Co-angler Victories Go to Evansville’s Gish & Kentucky’s Bays

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (June 29, 2020) – It was a double-header for bass anglers this past weekend in Bloomington with the Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine on Lake Monroe events presented by Fish-Intel. FLW, the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, rescheduled the events after the coronavirus pandemic forced the organization to pause competition in mid-March.

Boater Frank McClain of Scottsburg, Indiana, brought five bass to the scale totaling 20 pounds, 7 ounces to win Saturday’s event and earn $4,271, while boater Bob Drake of Noblesville, Indiana,brought in four bass weighing 16 pounds, 12 ounces, on Sunday to earn the win and $4,155.

The top five boaters on Saturday were:

1^st:       Frank McClain of Scottsburg, Ind., five bass, 20-7, $4,271

2^nd:      Mike Quinlin of Mooresville, Ind., five bass, 20-6, $2,636

3^rd:       Russell Sproessig of Columbus, Ind., five bass, 19-9, $1,424

4^th:       Blake Knies of Jasper, Ind., five bass, 17-4, $997

5^th:       Lee Mills of Columbus, Ind., five bass, 17-0, $854

Complete results for Saturday can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Barry Gunter of Trafalgar, Indiana, brought a 6-pound, 2-ounce bass to the scale to win Saturday’s Boater Big Bass award of $595.

Quinlin was the highest-finishing FLW PHOENIX BONUS member and took home an extra $500. Boaters are eligible to win up to an extra $7,000 per event in each Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine tournament if all requirements are met. More information on the FLW PHOENIX BONUS contingency program can be found at PhoenixBassBoats.com.

Brant Gish of Evansville, Indiana, won the Co-angler Division and $2,136 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 19 pounds, 1 ounce.

The top five co-anglers Saturday finished as follows:

1^st:       Brant Gish of Evansville, Ind., five bass, 19-1, $2,136

2^nd:      Roger Seitzinger of Lawrenceville, Ill., five bass, 17-4, $1,216

3^rd:       Remington Gill of Mitchell, Ind., five bass, 16-2, $860

4^th:       Tim Knight of Bargersville, Ind., five bass, 14-8, $498

5^th:       Lincoln Bowen of Crothersville, Ind., five bass, 13-2, $427

Gill caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division Saturday, weighing in at 6 pounds, 9 ounces, to earn the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $148.

 

According to post-tournament reports, Sunday’s boater winner Bob Drake caught his fish with a Marten’s Madness-colored Roboworm on a drop-shot rig on the main lake, about 3 to 4 miles from the takeoff site.

The top five boaters on Sunday were:

1^st:       Bob Drake of Noblesville, Ind., four bass, 16-12, $4,155

2^nd:      Kyle Sears of Lebanon, Ohio, five bass, 15-6, $2,078

3^rd:       Brad Hostetler Jr. of Franklin, Ind., five bass, 15-3, $1,383

4^th:       Chris Martinkovic of Hamilton, Ohio, five bass, 14-10, $1,170

5^th:       John Melton of Corydon, Ind., five bass, 13-9, $831

Complete results for Sunday’s event on Lake Monroe can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Mike Quinlin of Mooresville, Indiana, brought a 6-pound, 1-ounce bass to the scale Sunday to earn the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $570.

Lenny Bays of Dayton, Kentucky, won the Co-angler Division and $2,078 Sunday after catching five bass weighing 12 pounds, 7 ounces.

The top five co-anglers Sunday finished as follows:

1^st:       Lenny Bays of Dayton, Ky., five bass, 12-7, $2,078

2^nd:      Darren Green of Muncie, Ind., five bass, 10-7, $1,039

3^rd:       Shane Thomas of Bedford, Ind., three bass, 10-4, $691

4^th:       Gary Owens of Columbus, Ind., four bass, 9-10, $485

4^th:       Jason Skipworth of Aurora, Ind., three bass, 8-6, $416

Bill Smith of Columbus, Indiana, caught Sunday’s largest bass in the Co-angler Division, weighing in at 7 pounds, 3 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $285.

The 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine Double-Header on Lake Monroe presented by Fish-Intel was the first and second of five qualifying events in the Hoosier Division.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the Hoosier Division based on point standings, along with the five winners of each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 15-17 Phoenix Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin, hosted by Explore La Crosse. Boaters will compete for a $60,000 prize package, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro bass boat with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new 18-foot Phoenix bass boat with a 200-horsepower outboard.

The 2020 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 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 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American.

The 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American will be held Nov. 11-13 at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina and is hosted by Visit Anderson. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers plus tournament winners from each Phoenix Bass Fishing League division earn priority entry into the FLW Series, the pathway to the FLW Pro Circuit and ultimately the MLF Bass Pro Tour, where top pros compete with no entry fees.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.