Crest Hill’s McNeil Tops Co-Angler Division

WHITTINGTON, Ill. (April 14, 2025) – Boater Travis Boley of Weldon, Illinois, caught three bass weighing 10 pounds, 13 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine at Rend Lake . The tournament, hosted by Seasons Lodge at Rend Lake, was the first event of the season for the BFL Illini Division. Boley earned $3,103 for his victory.

Rend Lake was stingy for the BFL anglers. A water level rise of some 8 feet, followed by a 2-foot drop over a couple of days, had the fish in a funk. It showed in the weights, with zero limits caught and only 17 boaters bringing fish to weigh-in. But a win’s a win, and getting it done in such challenging conditions is even more impressive.

“I was going to be happy to get a 14-incher,” Boley said. “I found an area yesterday in practice that had good water color and was pushing that 60-degree water temperature. I basically fished moving baits yesterday – a lot of spinnerbaits, crankbaits, stuff like that. I really didn’t get bit, but the area just looked right. I thought today I’m going to go back in that area and I’m going to slow down and just put a jig in my hand and flip every stick I could.”

The plan worked well enough. Boley ground it out on a 300-yard stretch, working down and back a few times over an eight-hour day, picking apart every piece of wood or brush he could find with the jig.

Boley believes the fish just never moved up with the rising water. That’s why he caught his keepers in about 6 or 7 feet on the ends of laydowns. He pitched his jig up shallow and worked it thoroughly down the length of each laydown. It was slow, methodical work.

More important than any win, however, is the fact that Boley was even out there. He was diagnosed with cancer back in December. Being able to fish and compete is as much about proving he can do it as it is about trying to win any trophy. Especially with another special event coming up this season.

“This is actually the very first weekend I’ve been back out on the water to go fishing,” Boley said. “I had my fifth treatment last Tuesday. I wanted to get my stamina back because I’ve got the All-American to go to down on Hamilton.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:          Travis Boley, Weldon, Ill., three bass, 10-13, $3,103
2nd:        Greg Mullins, Mount Vernon, Ill., two bass, 6-10, $1,897 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
3rd:         Scott Neighbors, Makanda, Ill., two bass, 5-14, $1,156
4th:         Anthony Balding Jr., Arnold, Mo., one bass, 4-15, $652
5th:         Brennon McCord, Thompsonville, Ill., two bass, 4-6, $559
6th:         Brad Bailey, St. Louis, Mo., one bass, 4-5, $512
7th:         Cecil Downing, Mount Carmel, Ill., one bass, 3-10, $466
8th:         Tim Schneider, Saint Louis, Mo., one bass, 3-9, $419
9th:         Greg James, Carterville, Ill., one bass, 3-8, $372
10th:       Andrew Harper, Shelbyville, Ill., one bass, 3-5, $326

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Boley caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $310.

Bobby McNeil of Crest Hill, Illinois, won the co-angler division and $1,552 Saturday, after bringing one bass to the scale that totaled 4 pounds, 14 ounces. That fish also earned McNeil the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award worth $155.

The top eight co-anglers finished:

1st:          Bobby McNeil, Crest Hill, Ill., one bass, 4-14, $1,552
2nd:        Charles Dammerman, Taylorville, Ill., one bass, 4-11, $698
3rd:         Elmo Rogers, Albion, Ill., one bass, 4-3, $515
4th:         David Workman, Harrisburg, Ill., one bass, 3-12, $326
5th:         Thomas Duke, Pana, Ill., one bass, 2-13, $379
6th:         Mario Rossi Jr., Granite City, Ill., one bass, 2-6, $256
7th:         Brian Davis, Bethalto, Ill., one bass, 2-4, $233
8th:         Matt Chumbler, Carbondale, Ill., one bass, 2-3, $210

In addition to winning the event, Travis Boley of Weldon, Illinois, has the early lead in the Fishing Clash Illini Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 250 points, while Bobby McNeil of Crest Hill, Illinois, leads the Fishing Clash Illini Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 250 points.

The next event for BFL Illini Division anglers will be held May 3, at Lake Shelbyville in Shelbyville, Illinois. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.

The top 60 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. 3-4 BFL Regional tournament on the Mississippi River in Quad Cities, Illinois. 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 award of $20,000.

The 2025 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 134 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 60 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying tournament winners, will advance to one of 12 BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top three, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2025 BFL All-American will take place May 29-31, 2025, at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and is hosted by hosted by Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2025 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, Deep Dive App, E3 Sports Apparel, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, Grizzly, Humminbird, Lew’s, Li Time Batteries, Mercury, Minn Kota, Mossy Oak, Mystik Lubricants, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, Polaris, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Strike King, Suzuki Marine, 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 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.