Zelinskas Wins Strike King Co-Angler Division

LAWRENCEBERG, Ind. (Aug. 15, 2022) – Boater Bob Logan of Waynesfield, Ohio, caught four bass Saturday weighing 9 pounds, 2 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine on the Ohio River at Tanners Creek. The tournament was the fourth event for the Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division. Logan earned $4,498 for his victory.

“I didn’t really get a good bite until about 9:30,” Logan said. “I stayed in Hogan Creek all day flipping wood and stumps in the creek channel.”

Logan said his keeper bites came spread out throughout the course of the day with his first coming at 9:30 and the last at 1:30. Logan said the water was up, and the fish were holding on wood shallow near the bank. He relied on a Reaction Innovations Smallie Beaver to provoke the few strikes he could during the tournament.

“Fishing was really tough,” Logan said. “I only had four bites. I didn’t even have a lot of short fish. Everybody struggled.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1st:        Bob Logan, Waynesfield, Ohio, four bass, 9-2, $4,498
2nd:       Brandon Smith, Mason, Ohio, four bass, 7-12, $2,249
3rd:       Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, five bass, 6-6, $2,198
4th:        David Spivey, Hamilton, Ohio, four bass, 5-10, $1,050
5th:        Seth Fricke, Oxford, Ohio, three bass, 5-6, $900
6th:        Pat White, Amelia, Ohio, four bass, 5-4, $825
7th:        Rob Flowers, West Harrison, Ind., three bass, 5-3, $750
8th:        Jamie Cunnagin, New Lebanon, Ohio, four bass, 5-1, $675
9th:        Kyle Weisenburger, Columbus Grove, Ohio, three bass, 4-14, $600
10th:     Chris Malas, Cincinnati, Ohio, three bass, 4-13, $525

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Tim Adams of Burlington, Kentucky, had a largemouth that weighed 4 pounds, 3 ounces that was the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division and earned the day’s Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $645.

Brian Zelinskas of Beavercreek, Ohio, won the Strike King Co-angler Division and $2,603 Saturday after catching four bass weighing 6 pounds, 5 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:

1st:        Brian Zelinskas, Beavercreek, Ohio, four bass, 6-5, $2,603
2nd:       Myles Jackman, White Lake, Mich., four bass, 5-3, $1,096
3rd:       Brent Wilkens, Hamilton, Ohio, three bass, 4-13, $930
4th:        Matt Fisher, Glouster, Ohio, three bass, 4-8, $862
5th:        Austin Black, Walton, Ky., two bass, 4-3, $439
6th:        Howard Smith, Hamilton, Ohio, three bass, 3-13, $402
7th:        Dustin Burk, Brookville, Ind., two bass, 3-12, $365
8th:        Ray Yocum, Waynesville, Ohio, two bass, 3-1, $329
9th:        Justin Dillon, Dayton, Ohio, two bass, 2-12, $292
10th:     J.R. Selke, Waynesville, Ohio, two bass, 2-11, $256

Zelinskas caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 2 pounds, 13 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $310.

After four events, Michael Nesbitt of St. Paris, Ohio, leads the Bass Fishing League Buckeye Division Boater Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 955 points, while Brian Zelinskas of Beavercreek, Ohio, leads the Strike King Co-Angler Division AOY race with 944 points.

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. 20-22 Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the James River in Richmond, Virginia. Boaters will compete for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard.

The 2022 Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six Regional Championships 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 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American.

The top 45 boaters and Strike King co-anglers plus tournament winners from each Phoenix Bass Fishing League division will also earn priority entry into the MLF Toyota Series, the pathway to the MLF Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit and ultimately the MLF Bass Pro Tour.

Proud sponsors of the 2022 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 4WP, 13 Fishing, Abu Garcia, AFTCO, A.R.E. Truck Caps, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Rifle Coffee, E3, Epic Baits, Favorite Fishing, Gary Yamamoto Baits, General Tire, Lew’s, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Revital Outdoors, Strike King, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, Wiley X, YETI and Yo-Zuri.

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.