Carbondale’s Chumbler Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division

SESSER, Ill. (Sept. 9, 2024) – Boater Lonnie Bowlin of Benton, Illinois, caught a two-day total of nine bass weighing 23 pounds, 11 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine Super Tournament on Rend Lake, which concluded Sunday. The tournament was the fifth and final event of the season for the BFL Illini Division. Bowlin earned $4,579 for his victory.

For Bowlin, this is obviously a big win – his first in BFL competition – but he was hesitant to reveal the winning details because he’s hoping to keep the success rolling in another fall regional event scheduled for Rend Lake next weekend.

What he would reveal is that changing seasons and heavy fishing pressure are making it tough to pattern the fish.

“The fish are moving around, and some want to be halfway deep, some want to be shallow,” he said. “Yesterday (Saturday) we had the wind, so that’s what really helped me. I fished the windy banks yesterday. Then today it kind of got a little bit slicker.”

The difference maker for Bowlin was a 6-pound, 7-ounce bass that boosted his day-one total to 14-13. The kicker earned him the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $457. A fish like that is clutch anywhere, but especially on Rend Lake.

“Especially when it ain’t been taking much to win,” Bowlin said. “It was probably about 10:30 or 11
(when he caught it). I was thinking please give me two more bites because at that time I had only three fish.

“It was tough. I just got fortunate and got enough bites.”

Of note, the champ’s son, Jordan Bowlin, actually won the co-angler side of the 2023 Illini Division Super Tournament, which was held on Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, making it two in a row for the Bowlin family.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:        Lonnie Bowlin, Benton, Ill., nine bass, 23-11, $4,579
2nd:       Riley Walk, Neoga, Ill., six bass, 20-13, $2,061
3rd:       Curtis Samo, Rochelle, Ill., seven bass, 17-13, $1,499
4th:        Toby Corn, Paducah, Ky., seven bass, 17-3, $962
5th:        Travis Boley, Weldon, Ill., eight bass, 16-11, $824
6th:        Joshua Tyner, Spencer, Ind., five bass, 15-10, $756
7th:        William Walker, Mulkeytown, Ill., six bass, 15-4, $987
8th:        Richard Skiff, Edwardsville, Ill., five bass, 14-5, $618
9th:        Cecil Downing, Mount Carmel, Ill., six bass, 14-4, $550
10th:     Andrew Harper, Shelbyville, Ill., five bass, 11-13, $481

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Matt Chumbler of Carbondale, Illinois, won the Strike King co-angler division and $2,061 Sunday, after bringing a two-day total of seven bass to the scale that weighed 17 pounds, 14 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:

1st:        Matt Chumbler, Carbondale, Ill., seven bass, 17-14, $2,061
2nd:       Marion Cordes, Sullivan, Ill., five bass, 12-3, $1,031
3rd:       Myles Louthan, Mattoon, Ill., four bass, 12-2, $915
4th:        David Workman, Harrisburg, Ill., four bass, 10-13, $631
5th:        Jack Ryan, Salem, Ill., five bass, 10-7, $412
6th:        Eric Mahn, Herculaneum, Mo., four bass, 9-11, $378
7th:        Troy Boley, Mahomet, Ill., four bass, 9-7, $344
8th:        Roman Perun, St. Louis, Mo., two bass, 7-6, $309
9th:        Michael Kinkade, Benton, Ill., three bass, 6-9, $275
10th:     Aaron Arning, Walnut Hill, Ill., one bass, 4-12, $240

Myles Louthan of Mattoon, Illinois, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $229, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.

At the conclusion of the event, Adam Brookman of Bonnie, Illinois, was crowned the Fishing Clash Illini Division Angler of the Year (AOY) with 1,311 points and earned the $1,000 payout, while Ryan Murphy of Paris, Illinois, won the Fishing Clash Illini Division Co-Angler of the Year race and the $500 prize with 1,322 points.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, have qualified for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Pools 13-17 of the Mississippi River in Quad Cities, Illinois. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.

The 2024 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 45 boaters and Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL 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 2025 BFL All-American will take place May 29-31, 2025, at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and is hosted by hosted by Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, PowerStop Brakes, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.