Wilson tops leaderboard at BFL event on Kentucky, Barkley lakes

KUTTAWA, Ky. – Boater Tony Wilson of Barbourville earned $5,114 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League LBL Division event on Kentucky and Barkley lakes. The tournament was the third of five regular-season LBL Division events and featured 180 boaters vying for the win, which earned Wilson 200 points in the Boater Division.

Wilson’s winning catch of five bass weighed 19 pounds, 11 ounces. He was flipping a black and blue jig when he caught his bass.

Wilson earned an additional $2,000 as winner of the Garmin Grand and Bombardier contingency awards and another $1,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Finishing second was Daniel York of Benton with five bass weighing 18 pounds that earned him $2,557. Jeff Evans of Benton claimed $1,673 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 16 pounds, 6 ounces. In fourth was Tim Rhoades of Leitchfield with five bass weighing 15 pounds, 14 ounces worth $1,302, and finishing fifth and earning $1,069 was Scott Patton of Mt. Washington with five bass weighing 15 pounds, 10 ounces.

York took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $900 for a 5-pound, 15-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a brush hog.

Robert Maxey of Fishers, Ind., earned $2,514 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 16 pounds, 11 ounces that he caught on a Carolina rig. Maxey earned an additional $435 as winner of the co-angler big-bass award, thanks to a 6-pound, 6-ounce bass.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Chuck Rounds of Benton (five bass, 16 pounds, 7 ounces, $1,257); Micah Cunningham of Mt. Washington (four bass, 15 pounds, 12 ounces, $820); Craig Ward of Beaver Creek, Ohio (three bass, 12 pounds, $640); and Raymond Johnson of Goodlettsville, Tenn. (four bass, 10 pounds, 15 ounces, $526).

The LBL Division’s next event will be held June 25 on Kentucky/Barkley Lakes near Hardin. The LBL Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 24-25 with a two-day Super Tournament on Kentucky/Barkley Lakes near Kuttawa.

Following the regular season, the LBL 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 LBL Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Lake Cherokee Regional near Morristown, Tenn., Oct. 4-8 where they will compete against Buckeye, Illini, and Piedmont 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 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.