Tournament News Powered By Lake Drive Marine
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MDNR Report
Starting Jan. 1, all bass and walleye fishing tournaments, as well as competitive fishing events targeting muskellunge, must be registered in the DNR's Michigan Fishing Tournament Information System, available online. These events must report their results, too.
The inclusion of walleye and muskie adds to the statewide registration and reporting requirements for bass fishing tournaments that have been in place since 2016.
Tournament and event directors are required to register and report using the Fishing Tournament Information System. The DNR has worked the last 10 months to overhaul the system in order to accommodate the new requirements. That system now is operational and currently accepting 2019 registrations.
“This is an important step in gaining a better understanding of what competitive walleye and muskellunge fishing means to angling, conservation and Michigan’s economy,” said Tom Goniea, a fisheries biologist and the DNR’s tournament fishing specialist. “To date, the Fishing Tournament Information System has been a tremendous success, receiving more than 2,000 bass tournament registrations and reports. We expect a smooth transition to include a couple hundred annual walleye and muskellunge events.”
For more information, including definitions explaining the difference between a fishing tournament and a competitive fishing event, visit the system site at michigan.gov/fishingtournaments. Questions? Contact Tom Goneia at 517-284-5830.
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Jeremy Bunnell and Lee Duracz - 1st Place
The Polar Bear Circuit held its final event of the year at Duke’s Bridge last Sunday where Jeremy Bunnell and Lee Duracz took home first place, and over $400, with their five largest bass weighing in at 13.48 pounds.
The weather could not have been much better for late-November and that was a big reason this event drew 16 teams. Duke’s Bridge did not disappoint in regards to the fishing either. Not only were the bass results very favorable, but there were very large fish of other species caught as well.
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Gipson/Noe Win Polar Bear Shootout at Maxinkuckee
The Polar Bear Circuit held its third open event of the year Nov. 17 at Lake Maxinkuckee in Culver, Ind. where Tom Noe and John Gipson took home the top honors, along with over $200, for their efforts that day.
The conditions were a bit dreary for the event, but considering the typical weather patterns in Michiana in late fall, the participants couldn’t have asked for a much better day to fish. The bass seemed to agree as well and were definitely biting, as almost every team brought a limit in to the scales.
Noe and Gipson not only took home first place with an outstanding bag weighing in 14.74 pounds, but they also capture the Big Bass of the day that weighed 3.76 pounds.
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Wolkins/McNary Win at 6 Span in Polar Bear Circuit
The Polar Bear Circuit held its second event of the year last Saturday at Six Span in Elkhart, and the cold wintery weather didn’t stop Floyd Wolkins and Zach McNary from taking home first place with 9.28 pounds of bass.
The extreme cold, strong winds and slick icy roads caused the directors of the circuit to postpone the event from Saturday the 10th, to Sunday the 11th.
With water temperatures settling in at the high 30’s last week, the patterns in which participants reported to catch fish seemed to narrow. Blade baits, A-rigs and Ned rigs appeared to be about the only method to catch a bass. This was also the technique used to land the big “critter” of the day during the tournament.
Not only did Floyd and Zach win first place in the tournament, they also took home the critter pot with a 7.52 pound pike. The second place team of Teddy Bradley and Mark Fennell weighed in bass totaling 9.10 pounds.
The next Polar Bear open will be held at Lake Maxinkuckee on November 17th starting at 7:30 a.m. For more details, see the Lake Drive Marine Events Calendar adjacent to this page.- Details
BASS Report
BASS Adds Jr. Division to Prep Series; College, HS Schedules Announced
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - B.A.S.S. announced that it will be adding a Junior Bassmaster Division to its annual slate of events in the Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series.
High school tournaments are scheduled for Lake Hartwell in Anderson, S.C., on March 2; Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala., on March 30; Norfolk Lake in Mountain Home, Ark., on April 28; and Lake Shasta in Redding, Calif., on May 11. A field of up to 50 junior division teams will compete in each event with accompanying coaches or team captains.
"This is another aggressive step toward giving more young people a chance to fish competitively," said Hank Weldon, B.A.S.S. senior manager for college and high school. "More parents are realizing that children who fish often avoid a lot of the more harmful aspects of our culture - and by creating a division for second- to eighth-graders, we're helping parents start them out even earlier."
Another new feature for the high school circuit will be maximum field size of 250 boats.