F.O.C.A.S. returned to Illinois for its seventh event of the season and went to the largest man made lake in the state, Carlyle Reservoir. This Corp of Engineers facility was completed in 1967 and covers 26,000 acres of water. It is 15 miles long and 3 ½ miles wide. At times it can be the toughest spot in the world to find your self on tournament day and at other times it can produce as well as any other lake in the Midwest. This event found Carlyle to be in one of its friendlier moods.

Water levels had been fluctuating slightly but over all the lake levels were a bit high for the normal seasonal conditions at around the 446 foot mark. Weather had been a bit tough the week before and even at the beginning of the week temperatures in the 90’s for highs were causing afternoon thunderstorms and at times heavy rains. Those rains did create some more stained water conditions in the upper end of the lake. The temperatures however did fall the day before the event and on the day 9of the tournament the highs only were in the upper 80’s making fishing a little bit more comfortable for the participants.

More importantly the fish seemed to be biting fairly well. 30 of the 45 boats brought fish to the scales. There were seven limits brought up and a total of 88 fish weighed in at a total weight of 203.03 pounds. That is about a 2.3 pound average per fish which is certainly a respectable result for an impoundment which many like to refer to as being tough. Many different baits produced fish but it sounded like spinner baits, crank baits, and plastics dominated the event. One of the top teams did report a topwater water bite as well.

1ST PLACE TEAM AND 2ND PLACE BIG BASS:
BOB SWISHER AND MELODY SWISHER

Out performing a couple of local well known Carlyle regulars were the Husband and Wife duo of Bob Swisher and Melody Swisher. Well known participants in the F.O.C.A.S. events they were able to pull off the victory utilizing crank baits and tube baits fishing the main lake rather than going back into the arms and tributaries. They had 9 keepers across the day and maintained a bite over the course of the event. They lost 4 good keepers as well which could have significantly helped their weight. Their 5 fish stringer topped the field at 15.05 pounds and was anchored with the 2nd Big Bass of the day which went 3.50 pounds. For 1st Place they earned $1368.00 and an additional $180 for 2nd Place Big Bass.

2ND PLACE TEAM AND B&R OUTLAW BIG BASS:
DON McFETRIDGE AND DENNIS McFETRIDGE

In 2nd Place was a well known pair of anglers from Missouri. Don McFetridge of St Charles, MO and Dennis McFetridge of St. Louis, MO have appeared numerous times in events across the river and said the really like Carlyle and hoped to return more often. They reported catching 11 keepers across the day. They had been somewhat concerned because they had pre fished on Thursday when the lake had dropped a little and had only been able to catch four keepers after a long day on the water. They went out today however and had no trouble with keepers but said they just could not find that “bigger bite”. With a five fish limit spinning the dial at 14.84 pounds they caught them big enough. They were also still able to catch the B&R OUTLAW RODS Big Bass for the day which went to the scales at 3.71 pounds. They caught it on a spinner bait at around 8:00 AM on the main lake. They used crank baits, Brush Hogs, and spinner baits and caught their fish all over the lake. They list as their sponsors Nameoki Village Marine, Ranger Boats, Tri State Trolling Motors, and Bass World Sports. 2nd Place returned them a check for $1026.00 and for the B&R OUTLAW RODS Big Bass a B&R Outlaw Rod and $270.00.

3RD PLACE TEAM: KEVIN AND RANDY TUNE

In 3rd place with another five fish limit were Randy and Kevin Tune of Breese, IL. They worked weeds and wood cover to bring in their 13.25 pound stringer. They caught their fish on jigs, salt craws, and spinner baits. They caught fish until about 11:00 and then things slowed down for them. They had 6 keepers across the day and earned a check for $513.00 for their efforts.

The following is the list of those who also cashed checks in the event.

4TH PLACE TEAM:
WILLLIAMS AND MAHLANDT
5 FISH 13.18 LBS $342.00

5TH PLACE TEAM:
FARLEY AND ADAIR
5 FISH 12.65 LBS $171.00