Beloit’s Goodyear Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division

LA CROSSE, Wis. (April 29, 2024) – Boater Mike Feldermann of Galena, Illinois, caught a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds even Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin . Hosted by Explore La Crosse, the tournament was the first event of the season for the BFL Great Lakes Division. Feldermann earned $4,116 for his victory.

While Feldermann lives almost three hours away from La Crosse in Illinois, he’s no newcomer to that stretch of the Mississippi River. He’s fished there plenty of times over his longstanding BFL career. Feldermann started competing on the circuit in 1991 and has fished the All-American four times. This is his 12th career BFL win.

Feldermann relied on past experience to form his Mississippi River game plan. First, he knew he’d target largemouth bass only.

“I think the top 10 guys except for me were all (targeting) smallmouth,” he said. “I never fish for smallmouth because it’s one of those deals where they’re kind of fool’s gold. They’re there one day and gone the next. I feel more comfortable fishing largemouth.”

Knowing he was going to target largemouths, Feldermann just had to find the right patches of grass, which he found in three areas of Pool No. 8 where the tournament launched. One particular area really produced for him in the morning.

“I was throwing a spinnerbait and ChatterBait in about 3 foot of water,” he said. “I was fishing basically about a quarter-of-a-mile weed flat. I had a limit by 7:30, and I just kind of caught them throughout the day.”

The key spot had a mixture of aquatic grasses and a depth change – from about 3 feet deep on top, dropping off to about 7 feet.

“You were pretty limited on what you could fish just for the simple fact it was 20 or 30 mph winds,” he added. “I stayed out on the flat. It was a little easier to fish the flat than to fish the bank.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:        Mike Feldermann, Galena, Ill., five, bass, 23-0, $4,116
2nd:       John Engler, Vinton, Iowa, five bass, 21-14, $2,320 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
3rd:       Zach Williamson, Stoddard, Wis., five bass, 21-7, $1,214
4th:        Rick Ragner, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 21-6, $850
5th:        Kevin Ruh, Onalaska, Wis., five bass, 20-7, $728
6th:        Hunter Litchfield, Macomb, Ill., five bass, 20-4, $668
7th:        Randy Wieczorek, Buffalo City, Wis., five bass, 19-9, $607
8th:        Ryan Lewis, Glasford, Ill., five bass, 19-2, $971
9th:        Jacob Ambrose, La Crosse, Wis., five bass ,19-1, $485
10th:     Bill Sepke, Indian Head Park, Ill., five bass, 18-14, $425

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Feldermann caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 1 ounce, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $475.

David Goodyear of Beloit, Wisconsin, won the Strike King co-angler division and $2,057 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 21 pounds, 3 ounces.

The top 11 Strike King co-anglers finished:

1st:        David Goodyear, Beloit, Wis., five bass, 21-3, $2,057
2nd:       Parker Kratochvill, Onalaska, Wis., five bass, 20-14, $910
3rd:       Jason Olson, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., five bass, 19-7, $607
4th:        Hector Garcia, Elgin, Ill., five bass, 16-14, $425
5th:        Chris Stelter, Chisago City, Minn., five bass, 16-12, $364
6th:        Lee Lewis, Peoria, Ill., five bass, 16-2, $334
7th:        Matthew Vang, Milwaukee, Wis., five bass, 15-0, $303
8th:        Robert Beaman, Sauk Rapids, Minn., five bass, 14-15, $258
8th:        Hertz Skaer, Holmen, Wis., five bass, 14-15, $258
10th:     Mai Xiong, Milwaukee, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $201
10th:     Austin Frye, Ontario, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $201

Goodyear also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $237 by catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 3 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.

The next event for BFL Great Lakes Division anglers will be held May 18, at the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on the Mississippi River Pools 13-17 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.

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, 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.