Mark Rizk wins at Lake Mead for second WON BASS victory

LAS VEGAS, NV. - Mark Rizk of Redding, CA, captured his second victory on the WON BASS Miller High Life Tour by winning the Lake Mead Invitational last weekend over a field of 270 anglers.

The victory was worth over $38,275 to Rizk, including a Ranger 518VX boat and trailer, Mercury OptiMax outboard, Lowrance electronics and MotorGuide trolling motor. The touring pro angler from Northern California defied the wind and rain which hit Lake Mead over the weekend and posted scores of 13.02 and 10.79 pounds on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. His total of 23.81 pounds gave him a 1.38-pound over 18-year-old Kevin Martin of El Cajon, CA, who picked up $6,750 for 22.43 pounds. Third place went to veteran Pro Mike Folkestad of Yorba Linda, CA, who had 22.04 pounds and winnings of $5,500. He also was the highest finishing Ranger boat owner to earn valuable points in the Ranger Cup race.

"I hadn't really thought I would do well in this tournament. In fact, I entered just last week after spending a week here fishing the B.A.S.S. tournament, where fishing was really tough. I left my boat here and headed back to Redding and came back this week to pick it up and head for another tournament in Alabama, but decided to fish this tournament just for fun," said Rizk.
"Because of the weather conditions Rizk decided not to battle rough waters to fish the upper reaches of the Overton Arm, instead staying close to the marina and fishing Callville Bay and Vegas Wash.

Once again, the drop-shot method produced the catches for the top three anglers. Rizk used 4-inch Assalt "Saltshaker" worms and Magic Worms 2 3/4-inch tube jigs. Martin used SR plastics on the drop-shot and caught his fish in Vegas Wash. Folkestad also fished the lower basin of the huge lake and caught his fish the Roboworm "Folkestad Special" purple plastic worms.

Jenario (Jay) Porter of Pomona, CA, won a whopping $4,800 in the AAA division. It was his first Pro/Am tournament ever, but he drew Mark Rizk for 13.02 pounds on Saturday then added 12.55 pounds on Sunday with Gary Martlage of Scottsdale, AZ - and ended up with a combined total of 25.57 pounds.

Despite the dropping water level at Lake Mead, plus wind on Saturday and rain on Sunday morning, the big field of anglers posted good results with 685 fish weighed in, including a 5.41 pounder by Joe Ochoa of Enoch, UT, winning him $1,500 in the Miller High Life Daily Double on Sunday. Carissa Massenzo of Ontario, CA, fishing her first WON BASS tournament, received $500 for second place that day at 5.25 pounds. Saturday's big bass, worth $1,500 to Robert Nicholson of Grand Terrace, CA, was a 3.92 pounder, while Tom Lowery of San Diego got $500 for a 3.68 pounder. All four of the big fish prizes were won by the AAA anglers for the first time on the Tour.

The next tournament on the Miller High Life Tour will be on the California Delta out of Big Break Marina, April 13-14 followed by Clear Lake out of Konocti Harbor Resort on May 4-5. Those wishing to enter those events should get their entries in early as fishing on both bodies of water are expected to reach record breaking proportions.