Vinson wins BFL event on Lake Martin

Boater Greg Vinson of Wetumpka, Ala., earned $5,500 as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Dixie Division event on Lake Martin. Angler: Greg Vinson.

February 12, 2005 • MLF • Archives

ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. – Boater Greg Vinson of Wetumpka earned $5,500 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Dixie Division event on Lake Martin. The tournament was the first of five regular-season Dixie Division events and featured a full field of 200 boaters vying for the win, which earned Vinson 200 points in the Boater Division.

Vinson’s winning catch of five bass weighed 15 pounds, 2 ounces. Vinson was fishing around brush in 10-12 feet of water on the south end of the lake with a homemade jig.

Finishing second was Randy Williams of Hogansville, Ga., with five bass weighing 11 pounds, 6 ounces that earned him $2,750. Todd Webb of Roanoke claimed $1,800 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 10 pounds, 10 ounces. In fourth was Mark McCaig of Oxford with five bass weighing 10 pounds, 5 ounces worth $1,400, and finishing fifth and earning $1,150 was Glenn Carter of Rockwood, Tenn., with five bass weighing 10 pounds, 1 ounce.

Mike Keel of Auburn took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $1,000 for a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a jig.

McCaig was the highest finishing Ranger Cup participant and earned $500 plus $250 for the Powered by Yamaha award.

Jimmy Davis of Eclectic won the Co-angler Division to earn $2,750, thanks to five bass weighing 8 pounds, 10 ounces that he caught on a Shaky Head.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jim Landers of Alexander City (five bass, 8 pounds, 5 ounces, $1,375); Gerrit Goins of Cleveland, Tenn. (five bass, 7 pounds, 10 ounces, $900); Dennis Hudson of Fortson, Ga. and Jeff Howe of Canton, Ga., tied for fourth with three bass and five bass weighing 7 pounds, 5 ounces, respectively. Both anglers earned $637.

Jason Shockley of Jackson Gap earned $500 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 4-pound, 15-ounce bass he caught on a Baby Net bait.

The Dixie Division’s next event will be held March 19 on Lay Lake near Clanton followed by an event on West Point Lake near Lanett April 23. The next event will be on Lake Eufaula near Eufaula June 4. The Dixie Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 24-25 with a two-day Super Tournament on Logan Martin Lake near Pell City.

Following the regular season, the Dixie Division boater with the most points will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion. The co-angler amassing the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion in the Co-angler Division.

Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points going to the winner, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on except for Super Tournaments, which award 300 points to the winner, 299 for second, 298 for third, and so on. The top 40 Dixie Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Clarks Hill Lake Regional near Augusta, Ga., Oct. 11-15 where they will compete against Choo Choo, North Carolina, and Shenandoah anglers for one of six slots in the 2006 All-American. With a total purse of $1 million and a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing.

The $8.4 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired, with boaters supplying the boat and fishing against other boaters and co-anglers fishing from the back deck against other co-anglers. For more information or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or browse this Web site.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League and seven other national tournament circuits offering a combined $30 million in awards through 214 events in 2005. The 27-year-old organization is the purveyor of America’s largest and most prestigious fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, EverStart Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as title sponsor of the FLW Tour in 1997 and today is the title sponsor of all FLW Outdoors events. For more information on Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.