FSN to air Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour events

World’s top walleye anglers to appear in select markets

MINNEAPOLIS – Just weeks ago, the 2005 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship ended in spectacular fashion with Ranger pro Robert Lampman of DeSoto, Wis., out-dueling Shannon Kehl of Menoken, N.D, to win $125,000 – the largest award in professional walleye fishing. Now walleye fans will have an opportunity to relive this exhilarating moment and many others from the 2005 season.

FSN will air coverage of each of the four qualifying events from the 2005 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour season as well as the 2005 FLW Walleye Tour Championship. Each of the four qualifying events will be featured in 30 minute shows, and the championship will include a full hour of coverage.

The season started with a trip to Bull Shoals, a Southern reservoir where the walleyes were in transition due to an unseasonably cold spring. Nick Johnson of Elmwood, Wis., who earned last year’s FLW Walleye Tour Championship title, prevailed through the tough bite and became the first angler to win back-to-back FLW Walleye Tour events.

The top walleye anglers in the world then made their way north to Lake Erie, where big fish and vast open water combined to make a memorable tournament. Pro Dean Arnoldussen of Appleton, Wis., caught big fish throughout the tournament yet still managed to save his best for last and staved off an intense push from Russell McDonald of Dryden, Ontario, by boating five walleyes that weighed 29 pounds, 10 ounces. McDonald held the lead until Arnoldussen reached for his last fish, a 9-pound, 5-ounce giant.

The third event of the season was a catchfest at Green Bay, a tournament where Patrick Neu of Forestville, Wis., became the latest perennial bridesmaid to claim his first victory in FLW Outdoors competition. In winning the FLW Walleye Tour event on Green Bay, Neu set the record for the largest four-day total weight in FLW Walleye Tour history and earned an $87,000 paycheck with a total catch of 111 pounds, 8 ounces.

The final regular-season event on Devils Lake was typical reservoir fishing as anglers were catching walleyes any way they wanted. That abruptly changed on day four as 30 mph winds moved in and pushed many anglers off their spots. While the rest of the field was grounded by the blustery weather, Dustin Kjelden of Brookings, S.D., thrived on the final day with a five-walleye limit of 25 pounds, 4 ounces, moving up from seventh place to first. Kjelden took home $100,000 for the victory, his first on the FLW Walleye Tour.

For a complete TV schedule, click here. Check local listings for show times and channels in your area.

FSN reaches more than 78 million homes through its network of 20 regional sports channels. FSN, based in Los Angeles, serves as the cable-TV home to 60 of the 81 MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States and produces over 4,500 live events each year. In addition to home-team games, FSN telecasts a wide variety of national sports events and programming, including the “Best Damn Sports Show Period” and “Beyond the Glory.” For the latest up-to-the-minute sports news and opinions, visit the FOX Sports/FSN Web site at FoxSports.com.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers 10 national tournament circuits offering more than $35 million in awards through 235 events in 2006. The 27-year-old organization is the purveyor of America’s largest and most prestigious fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren 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, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

Wal-Mart and more than 40 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 about FLW Outdoors and its bass, walleye, redfish and kingfish tournament programs, browse this Web site.