WINNECONE, Wis. – Bob Bungard of Holmen, Wis., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 12 ounces Saturday to win the Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division tournament on the Wolf River Chain of Lakes. For his victory, Bungard earned $4,575.
“I was boat number 124 to check-in,” said Bungard. “And I was very happy with that because I wanted the extra time to fish. I made the long run to Lake Winnebago and it took me around 30 minutes to get there. I was thrilled when I saw no boats in an area where I had great success in practice, but it was short-lived because I found a ton of carp in there and they had it all tore up. I moved down the bank to a new area and was able to find some fish still on the beds. I was able to pick off a nice 4 pound, 14 ounce fish off of a bed and I just fished shallow, targeting any grass, ditches and rocks I could find. I had the most success using tubes.
“I ended up hitting around 20 spots, and found 15 keepers on the day,” Bungard went on to say. “The key for me today was my knowledge of the water. After finding the carp in what had been my best area, it forced me to change it up. I also had a very good co-angler. He definitely knew what he was doing. He wasn’t cutting me off, or throwing across the boat. I knew a spot where we could get a solid limit, and I wanted to stop there near the end of the day so he could get a limit as well. He ended up cashing a check as well and that made me very happy.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Jeff Benson, Holmen, Wis., five bass, 16-6, $2,288
3rd: Tom Farchione, Waterford, Wis., five bass, 15-14, $1,525
4th: Troy Kilgas, Kaukauna, Wis., five bass, 15-7, $1,068
5th: Travis Manson, Winneconne, Wis., five bass, 15-6, $915
6th: Robert Rubin, Oshkosh, Wis., five bass, 15-4, $839
7th: Troy Anderson, Galesville, Wis., five bass, 14-13, $763
8th: Jim Barczak, Fremont, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $686
9th: Ben Kurtz, Williams Bay, Wis., five bass, 14-8, $610
10th: Mike Feldermann, Galena, Ill., five bass, 14-5, $507
10th: Danny Hayes, Rockford, Ill., five bass, 14-5, $507
Michael Gray of Stoddard, Wis., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 14 pounds, 6 ounces Saturday to win $2,253 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Zach McCartney, Rochelle, Ill., five bass, 14-2, $1,127
3rd: Luke Ledvina, Wisconsin Dells, Wis., five bass, 13-13, $751
4th: Chad Smith, Bettendorf, Iowa, five bass, 13-9, $526
5th: Rich Crider, Gurnee, Ill., five bass, 13-7, $451
6th: Neil Lemaster, Fort Madison, Iowa, five bass, 12-15, $413
7th: Ben Due, Mauston, Wis., five bass, 12-13, $357
7th: John Miller, Atlanta, Ill., five bass, 12-13, $357
9th: Chad Schultz, Machesney Park, Ill., five bass, 12-11, $300
10th: David Halverson, Necedah, Wis., five bass, 12-7, $263
The next BFL Great Lakes Division tournament is scheduled for July 14 on the Mississippi River in Alma, Wis. After the fifth Great Lakes Division tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 11-13 Regional Championship on Lake Barkley in Kuttawa, Ky. 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.