| Boater winner Michael Sitko of Pinckney, Michigan, and Strike-King co-angler winner Mason Bohland of Noblesville, Indiana. |
| Indiana’s Bohland Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division TRENTON, Mich. (July 15, 2024) – Boater Michael Sitko of Pinckney, Michigan, caught a five-bass limit weighing 24 pounds, 13 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on the Detroit River . The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Michigan Division. Sitko earned $10,917, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory. From the Detroit River, anglers had three options: stay in the river, run to St. Clair or head out to Lake Erie. Sitko chose the latter, making a long run out to Erie. “I was just fishing isolated things – rocks, rises, irregular features on the bottom – which there’s a ton of them out there, and they’re not all created equal,” he said. “So you just have to run a gamut of spots and try to get a game plan.” Sitko said he struggled to piece together a really strong pattern. He made up for it by running a couple dozen spots. “It was patience,” he said. “It was literally, I couldn’t freak out if I pulled up to a spot that I knew I’d caught fish off of (in the past) and not catch them (during the tournament). “If you hit enough of them, maybe you hit enough of the right fish, and that’s kind of what happened today (Saturday).” Sitko fished spots as tiny as a single boulder and areas as big as 20-by-20. Most of his fish came out of about 18 feet of water. “All my fish came on drop-shots and tubes,” said Sitko. “Literally, when I’m fishing Erie, I fish with four rods: two drop-shot rods and two tube rods. For me, I’ve got four rods on the deck, and it’s the same thing for St. Clair for me except I use different weights.” Sitko’s baits all mimicked gobies or smelt. They included a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Flat Worm and Flatnose Minnow plus a green pumpkin tube. For Sitko, this makes MLF win No. 6 on the Detroit River and its connected waters, which is quite the accomplishment among a stacked field of anglers. When asked to sum up how he got it done, Sitko was honest and humble. “Luck,” he said. “I really didn’t think I was going to catch what I caught today. It had nothing to do with my practice. It was just my time. It was my day. You need a bunch of that (luck), especially with this division and with these guys, ’cause they are just insane. “I remember the very first FLW event I won was a Costa Series. And that was pretty special. And then the first BFL I ever won was pretty amazing. And, I’m not going to lie, this was equally as amazing as all of them, and it’s my sixth one. I really cherish the fact I have done this well and won these because it’s so hard. It’s just an amazing feeling..” The top 10 boaters finished the tournament: 1st: Michael Sitko, Pinckney, Mich., five bass, 24-13, $10,917 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus) 2nd: Noah Stauffer, Gowen, Mich., five bass, 24-1, $1,958 3rd: Nolan Mandel, Harrison Township, Mich., five bass, 22-12, $1,307 4th: Matthew Davis, Morenci, Mich., five bass, 22-11, $914 5th: Jonathon Dewey, Fort Gratiot, Mich., five bass, 22-3, $783 6th: Gary Greenwood, Taylors, S.C., five bass, 21-7, $718 7th: Dan Mittlestat, Woodhaven, Mich., five bass, 20-11, $953 8th: Eric Sanders, Lexington, Ky., five bass, 20-1, $555 8th: Tony Hansen, Vermontville, Mich., five bass, 20-1, $555 10th: Buddy Benson, Dahlonega, Ga., five bass, 19-15, $457 Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com. Scott Delpha of Noblesville, Indiana, caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $520.  Mason Bohland of Noblesville, Indiana, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,958 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 21 pounds, 4 ounces. The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished: 1st: Mason Bohland, Noblesville, Ind., five bass, 21-4, $1,958 2nd: Kendra Mueller, Fowlerville, Mich., five bass, 21-0, $979 3rd: Brian Townley, Wyoming, Mich., five bass, 20-9, $653 4th: Scott Davis, Morenci, Mich., five bass, 20-1, $457 5th: Trent Wilt, Manitou Beach, Mich., five bass, 19-4, $392 6th: Spencer Phelps, Bangor, Mich., five bass, 19-3, $359 7th: Ben Schenck, Huber Heights, Ohio, five bass, 19-1, $326 8th: Rich Richardson, Lufkin, Texas, five bass, 18-7, $294 9th: Brady Metzger, Zionsville, Ind., five bass, 17-12, $244 9th: Ashley Shirto, Novi, Mich., five bass, 17-12, $504 Ashley Shirto of Novi, Michigan, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $260, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 12 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day. After two events, Nolan Mandel of Harrison Township, Michigan, leads the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 498 points, while Scott Davis of Morenci, Michigan, leads the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 491 points. The next event for BFL Michigan Division anglers will be held Aug. 10, at Detroit River in Trenton, Michigan. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Pools 13-17 of the Mississippi River in Quad Cities, Illinois. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard. The 2024 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 45 boaters and Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, PowerStop Brakes, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, 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. |