Tournament News Powered By Lake Drive Marine
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
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IBF Report
Despite the wind, rain, and storms the 2022 Riley Children’s Foundation Benefit Tournament at Lake Wawasee was a success.
Despite threating, 69 boats entered the tournament which benefits the Riley Children’s Foundation.
Forty-nine teams weighed in five fish limits. In all, 282 fish were weighed in for a total weight of 527.88 pounds.
Jeff Showalter (Goshen) and Andrew Miller (Bristol) - 1st Place
Jeff Showalter (Goshen) and Andrew Miller (Bristol) won with five bass weighing 12.20 pounds. They caught their two largest bass in channels early and when the shallow bite dried up, they caught the balance of their fish in deeper water on bluegill-colored jigs.
In addition to $1500, they each received a Lew’s baitcasting reel curtesy of Ye Olde Tackle Box of North Webster. Finishing second were locals Troy Thornburg (Syracuse) and Chase Jacobs (Warsaw) with 12.09 pounds which earned them $950.
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Arjay’s Report
Kent Dowden - 1st Place
Kent Dowden fished alone to win the Arjay’s Wednesday nighter on a tough Big Fish Lake near Marcellus, Mich.
Only two limits were weighed in by the 20 teams competing.
Dowden won with one of those limits weighing 12.42 pounds. He found his fish by fishing 9K Elite jigs in grass, with two being caught as deep as 18 feet. Dowden also won the big bass pot with a 3.32-pound largemouth.
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Kayak fisherman
Kayak anglers of all skill levels are invited to fish in the Topwater Kayak Series SW Sunday Fall Bass League, with nine weekly tournaments starting Sunday, September 11. Corey and Harwood lakes provide the first venue.
The schedule takes competitors to a different Southwest Michigan lake each Sunday afternoon, with tournament hours from noon to 4 p.m. Entry fee is $35 and payout is 100 percent. Five dollars of each entry fee will be reserved and awarded to the three anglers who accumulate the most Angler of the Year points in their top seven of the nine tournaments.
The kayak tournaments feature a “catch-photo-release” format wherein anglers use the free Topwater Tracker app to photograph their fish on a measuring board immediately after they catch it. The competitor then releases the fish and submits the photos through the app. Competitors and others can monitor the standings in real time on the topwaterseries.com website.
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MWA Report
Korey Sosalla and new member Jeff Lanthier won the Michiana Walleye Association tournament on the St. Joseph River at Maggies Landing last weekend.
Fishing was sporadic, according to members, but those anglers who could keep their lines clean of debris and kept the bluegill and rock bass from biting were able to bring some nice fish to the scales.
The winners found their four keepers by pulling worm harnesses and working jigs around structure. Their bag weighed in at 6.79 pounds.
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SMAC Report
Mike Fletcher and Rusty Robinson teamed up to win the Southwest Michigan Anglers Club event at Corey Lake Sunday.
The lake was on, as two over 5 pounds and eight over 3 pounds were weighed in. There were 58 bass taken to the scales, weighing a total of 106.34 pounds.
The winners had five bass weighing 12.66 pounds. They used Ned rigs and swim jigs in 15 feet to catch the winning bag of fish.