Ohio’s Kimmel Earns Victory in Co-Angler Division

TRENTON, Mich. (Aug. 24, 2026) – Boater Heath Wagner of Angola, Indiana, caught a total of five bass weighing 22 pounds, 13 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on the Detroit River presented by Suzuki Marine. The tournament was the fourth of five events of the season for the BFL Michigan Division presented by 3rd Deck Brewing Co., and Wagner earned $2,880 for his victory.

“The day started off real slow,” Wagner said. “I found an area a ways out on Lake Erie, but by 10 o’clock I only had two fish. I’ve won seven BFLs now – five without (Garmin) LiveScope – but boy, we get pretty addicted to it after we’ve used it.”

Wagner said he went several hours with only two fish in the livewell, then finally turned on his forward-facing sonar units and trolled around to find smallmouth.

“I finally found them, and I had only missed them by 50 yards,” said Wagner. “We went to wearing them out after that. It was a good day.”

Wagner said he caught his bass in 13 to 15 feet of water on a slight rise on a gravel bar. Wagner’s baits of choice were a jig and an olive green Berkley Powerbait MaxScent Flat Worm.

“Erie is kind of up and down, and 22-13 is kind of light to win,” Wagner said. “The last few years we’ve had some 25-pound sacks come in, but I had a real good feeling around 1 o’clock that I had a good shot at winning. I figured I needed one or two more fish. They were there; I just didn’t execute well, but it didn’t seem to matter today. You catch enough of them, and you get fortunate sometimes and the good Lord blesses you.

“This never gets old,” added Wagner, who has been fishing BFL events since 2004. “I love catching smallmouth. I love meeting people, and fishing the BFL events is such a fun ride. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:          Heath Wagner, Angola, Ind., five bass, 22-13, $2,880
2nd:        Cody Kelley, Plainwell, Mich., five bass, 21-9, $2,120 (includes $500 Phoenix bonus)
3rd:         Bradley Bond, Wyandotte, Mich., five bass, 21-4, $740
4th:         Nicholas Seitz, Monclova, Ohio, five bass, 21-0, $600
5th:         Jesse Richardson, Ligonier, Ind., five bass, 20-10, $530
6th:         Scott Dobson, Clarkston, Mich., five bass, 19-11, $460
7th:         Hunter Colwell, Zanesfield, Ohio, five bass, 19-9, $450
8th:         Angel Rosario, Kalamazoo, Mich., five bass, 19-2, $430
9th:         Russell Vandiver, Carmel, Ind., five bass, 19-1, $410
10th:       Evan Ellis, Greentown, Ind., five bass, 18-15, $400

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Cody Kelley of Plainwell, Michigan, earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award after landing a 5-pound, 5-ounce bass worth $200.

Rece Kimmel of Lewistown, Ohio, won the co-angler division and the top prize of $1,440 Saturday after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 13 pounds, 7 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers finished:

1st:          Rece Kimmel, Lewistown, Ohio, three bass, 13-7, $1,440
2nd:        Greg Elswick, Goshen, Ind., three bass, 13-0, $710
3rd:         Dan Mittlestat, Woodhaven, Mich., three bass, 12-13, $370
4th:         Mike Mueller, Delaware, Ohio, three bass, 12-10, $300
5th:         Tommy Pritchard, Bargersville, Ind., three bass, 11-5, $247
5th:         Michael Shelton Jr., Englewood, Ohio, three bass, 11-5, $247
7th:         David Roche, Centerline, Mich., three bass, 11-0, $230
8th:         Ashley Shirto, Harrison Township, Mich., three bass, 10-15, $215
9th:         Christopher McGraw, Kingston, Ohio, three bass, 10-13, $210
10th:       Scott Lutz, Bremen, Ind., three bass, 10-12, $200

Jackson Buege of Howell, Michigan, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award after landing a 5-pound, 2-ounce bass worth $100.

After four events, Scott Dobson of Clarkston, Michigan, now leads the 7 Brew Michigan Division presented by 3rd Deck Brewing Co. Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 984 points, while Mike Mueller of Delaware, Ohio, leads the Michigan Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 983 points.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the division based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 8-10 BFL Regional tournament on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland. Boaters will fish for a top award of a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard worth $50,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top prize of a new Phoenix 518 pro with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard, worth $33,500.

The 2026 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 co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying tournament winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top seven, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2027 BFL All-American will take place June 5-7, at the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes in Kissimmee, Florida, and is hosted by Experience Kissimmee.

Proud sponsors of the 2026 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7 Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Buffalo, BUBBA, Cigars International, Epic Baits, Grizzly, Mercury, MillerTech, Mystik Lubricants, OFF! Deep Woods, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, PiranhO2, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, VOSKER, YETI and Yuengling.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular BFL 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, Outdoor Channel, VICE, World Fishing Network, RFD-TV, Game & Fish TV and Rumble, 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 20 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.