Bosshard wins Wal-Mart BFL Great Lakes Division opener - Major League Fishing

Bosshard wins Wal-Mart BFL Great Lakes Division opener

Image for Bosshard wins Wal-Mart BFL Great Lakes Division opener
Rick Bosshard of Sussex, Wis., topped 120 Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League competitors Saturday on the Mississippi River with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 6 ounces. The catch earned him $3,447 and 200 points in the Boater Division.
May 4, 2002 • MLF • Archives

CLINTON, Iowa. – Rick Bosshard of Sussex, Wis., topped 120 Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League competitors Saturday on the Mississippi River with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 6 ounces. The catch earned him $3,447 and 200 points in the Boater Division.

Bosshard’s catch topped second-place boater Rod Brady of Greenville, Wis., by 7 ounces. Brady finished the one-day tournament with a five-bass catch weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces worth $1,723.

Brandon Krogh of Fond du Lac, Wis. (five bass, 15 pounds, $1,034); Mike Feldermann of Galena, Ill. (five bass, 12 pounds, 11 ounces, $827); and Mike Barrett of Freeport, Ill., (five bass, 12 pounds, 8 ounces, $689) rounded out the top five boaters.

Brady earned boater big bass honors and $600 with a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass.

Steve Simer of Pardeeville, Wis., claimed first place and $1,723 in the 120-competitor Co-angler Division with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 10 ounces.Steve Simer of Pardeeville, Wis., claimed first place and $1,723 in the 120-competitor Co-angler Division with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 10 ounces. He surpassed second-place co-angler Mark Foster of Mapleton, Ill., by 4 pounds, 14 ounces. Foster finished with a three-bass catch weighing 9 pounds, 12 ounces worth $862.

James Haumann of Romeoville, Ill. (three bass, 8 pounds, 2 ounces, $517); Phillip Hill of Racine, Wis. (three bass, 7 pounds, 3 ounces, $414); and John Duwel of Cincinnati (three bass, 6 pounds, 15 ounces, $379) rounded out the top five co-anglers.

Foster and Frank Nester of Mount Carroll, Ill., tied for big bass honors in the Co-angler Division. Each angler caught a 4-pound, 3-ounce bass worth $150.

The Wal-Mart BFL will return to the Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien, Wis., June 22 for the second of five Great Lakes Division events. The boater with the most points after the division’s season finale, a two-day Super Tournament Sept. 14-15 on the Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien, will be declared the Yamaha “Be the Best” Points Leader and awarded $1,000. The co-angler amassing the most points by the end of the season will receive $500.

The top 30 Great Lakes Division boaters and co-anglers will advance to regional competition presented by Yamaha Oct. 15-19 on Kentucky Lake near Gilbertsville, Ky., where they will go up against top competitors from the Hoosier, Illini and Michigan divisions for a shot at qualifying for the Wal-Mart BFL All-American – one of the most lucrative post-season tournaments in competitive angling.

2002 BFL awards could reach $7 million based on full fields.