Collins wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Lake Eufaula
EUFAULA, Okla. – Boater Mike Collins of Prague, Okla., earned $3,963 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Okie Division event on Lake Eufaula. The tournament was the third of five regular-season South Carolina Division events and earned Collins 200 points in the Boater Division.
Collins’ winning catch of five bass weighed 14 pounds. He was throwing a Carolina-rigged Zoom Baby Brush Hog and on deep, rocky, main lake points. Collins also took home an additional $1,000 for being the highest-placing Ranger Cup participant.
Rounding out the top five boaters are Charles Lane of Cushing, Okla. (five bass, 13 pounds, 15 ounces, $1,981); Todd R. Lee of Grove, Okla. (five bass, 13 pounds, 12 ounces, $1,322); Gabe Spencer of Grove, Okla. (five bass, 13 pounds, 10 ounces, $925); and Steven Dowty of Claremore, Okla. (five bass, 13 pounds, 9 ounces, $793).
Scott Phillips took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning him $535 for a 5-pound, 6-ounce bass.
Bill Sage of Tulsa, Okla., won the Co-angler Division to earn $1,981 thanks to five bass weighing 15 pounds, 5 ounces.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Derek Holmes of Broken Arrow, Okla. (four bass, 13 pounds, 10 ounces, $991); Pine Drewyor of Tulsa, Okla., (five bass, 12 pounds, 4 ounce, $662) Artie Edwards of Stillwater, Okla. (four bass, 10 pounds, 8 ounces, $462); and Billy Garrett of Oklahoma City, Okla. (three bass, 9 pounds, 7 ounces, $396).
Holmes also earned $267 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 5-pound, 1-ounce bass.
The Okie Division’s next event will be held June 17 on the Arkansas River near Muskogee, Okla., for the divisions fourth event followed by their two-day Super Tournament held on Grand Lake near Grove, Okla. Sept. 9-10.
Following the regular season, the boater with the most points, who advances farthest in the Wal-Mart BFL All-American, will earn $10,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion. The co-angler points champion who advances farthest will earn $5,000 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 Okie Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Wright Patman Regional Championship near Texarkana, Texas, Oct. 19-21 where they will compete against Arkie, Cowboy and Louisiana division anglers for one of six slots in the 2007 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 $8.8 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 FLWOutdoors.com.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, as well as the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Stratos Owners’ 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. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $36.9 million through 241 events in 2006.
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.