Staff
Blood is thicker than water and it fishes better, too.
It was a family moment to remember for the father-son team of Travis and Jace Peterson of Bemidji, Minn., as the pair combined to win the 2015 International Falls Bass Championship and first-place money of $10,000 with a two-day total of 29.60 pounds.
The tandem led the 58-team field wire-to-wire, holding down first place after Day 1 with a mark of 16.37 and then coming up with a Day 2 mark of 13.23 that left them one pound and one ounce heavier than runners-up Reid Norine of White Bear Lake, Minn., and teammate David Sicheneder (Stacy, Minn.), who ended up with 28.59.
International Falls anglers Tom Biondich and Justin Mostad were third (28.54), while Rick Jansen (Hibbing, Minn.) and Dan Thorstad (Ray, Minn.) placed fourth (27.76).
The Falls team of Tony Holenko and Larry Foss rounded out the top five (27.02).
Gord Watson and Darrin Ward of Fort Frances were the top Canadians in the field, shaking off a rough 8.75 mark on Day 1 with the top bag of Day 2 with 17.83 to catapult from 35th place to seventh with a combined weight of 26.58.
Defending champions Bill Godin of Devlin and teammate Dave Lindsey from Kenora couldn’t find the magic touch for a second straight year, settling for 16th place with a total of 22.43.
