| Boater winner Clayton Weber of West Salem, Wisconsin, and co-angler winner Timothy Wittren of Ontario, Wisconsin. |
| Ontario’s Wittren Tops Co-Angler Division LA CROSSE, Wis. (Sept. 15, 2025) – Boater Clayton Weber of West Salem, Wisconsin, caught a total of 10 bass weighing 37 pounds, 1 ounce, over two days to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine at the Mississippi River – La Crosse Presented by Lew’s . The tournament, hosted by Explore La Crosse, was the fifth and final event of the season for the BFL Great Lakes Division. Weber earned $5,831 for his victory. Weber came out strong on Day 1, landing a quality limit off his starting spot earlier than expected and then spending the remainder of the afternoon scouting. “The first day, I got to my starting spot and the fish bit better than expected. I had my weight pretty quickly, and then just went practicing the rest of the day,” Weber said. “I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into Day 2.” On Championship Sunday, those same areas didn’t produce, forcing Weber to scrap his plan and make major adjustments. “I got to my spot where I caught them all the first day, and I got one, and then there was nothing there,” he recalled. “I had to re-change everything. The weather changed, so I just went and ran a whole new pattern the rest of the afternoon, slowly catching one here and there.” Weber leaned on two staple river presentations – a frog and a swimjig – but it was the frog that ultimately delivered most of his weight. “The frog was definitely the shining star of the event,” he said. He targeted grass edges with the swim jig and worked duckweed mats and the heaviest vegetation with the frog, often wrestling fish out of cover. “It was super thick, gnarly Mississippi River vegetation,” he explained. “I definitely lost some that I thought might be crucial, but I managed to put enough together.” Weber’s clutch moment came late on Day 2, when he added two key fish to seal the win. “I had about 11 pounds around 11 o’clock, and it wasn’t looking good,” he said. “Then with an hour left, I caught one over 4 pounds, and five minutes before check-in I caught a 3½-pounder that culled a small one. At that point, I knew I had a chance.” For Weber, the win was made even sweeter by the conditions he battled through. “There are so many good, talented fishermen up here, and it’s hard to win against this group,” he said. “That makes it feel even more special.” He also credited his equipment for powering through the heavy grass mats. “I was trolling through super thick grass all weekend, and having reliable PowerHouse Lithium batteries was huge,” Weber added. “That gave me the confidence to fish the way I needed to and know my equipment was going to perform as it should.” The top 10 boaters finished the tournament: 1st: Clayton Weber, West Salem, Wis., 10 bass, 37-1, $5,831 2nd: Casey Goode, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 35-10, $3,415 (includes $500 Phoenix Bonus) 3rd: Mike Brueggen, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 35-4, $1,945 4th: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., 10 bass, 33-6, $1,511 5th: Steve Lopez, Oconomowoc, Wis., 10 bass, 33-4, $1,266 6th: Brent Schroeder, Caledonia, Minn., 10 bass, 32-11, $1,069 7th: Marcus Livingston, Augusta, Wis., 10 bass, 31-12, $972 8th: Tyler Fitch, Fall River, Wis., 10 bass, 31-8, $875 9th: Dan Mohn, Lansing, Iowa, 10 bass, 31-6, $777 10th: Devin Teigen, Nelson, Wis., 10 bass, 30-12, $680 Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com. Ryan Redmann of Brandon, Wisconsin, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 13 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $787.  Timothy Wittren of Ontario, Wisconsin, won the co-angler division and $2,966 after bringing six bass to the scale that totaled 19 pounds even. The top 10 co-anglers finished: 1st: Timothy Wittren, Ontario, Wis., six bass, 19-0, $2,966 2nd: Brian Brecka, Alma, Wis., six bass, 18-14, $1,458 3rd: Dante Johnson, Gurnee, Ill., six bass, 16-6, $971 4th: Lance Arnoldussen, Oconomowoc, Wis., six bass, 16-4, $680 5th: Jason Swanson, Waterloo, Iowa, six bass, 16-3, $583 6th: Mason Peters, La Crosse, Wis., six bass, 16-3, $535 7th: Nick Kramersmeier, Johnston, Iowa, six bass, 16-0, $880 8th: Chia Xiong, Onalaska, Wis., six bass, 15-7, $437 9th: Chase Traeger, Lino Lakes, Minn., six bass, 15-6, $389 10th: Levi Schmidt, Caledonia, Minn., six bass, 15-1, $340 Nick Kramersmeier of Johnston, Iowa, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $394, catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 12 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day. With all five events in the division now complete, boater Tyler Fitch of Fall River, Wisconsin, won the Fishing Clash Great Lakes Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 1,337 points and earned the $1,000 prize, while Timothy Wittren of Ontario, Wisconsin, won the Fishing Clash Great Lakes Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 1,336 points and earned the $500 payout. The top 60 boaters and co-anglers in the division based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 3-4 BFL Regional tournament on the Mississippi River in Quad Cities, Illinois. Boaters will fish for a top award of a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard worth $50,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $20,000. The 2025 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 134 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 60 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying tournament winners, will advance to one of 12 BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top three, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. |