Tournament Results

Ozarks Bass Fishing

Mozingo Lake 12th Tournament Results

Tournament Date: Aug 21, 2010

The Leavenworth Bass Club held its' 12th tournament of the 2010 season at Mozingo Lake near Maryville, Mo on Saturday, 21 August, launching from the City Ramp at 6:00 A.M. and weighing in at 2:00 P.M.. With only 2 events remaining in the 2010 season, the Angler of the Year standings are taking shape. Bob Jorgensen wrapped up the Angler of the Year honors back in July with six top 2 finishes in the first 10 tournaments. The reigning 2009 Angler of the Year, Bob Greene was in a solid 2nd place going into the Mozingo event and wrapped up his 2nd place 2010 AOY honors with his strong performance on Saturday. However, with one tournament remaining in the 2010 season places 3-10 are separated by only 24.5 points, so several anglers are in a position to make a move in the final standings based on their performance in the last tournament of the 2010 season. Additionally, the Rookie of the year race is in full swing, with three anglers in the club's top ten: Garret Cates leads his father Ray by only 10 points.

During the months of July and August, Missouri state fishing regulations require anglers to make a keep or release decision as soon as the bass is brought to the boat. Unlike other times of the year when culling (replacing smaller fish with larger ones) during the day is allowed. The no-cull rule is in place to reduce the stress on the fish during the midsummer heat. That regulation often plays a significant role in the final standing during the summer events, adding one more element to the angler's decision making during the day.

Saturday began somewhat cooler than most August days, with temps in the high 60's and fog. As the morning progressed the fog lifted around 7:30 turning into a partly cloudy day with wind out of the NNW at 10-15 mph. Overall a very pleasant late August day. All 9 boats and 16 of the 18 members of the Leavenworth Bass Club that fished the tournament weighed in fish. The club weighed in and released 143.38 lbs of bass a 7.97 lb per angler average.

Taking first place honors was the reigning LBC Angler of the Year Bob Greene, with a 15.03 lb Limit. Bob's win locked up the 2nd place position in the 2010 LBC Angler of the Year points race. Bob reported catching a lot of fish early on top water, but the bigger fish were still around the deeper wood where he had located them the week prior. Bob used a Whopper Baits Whipping Stick in Watermelon Red Flake to catch his better fish. Bob would like to acknowledge his sponsors who provide him with the opportunity to pursue his passion of competitive tournament angling. Wired2fish, Gemini Sport Marketing, Fitzwater Custom Lures, Whopper Baits , Fish Blaster Baits , Mikes Pro Bass Gear, Iguana Grafix , R&H Marine , Transducer Armor , and Gandy Custom Tackle.

Taking 2nd place was Ray Cates with a five fish limit that weighed in at 14.7 lbs. Ray reported catching all of his fish off the main lake grass from both points and pockets on a Yum Dinger and Senko. Ray's 2nd place finish moved him into 7th place in the AOY race and kept him within striking distance of the 2010 Rookie of the Year title, a mere 10 points behind his son Garret. Ray fished from the backseat of Bill Gevedon's boat.

Taking 3rd place was Jim Wyatt, who weighed in four fish that went 14.55 lbs. Jim's bag was anchored by the largest bass of the 2010 season a 6.98lb monster. Jim caught 2 of his fish on the outside edge of the main lake grass with one falling for a buzzbait and one coming on a 12" worm. His third keeper came from a deep hole on the upper end of the lake on a senko. His big bass came out of the thick standing timber along the old creek channel on the upper end of the lake and fell for a red shad senko. Jim reported that all of his bites were extremely light and you had to see the line jump or feel just a little pressure on it when you raised it up.

Taking 4th place was Larry Stoafer with four fish that weighed 12.51lbs. Larry's bag was anchored by a 4.91 lb beauty. Larry reported bad keep or release decisions may have cost him the tournament win. Larry released 6 keepers on the day that where between 15 and 16 inches. A strong early morning bite had him convinced that he would find 5 quality keepers on the day but after 10 AM the bite cooled and Larry only boated 2 additional keepers in the last half of the day. Larry's pattern focused on the outside edge of the main lake grass beds where he pitched a weightless Texas rigged 7inch yum dinger and a Texas rigged 10inch Berkley Powerbait worm into 5-8ft of water. Larry caught his largest bass of the day around 12 PM on the Yum dinger. Larry would like to thank his sponsors for allowing him to pursue his passion of competitive bass fishing: Secret Weapon Lures, 7-24 Outdoors, Crooked Creek Tackle, Blackwater International Inc., Fish Harder Companies, Tru Tungsten, Picasso, and Youvella USA.

Taking 5th place was the LBC's youngest member, Garrett Cates, with a five fish limit that weighed 11.97 lbs. Garrett caught his limit from the back seat of Larry's boat fishing the main Lake grass. Garrett caught one keeper on a top-water frog early and 4 keepers on a Texas rigged Powerbait 10in worm along the outside edge of the main lake grass. Garrett's 5th place finish moved him up to 3rd place in the AOY race and 1st place for the Rookie of the Year honors where he clings to a 10 point advantage over his father Ray.

Taking the non-boater big bass honors on the day was John Carroll with a nice 4.69 lb bass.

The Leavenworth Bass Club's next tournament is on 12 September at Pomme de Terre Lake. As you can see, there are a lot of opportunities to catch fish with The Leavenworth Bass Club. The LBC welcomes all skill levels from those who are ready to challenge their bass catching skills against some of the best local anglers in the area or those who are just looking to improve their success rates and angling skills and want to learn from a bunch of folks who truly love the sport. Check out the Leavenworth Bass Club's website at www.theleavenworthbassclub.org if you are looking for a great local bass club and are ready to meet a great group of guys and gals who love to fish.