EverStart Series opens $2.8 million season on Lake Okeechobee

January 2, 2002 • MLF • Archives

OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – The 2002 EverStart Series, known as the pathway to the $5.1 million Wal-Mart FLW Tour, kicks off Jan. 9 with a $210,000 Eastern Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee.

During the four-day tournament, 330 of the nation’s top bass anglers from more than 30 states will compete in two divisions: pro and co-angler. Pros supply the boats, control their movement throughout the tournament, and fish for a top award of more than $50,000 in cash and prizes while co-anglers fish from the back decks for a top award of $6,000 cash.

“The water is back up in Lake Okeechobee, and there is plenty of vegetation this year,” said Jerry Stakely, EverStart Series tournament director. “This should be an excellent tournament with anglers landing plenty of trophy-sized bass.”

EverStart Series anglers will fish for more money than ever before in 2002 thanks to a $300,000 boost to tournament purses that brings the total payout for the 13-event season to more than $2.8 million. More money also brings more opportunity to win, as the top 50 pros and co-anglers in each qualifying tournament will receive checks compared to the top 30 pros and co-anglers last year.

Now in its fifth season, the EverStart Series features three divisions – Eastern, Central and Northern – with four events each plus the $325,000 EverStart Series Championship. The top 50 pros and co-anglers from each division will be invited to the championship for a shot at top awards of more than $60,000 in cash and prizes for pros and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes for co-anglers. The top 10 pros and co-anglers from each division also receive priority entry into the 2003 Wal-Mart FLW Tour where they could win up to $260,000 cash and $40,000 cash, respectively, in a single event. Rankings are based on a points system that awards 200 points for a win, 199 points for second, 198 points for third and so on.

EverStart Series Championship anglers will make their network television debut on PAX TV when the tournament is broadcast to 84 million households as part of the FLW Outdoors series Saturdays at 3 p.m. EST starting January 19. Anglers will also benefit from expanded coverage of EverStart Series tournaments on the new FLW Outdoors Web site and in the new FLW Outdoors magazine, which will be featured in Wal-Mart stores nationwide.

Anglers fishing the season opener Jan. 9-12 will launch from Okee-Tantie marina located at 10430 Highway 78 West in Okeechobee. Weigh-ins for the first three days of competition will also be held at the marina starting at 3 p.m. each day. The final weigh-in Saturday, Jan. 12, will be held at the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 2101 South Parrott Ave. in Okeechobee starting at 4 p.m.

One hundred and sixty-five pros pros and 165 co-anglers will compete for two days in the opening round after which the field will be reduced to the top 20 pros and top 20 co-anglers. Weights from the opening round are cleared and anglers start the semifinal round from zero. Following the one-day semifinal round, the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers advance to the final round. These anglers again start from zero, and the winners are determined by the weight of their final day’s catch.

Additional EverStart Series Eastern Division tournaments are Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Ala., March 20-23; Santee Cooper Lakes in Manning, S.C., April 10-13; and Guntersville Lake in Guntersville, Ala., June 5-8. The EverStart Series Championship will be held on Lake Martin in Alexander City, Ala., Nov. 6-9. Pro entry fees are $650, and co-angler entry fees are $250.

Contingency awards available at each EverStart Series tournament are the GARMIN Grand Giveaway and the Ranger Cup. GARMIN will award $1,000 to the winning pro at each event if his boat was equipped with a fixed-mount GARMIN Fishfinder or combination GPS/Sounder. For details, visit garmin.com. For details on the Ranger Cup, visit rangerboats.com.

Sponsors of the 2002 EverStart Series are Wal-Mart, ALPO Pet Foods, BFGoodrich Tires, Castrol, Chevy Trucks, Coleman, Conseco, Energizer, EverStart Batteries, Evinrude, Faded Glory, Frito-Lay, Fujifilm, GARMIN, Kellogg’s, Land O’Lakes, Minn Kota, Pepsi, Poulan, Ranger Boats, Shop-Vac, Snickers, Stanley Works, US Bank, Weed Eater and Yamaha Outboards. Associate sponsors are Abu Garcia, Berkley, Eagle Claw, Laker, Plano and Solar Bat.

EverStart Batteries, the best selling battery in the world, are marketed exclusively through Wal-Mart stores.

FLW Outdoors is the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing tournaments. The organization operates 170 tournaments through the EverStart Series, Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit and Ranger M1. FLW Outdoors will award anglers up to $22 million in 2002.