Co-angler Title Awarded to Pennsylvania’s Amberg

CLAYTON, N.Y. (Sept. 17, 2018) – Boater Brian Bylotas of Scott Township, Pennsylvania, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Northeast Division tournament on 1000 Islands Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 48 pounds, 3 ounces. For his win, Bylotas pocketed $6,886.

“I started in the river Saturday and caught a few small fish before running out to Lake Ontario about 8 (a.m.),” said Bylotas, who also clinched the BFL Northeast Division Angler of the Year (AOY) points title with his win. “There were some shoals out there and by 10 or 10:30 (a.m.) I got on a school that I had all to myself. I stayed there all day and my co-angler and I caught them pretty well.”

Bylotas said he focused on a ledge off of a shoal near Galloo Island. He said the baitfish were stacked up along a ¼-mile stretch in 25 to 30 feet of water and bass were schooling around them.

“On Sunday I started on a few rock piles in the river and caught a big one – about 5½ pounds – on a (4.5-inch Quick Limit Baits) motor oil-colored Dropshot Worm, which I had used Saturday morning in the river as well,” said Bylotas. “By 9 (a.m.), I went out to the same ledge and school on Lake Ontario, but the bite was a little bit slower. I probably caught around 35 fish Sunday compared to 50 fish Saturday.”

Bylotas said he used a 3.8-inch green pumpkin-colored Keitech Sexy Impact on a drop-shot rig on the ledge each day. He added that a Sexy Impact in Silver Flash color was also productive.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:           Brian Bylotas, Scott Township, Pa., 10 bass, 48-3, $6,886

2^nd:         John Vanore, Mullica Hill, N.J., 10 bass, 46-6, $3,493

3^rd:          Jason Shipton, Muncy, Pa., 10 bass, 44-8, $2,195

4^th:          Ken Golub, Pittsford, N.Y., 10 bass, 42-12, $1,637

5^th:          Dennis Carnahan, Cazenovia, N.Y., 10 bass, 42-9, $1,317

6^th:          Joe Zombek II, Scranton, Pa., 10 bass, 42-6, $1,207

7^th:          Travis Manson, Conshohocken, Pa., 10 bass, 41-14, $1,098

8^th:          Matt Becker, Finleyville, Pa., 10 bass, 41-11, $988

9^th:          Joseph Fonzi, Gasport, N.Y., 10 bass, 40-6, $878

10^th:        Frank Arthur, Fallston, Md., 10 bass, 39-12, $768

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Dale Gorrell of Hatfield, Pennsylvania, caught a bass weighing 6 pounds, 4 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $945.

Joseph Amberg Jr. of Hawley, Pennsylvania, caught a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 43 pounds, 12 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $3,529.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st:          Joseph Amberg Jr., Hawley, Pa., 10 bass, 43-12, $3,529

2^nd:         Richard Jordan, Muncy Valley, Pa., 10 bass, 42-4, $1,746

3^rd:          Cherif Zaher, Orangeville, Pa., 10 bass, 40-7, $1,148

4^th:          Jim Buehler, Montoursville, Pa., 10 bass, 40-4, $768

5^th:          Doug Cameron, Belchertown, Mass., 10 bass, 37-0, $659

6^th:          Michael Duarte, Baltimore, Md., 10 bass, 35-11, $604

7^th:          Christy Tiano, Hudson, N.Y., nine bass, 34-6, $549

8^th:          Ryan Buttermore, Leetsdale, Pa., 10 bass, 33-14, $730

9^th:          Jeff Mellott, Warfordsburg, Pa., 10 bass, 32-7, $439

10^th:        Jack Wolf, Chesapeake City, Md., 10 bass, 32-4, $384

Amberg also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 6 pounds, 6 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $236.

The 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Northeast Division finale on 1000 Islands was hosted by the Clayton Chamber of Commerce.

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. 11-13 BFL Regional Championship on Chesapeake Bay in North East, Maryland. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 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 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

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, YouTube and Snapchat.