64 lucky anglers were treated to glorious autumn conditions at Lake Wivenhoe for Round 17 of the BASS Electric Series.

The ‘Hoe has become a favourite stop-over for many competitors due to the quality of the bass on offer and this weekend proved to be no exception with 17 of the top 20 anglers weighing bags in excess of 3kg.

Outclassing the quality field was Mt Tamborine angler Mike Weger whose impressive 4.9kg haul, anchored by his 2.75kg Big Bass, easily eclipsed the ever consistent Ian Galloway’s 4.6kg limit.

When asked how he went about claiming his second BASS Electric victory, Weger admitted to struggling for the first three hours.

“I've been fishing this lake a fair bit lately and I knew there were active fish in the area so I just kept moving around hoping to find them,” Weger said.

And find them he did.

Fishing a 23ft deep flat in the main basin wide of Billies Bay, Mike’s sounder blacked out with about half an hour of fishing time remaining. Using a Tennessee Shad coloured Slider on a 1/2oz Gamakatsu jighead Weger made long casts and used a relatively fast retrieve to induce strikes from the schooling fish.

“When I used a slow retrieve the fish just tapped at the lure but as soon as I increased the speed they just went ballistic and absolutely smashed it,” he said.

Weger delivered his plastic with a 7ft Strudwick Softbodz rod matched with a Daiwa Laguna 2000 reel spooled with 8lb Fireline and a 12lb Nitlon leader.

Fishing just a short distance away was eventual runner up Ian Gallaway who also fished long casts and a quick retrieve. Gallaway’s lure choice varied slightly from Weger in that he opted for a 3” Atomic Fat Grub in pumpkinseed rigged on a 3/8oz Nitro jighead to lure one of his keepers. His second was taken on a red and black Nitro spinnerbait. Ian used Pflueger rods matched with Pflueger Medalist spin and baitcast reels to deliver his offerings. - Baden and Jo Sparrow