PBL Report
Buck Mallory - 1st Place
Boater Buck Mallory of Lawton, Mich. brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 25 pounds, 5 ounces to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine event at Lake St. Clair in Harrison Township, Mich. For his victory, Mallory earned a total of $4,652.
"I was fishing in the main lake on St. Clair," said Mallory, who earned the first victory of his career. "The key was sticking around and grinding it out. I didn't leave a 100-yard stretch the whole day. I just did circles and circles and circles until I couldn't do them anymore. And then I did it five more times and caught one better one that got me the win."
Mallory said that his key bait was a drop-shot rig with a Strike King ElazTech Z Too soft jerkbait with an Eco Pro Tungsten Full Contact Drop-Shot weight.
"I didn't realize that I would be so emotional when I finally got a win," Mallory went on to say. "I was so due. I'm really excited."
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament as follows:
1st: Buck Mallory of Lawton, Mich., five bass, 25-5, $4,652
2nd: Mike Raber of Wolcottville, Ind., five bass, 24-10, $2,326
3rd: Heath Wagner of Angola, Ind., five bass, 23-3, $1,318
4th: Beau Bickford of Findlay, Ohio, five bass, 23-3, $1,318
5th: Hugh Cosculluela of The Woodlands, Texas., five bass, 22-12, $894
6th: Wyatt Walker of Parma, Mich., five bass, 22-9, $820
7th: Robert Lefere of Jackson, Mich, five bass, 22-1, $708
7th: Wayne Macklin of Linden, Mich., five bass, 21-10, $708
9th: Chris Stanford of Omaha, Neb., five bass, 21-6, $596
10th: Andrew Smith of Chesterfield Township, Mich., five bass, 21-3, $496
10th: Chase Morgan of Danville, Ind., five bass, 21-3, $496
Smith earned the day's Boater Big Bass Award of $685 after bringing a 5-pound, 11-ounce bass to the scale.
Cosculluela was also 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 Tom Bauer of Martinsville, Indiana, won the Co-angler Division and $2,326 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 23 pounds, 10 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished as follows:
1st: Tom Bauer of Martinsville, Ind., five bass, 23-10, $2,326
2nd: Austin Freed of Wolcottville, Ind., five bass, 22-14, $1,163
3rd: Kenneth Lesner of Westland, Mich., five bass, 22-4, $777
4th: Davis Stutzman of Shipshewana, Ind., five bass, 21-12, $543
5th: Daniel Hechler of Franklin, Ohio, five bass, 21-4, $465
6th: Marvin Washington of Canton, Mich., five bass, 21-3, $426
6th: Aaron Stahley of Batavia, Ohio, five bass, 20-12, $388
8th: Matthew Kime of Holland, Ohio, five bass, 19-14, $349
9th: Scott Sims of Morgantown, Ind., five bass, 19-13, $310
10th: Bill Miller of Metamora, Mich., five bass, 19-12, $613
Miller caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces. The catch added to his winnings as he earned the day's Co-angler Big Bass award of $342.