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Ohio River Smithland Pool results
(May 4, 2008) Kerry Betz and B.J. Betz won the Bass World Sports tournament out of Lusk Creek with a five-bass limit weighing 12.32 pounds. Greg Marlow had the 4.75-pound big bass. Results.

Pool 13 stays strong with big river bass
(May 3 and 4, 2008) Mississippi River Pool 13 near Savanna has been busy staking its claim as one of the premier pools for big bags early in 2008. Several tournaments have been won with over 20 pounds for five fish. Mark Dempsey and Danny Basham won the Bass World Sports event Saturday as the river fell below flood stage. They weighed a nice limit at 19.87 pounds including the 6.05-pound big bass. Results. On Sunday, Bass World Sports moved a pool north to Dubuque. James Friedman and Jim Friedman Jr. won with 14.67 pounds. Pool 12 results.

McGarry takes top honors at BFL in LaCrosse
(May 3, 2008) Boater Dan McGarry won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division tournament on the Mississippi River Pools 7, 8, and 9 Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 19 pounds, 10 ounces. McGarry caught his bass fishing stumps with a jig.
James Klass had the 5-pound, 5-ounce big bass. Results.

Storms push Upper Miss higher
(April 25, 2008) Storms rolled through the Upper Mississippi Valley today, with most pools expected to crest over flood stage by the time this weekend is over. Water levels may impact tournaments, so stay up to date.

High water affecting events
(April 15, 2008) High water on the Arkansas and Ohio Rivers have forced some events to be rescheduled. The Mississippi is on the rise with Pools from the Quad Cities south just over flood stage. Pools to the north are not expected to go over flood stage as of today.

CastingDeck.com expands classifieds service
(April 14, 2008) CastingDeck Free Fishing Classifieds launched in February as a boat listing site but has since added categories for rods, reels, lures, terminal tackle, and accessories. Big river bassers looking for a boat should give the site a look -- there are over 140 used bass boats for sale on the site.

Big bags on the Arkansas
(March 15 and 16, 2008) Terry Hopson and Teddy Bogard had a good weekend to say the least, winning the Angler's Choice Southern Division event at Pendleton Bridge on the Arkansas River on the 15th and then again on the 16th for the Eastern Division tournament. They weighed a 5-fish limit weighing 24.35 pounds on Saturday, then did even better on Sunday with an impressive 27.38 pounds including an 8.59-pound toad for big bass. Complete results.

Bass tournaments kick off on the Arkansas River
(February 23, 2008) Ken Adamson won the White River Bassmasters tournament on the Arkansas River out of Pendleton with an impressive 5-fish limit weighing 22 pounds. Second place went to Carl Smith with an 18.1-pound limit including the 6.56-pound big bass. Complete Pendleton tournament results.

New USFWS regs in 2008 within the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife Refuge
Don't forget that some new regulations are in effect on Pools 4-14 in 2008 that will impact Mississippi River bass fishing. included are some new slow/no-wake areas and speed/distance regulation areas. The most controversial and possibly most difficult to abide by may be the speed/distance regulation for Spring Lake on Pool 13. The regulation is posted as “Slow, 5 mph When Boats Present” and marked on maps as “Speed/Distance Regulation.” The reg requires watercraft operators to reduce the speed of their watercraft to less than 5 mph when within 100 feet of another watercraft that is anchored or underway at 5 mph or less. With Spring Lake's shallow water and boat paths narrowed by vegetation in summer, bass fishermen here historically tolerate other boats passing them at close range on plane due to the inability for everybody to get back up once coming off plane. It will be interesting to see how this regulation works out. You can review all changes on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service site.

New free fishing boat/motor/accessory classified ad site launches

(January 31, 2008) A new site for buying and selling fishing boats launched today. CastingDeck.com focuses only on fishing boats, motors, and accessories. Listing items is free.

2008 Tournament Schedules Updated
(January 23, 2008) Event listings for Upper Mississippi, Ohio, and Arkansas River tournaments have been updated. If you would don't see your event and would like it added, please contact us.

Sluyter wins BFL Regional on Mississippi
(October 6, 2007) Boater Dirk Sluyter won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the Mississippi River in Fort Madison, Iowa. The top 40 boaters and the top 40 co-anglers from the Great Lakes, Illini, Michigan and Ozark divisions competed in the three-day event. Sluyter’s winning three-day catch of 15 bass weighed 50 pounds, 5 ounces. Sluyter caught his winning bass by throwing a frog and a June-bug Senko near lily pads. “I only brought one frog with me to the tournament,” Sluyter said. “After the first day, I had to run to Wal-Mart to get more, and I could only find white frogs. That night I took a black magic marker and colored the frogs black. By the next day the frogs had turned purple. This ended up being my number one bait and helped me win the tournament.” Results.

Smallies are surprise winners at ABA Midwest Regional
(September 28 and 29, 2007) Fishing was ultra-tough on Mississippi River pools 14-18 for the American Bass Anglers Midwest Regional. In fact, it only took a little over 5 pounds for two days to make the top 25 out of 109 anglers. Larry Coleman won the event with 17.5 pounds of smallmouth from Pool 15. Smallmouth numbers have been on the rise in recent years, but nobody predicted a tournament could be won on these pools with them. Coleman fished a rock pile with crankbaits and finesse worms for the win. Results.

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