OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (March 4, 2022) – Pro Brock Reinkemeyer of Warsaw, Missouri, brought a final-day total of five bass weighing 17 pounds, 4 ounces to the scale Thursday to win the Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. at Lake of the Ozarks Presented by Smart Digital. Reinkemeyer’s three-day total of 15 bass weighing 59-13 earned him the win by a 2-pound, 12-ounce margin over second-place angler Josh Shirley of Cabot, Arkansas, and earned Reinkemeyer the top payout of $41,750 in the first tournament of the 2022 Toyota Series Plains Division Presented by Outlaw Ordnance.
“Wow, this feels even better than I thought it would feel,” Reinkemeyer said. “I am in awe right now. Some of these guys that I was fishing against this final day – it’s crazy. They’re my buddies, and they’re better than I am. They all put in more work than I do. To come out on top today is just unreal.”
Reinkemeyer said he spent the week mainly fishing in the Gravois Arm.
“I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t running all over the place,” Reinkemeyer said. “I had a 15-mile zone, and I didn’t stray from it. I grew up in Lee’s Summit, and Gravois is my homeland. The biggest thing was the early morning bite, from 7 (a.m.) to 10 (a.m.). The fish were setting up on the brush piles and rocks and they would show themselves a lot more. Later in the day, they weren’t nearly as active, so I really had to capitalize in that three-hour period.”
Reinkemeyer said he caught his fish on three baits – a Yumbrella Flash Mob Umbrella Rig with Strike King (Rage) Swimmers, a Megabass Vision 110 jerkbait, and a Motion Fishing finesse jig with a Zoom Speed Craw.
“I couldn’t catch them on the bank, so I had to fish a little deeper,” Reinkemeyer said. “I mainly targeted 14 to 22 feet, and the majority came from 18 to 22 (feet). I got one key bite each day in like 14 foot, but most of them were a bit deeper.
“I thought my fish were smaller than they were and that I was leaving the door open today – those last four hours of the day were pretty stressful,” Reinkemeyer went on to say. “Luckily it turned out that I had enough.”
The top 10 pros on Lake of the Ozarks finished:
1st: Brock Reinkemeyer, Warsaw, Mo., 15 bass, 59-13, $41,750
2nd: Josh Shirley, Cabot, Ark., 15 bass, 57-1, $15,500
3rd: Justin Miller, Grain Valley, Mo., 15 bass, 51-3, $12,000
4th: Travis Harriman, Huntsville, Ark., 13 bass, 49-4, $10,000
5th: Austin Culbertson, ,Moberly, Mo., 15 bass, 48-3, $9,000
6th: Grant Akers, Richmond, Mo., 15 bass, 48-2, $8,000
7th: Michael Harlin, Sunrise Beach, Mo., 15 bass, 47-4, $7,000
8th: Brad Jelinek, Lincoln, Mo., 15 bass, 46-10, $7,000 (includes $1,000 Phoenix MLF Bonus)
9th: Chris Bridges, Clinton, Mo., 15 bass, 46-5, $5,200
10th: Chris Digino, Dallas, Texas, 15 bass, 45-14, $4,000
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Pro Kyle Minke of Lindstrom, Minnesota, won the $500 Day 1 Berkley Big Bass award in the pro division Tuesday with a largemouth weighing 6 pounds, 10 ounces. Reinkemeyer and Ben Verhoef of Osage Beach split Wednesday’s $500 Berkley Big Bass award, as both weighed in a 6-pound, 7-ounce bass to each take home a $250 bonus.
Jelinek took home an extra $1,000 as the highest finishing Phoenix MLF Bonus member. Boaters are eligible to win up to an extra $35,000 per event in each Toyota Series tournament if all requirements are met. More information on the Phoenix MLF Bonus contingency program can be found at PhoenixBassBoats.com.
Alan Bernicky of Joliet, Illinois, won the Strike King Co-angler Division Thursday with a three-day total of 12 bass weighing 34 pounds even. Bernicky took home the top prize package worth $33,700, including a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard motor.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers on Lake of the Ozarks finished:
1st: Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., 12 bass, 34-0, Phoenix 518 Pro boat w/115-hp Mercury outboard + $5,000
2nd: Hank Goen, Columbia, Mo., 11 bass, 31-4, $5,000
3rd: Jeff Moss, Oronogo, Mo.., 11bass, 31-2, $4,000
4th: Jason Swanson, Waterloo, Iowa, 13 bass, 27-12, $3,500
5th: Dan Bowman, Osage Beach, Mo., 11 bass, 26-11, $3,000
6th: Tom Shewey, Climax Springs, Mo., 11 bass, 26-3, $2,500
7th: Jason Sandidge, Centerton, Ark., 11 bass, 25-13, $2,000
8th: Scott Parsons, Rogers, Ark., nine bass, 25-3, $1,750
9th: Dennis Young, Olathe, Kan., nine bass, 24-8, $1,500
10th: Anthony Scoma, Spring Hill, Kan., nine bass, 23-10, $1,250
The Day 1 Berkley Big Bass $150 award winner in the Strike King co-angler division, was Mark Reynolds of Warrensburg, Missouri, with a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass, while the Day 2 $150 award went to Joseph Blackburn of Dixon, Missouri, with a 6-pound, 10-ounce largemouth.
The Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. at Lake of the Ozarks Presented by Smart Digital was hosted by the Tri-County Lodging Association. It was the first tournament in the Toyota Series Plains Division Presented by Outlaw Ordnance. The next event for Toyota Series anglers will take place on March 31-April 2 – the Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. at Dale Hollow Lake in Byrdstown, Tennessee, hosted by the Byrdstown-Pickett County Chamber of Commerce. For a complete schedule, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The 2022 Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. consists of six divisions – Central, Northern, Plains Presented by Outlaw Ordnance, Southern, Southwestern Presented by Outlaw Ordnance and Western – each holding three regular-season events, along with the International and Wild Card divisions. Anglers who fish in any of the six divisions and finish in the top 25 – or the top 12 from the Wild Card division – will qualify for the no-entry-fee Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. Championship for a shot at winning up to $235,000 cash. The winning Strike King co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard. The 2022 Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. Championship will be held Nov. 3-5 on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, and is hosted by Marshall County Tourism and Sports.
Proud sponsors of the 2022 MLF Toyota Series Presented by A.R.E. include: 4WP, 13 Fishing, Abu Garcia, AFTCO, A.R.E. Truck Caps, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Rifle Coffee, E3, Epic Baits, Favorite Fishing, Gary Yamamoto Baits, General Tire, Lew’s, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Outlaw Ordnance, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, Wiley X and YETI.
For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF Toyota Series on the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.