BENTON, Ky. – FLW Outdoors announced Wednesday its 2007 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League schedule with more lucrative awards in every tournament and a total purse of $552,950 over 10 events held on some of the nation’s best walleye fisheries.
Boaters fishing the FLW Walleye League will now compete for top awards of $7,500 in every qualifying tournament, and co-anglers will compete for as much as $3,750. These awards, based on a field of 100 boats, include $7,000 cash plus a $500 contingency bonus from Ranger or G3 for boaters and $3,500 cash plus a $250 contingency bonus for co-anglers. Payouts extend through 20th place in each qualifier.
The FLW Walleye League features three one-day qualifying tournaments in the Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin divisions. After three qualifiers are complete, the top 35 boaters and 35 co-anglers from each division will advance to the $116,900 no-entry-fee Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League Finals where the winning boater will receive a $47,500 Ranger 621 powered by Evinrude or Yamaha. The winning co-angler will receive a $27,000 G3 V185F powered by Yamaha.
The boater and co-angler points champions from each division will also advance to the $675,850 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship where they can win as much as $150,000 and $22,000, respectively.
FLW Walleye League qualifiers are one-day, $48,450 events held on Saturdays. The FLW Walleye League Finals is a three-day event with the full field competing on days one and two and the top 10 teams advancing to day three. The winner is determined by the cumulative weight from all three days.
“Our company was founded on providing affordable, close-to-home weekend tournaments,” said Charlie Evans, president and CEO of FLW Outdoors. “These grass-roots anglers are the heart and soul of FLW Outdoors, and we take great pride in providing them with the best possible tournament options as well as a clear pathway for advancement to competitive fishing’s highest levels.”
The top 10 boaters and 10 co-anglers from each FLW Walleye League division in 2007 will have the option to advance to the 2008 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour.
Competition in the Michigan Division begins March 31 on the Detroit River in Trenton, Mich., followed by a May 19 tournament on Lake Erie in Monroe, Mich., and a June 30 tournament on Saginaw Bay in Bay City, Mich.
Teams fishing the Wisconsin Division will take to the water April 21 for a tournament on Petenwell Lake in Monroe Center, Wis., followed by a June 2 tournament on the Wolf River Chain in Winneconne, Wis., and a July 7 tournament on Green Bay in Oconto, Wis.
Minnesota Division competition will kick off April 28 on the Mississippi River in Bay City, Wis., followed by a June 16 tournament on Lake Mille Lacs in Isle, Minn., and a July 21 tournament on Lake Bemidji in Bemidji, Minn.
The FLW Walleye League Finals will be held Sept. 13-15 on the Mississippi River in Moline, Ill.
Entry fees are $300 per boater and $150 per co-angler for each qualifying tournament in 2007. Ranger, G3, Champion and Stratos boat owners and TBF members have priority entry into the 2007 FLW Walleye League. Entry dates will be released soon.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors is home to the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Ranger Owners’ 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, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits will offer combined purses exceeding $43 million through 247 events in 2007.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most-respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.
