching a bass that weighed in at 7 pounds, 6 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After two events, Eric Olliverson of Shell Knob, Missouri, now leads the Fishing Clash Ozark Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 493 points, while Paul Davis of Hollister, Missouri, leads the Fishing Clash Ozark Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 477 points.
The next event for BFL Ozark Division anglers will be held April 26, at Table Rock Lake in Kimberling City, Missouri.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-ozarks-33125.html
Bass Fishing League (BFL) News