Hoskings wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Smith Mountain Lake

Boater Mike Hoskings of Dumfries, Va., earned $4,476 as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Shenandoah Division event on Smith Mountain Lake. Angler: Mike Hoskings.

April 2, 2005 • MLF • Archives

BEDFORD, Va. – Boater Mike Hoskings of Dumfries earned $4,476 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Shenandoah Division event on Smith Mountain Lake. The tournament was the first of five regular-season Shenandoah Division events and featured 148 boaters vying for the win, which earned Hoskings 200 points in the Boater Division.

Hoskings’ winning catch of five bass weighed 18 pounds. Hoskings was fishing a Carolina rig on primary and secondary points when he caught his bass. He earned an additional $1,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Finishing second was Rick Tilley of Moneta with five bass weighing 17 pounds, 6 ounces that earned him $2,238. Tommy Little of Chester claimed $1,467 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 17 pounds, 4 ounces. Tying for fourth was Robert Grike of Woodbridge and Ed Robtison of Roanoke, each with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 14 ounces worth $1,037.

Larry Lusk of Virginia Beach took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $740 for a 7-pound, 7-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a Carolina rig.

James Chandler of Mclean bested 148 Co-angler Division competitors to earn $2,238 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 15 pounds, 1 ounce that he caught on a spinnerbait.

James Plumb of St. Leonard, Md., and Carl Hunter of Snellville, Ga., tied for second place in the Co-angler Division. Each co-angler caught five bass weighing 14 pounds, 4 ounces worth $924. Finishing in fourth was Keith Ruley of Lexington (five bass, 12 pounds, 10 ounces, $570); and Mitchell Staples of Colonial Beach finished in fifth (four bass, 11 pounds, 4 ounces, $468).

Brian Hite of Glade Hill earned $370 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 7-pound, 1-ounce bass he caught on a bleeding shad.

The Shenandoah Division’s next event will be held May 21 on the Potomac River near Dumfries, followed by an event on Lake Gaston near Bracy June 25. The fourth-qualifying event will be held on the James River near Richmond July 30. The Shenandoah Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 10-11 with a two-day Super Tournament on the Potomac River near Dumfries.

Following the regular season, the Shenandoah 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 Shenandoah 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, Dixie and North Carolina Division 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 visit FLWOutdoors.com.

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.