Cordes targeted bushes for first victory - Major League Fishing

Cordes targeted bushes for first victory

McCleery wins co-angler title on Rend Lake
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Marion Cordes of Sullivan, Ill., won the May 3 Illini Division event on Rend Lake with a limit weighing 12 pounds, 10 ounces. For his efforts, Cordes earned over $6,300.
May 3, 2014 • MLF • Archives

WHITTINGTON, Ill. – Marion Cordes of Sullivan, Ill., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 10 ounces Saturday to win the first Walmart Bass Fishing League Illini Division tournament of 2014 on Rend Lake. For his victory, Cordes earned $6,359.

“I started out on the south end of the lake and I was catching my fish flipping a watermelon-colored Zoom Z Hog in the bushes,” said Cordes, who earned the first BFL win of his career. “The water temperature started out about 62 degrees and climbed to around 65 degrees by the afternoon. The fish were in bushes. But, you couldn’t just flip to the bush. You had to flip to the center of the bush, and yo-yo it up and down.

“I just ran to my area, put my trolling motor down, and we didn’t leave that area until around 12:30 p.m. The fish were transitioning in to spawn, but there was a cold front during my pre-fish that I think slowed them down.

“The five that I weighed in were the only five keepers that I caught all day. I was fortunate with that,” finished Cordes. “I was surprised I did so well. There are a lot of local guys in the tournament who know this lake like the back of their hands.”

Rounding out the top 10 pros:

2nd: Derek Jenkel, Pinckneyville, Ill., five bass, 10-2, $2,179

3rd: David Young, Mayfield, Ky., five bass, 9-11, $1,452

4th: Neil Arning, Orland Park, Ill., four bass, 9-6, $1,017

5th: Frank Clark, Benton, Ill., five bass, 9-5, $872

6th: Colby Schrumpf, Highland, Ill., five bass, 8-15, $799

7th: Toby Corn, West Frankfort, Ill., four bass, 8-7, $690

7th: Brennon McCord, West Frankfort, Ill., two bass, 8-7, $690

9th: James Wright, Paducah, Ky., three bass, 8-0, $581

10th: Chris Gable, Eddyville, Ky., two bass, 7-14, $509

Complete results can be found here.

McCleery takes co-angler title

Co-angler Scott McCleery of Winchester, Ill., won the May 3 Illini Division event on Rend Lake with three bass weighing 9 pounds, 12 ounces. He walked away with over $2,000 in winnings for his efforts.Scotty McCleery of Winchester, Ill., weighed three bass totaling 9 pounds, 12 ounces Saturday to win $2,059 in the co-angler division.

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers:

2nd: Andy Paschedag, Edwardsville, Ill., four bass, 7-4, $1,030

3rd: Jason Valentine, Tamaroa, Ill., two bass, 6-13, $687

4th: Jacob Collins, Hillsboro, Ill., three bass, 6-11, $480

5th: David Bunton, Iuka, Ill., two bass, 6-8, $412

6th: Dale Renth, Albers, Ill., three bass, 6-0, $378

7th: Jeremy Richardson, Benton, Ill., two bass, 5-3, $343

8th: Ed Flanigan, Ashley, Ill., two bass, 4-15, $309

9th: Mario Rossi, Granite City, Ill., two bass, 4-13, $275

10th: Brandon Spain, Pinckneyville, Ill., two bass, 4-12, $240

Complete co-angler results can be found here.

The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 16-18 Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Ky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.

The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Rayovac FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.

About FLW

FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2014 over the course of 229 tournaments across five tournament circuits, four of which provide an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world. For more information about FLW visit FLWOutdoors.com and look for FLW on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube.