MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. – The top 50 teams from the $1.82 million 2006 Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour will compete for a share of $500,000 in the circuit’s no-entry-fee championship in Mount Pleasant, S.C., Nov. 9-11.
“Word is that the fishing is really good up there right now,” said Nick Parrish, captain of Team Castrol, the FLW Kingfish Tour Team of the Year. “We are pretty excited about it being back in that area. We had a top-five finish in Beaufort, and it will be in the realm of possibility that we may fish some of the same water we did during that event.”
Although he has yet to begin practicing in the area, Parrish predicts a good bite.
“I have heard reports of there being a lot of bait in the area, and where there’s bait, there’s fish,” he said. “Most teams will be trolling live blue runners or google eyes. I’m not sure what the most productive pattern will be yet, as the bite can change daily. But I think to make a run at it, teams will need at least a 30-pounder to make the cut and an aggregate weight of over 50 pounds to win.”
The winning team will earn as much as $150,000, which includes a $75,000 cash award for first place, a $37,500 bonus from Hydra-Sports, Seaswirl or Wellcraft and a $37,500 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met.
Teams competing in the FLW Kingfish Tour Championship will take off from Charleston Harbor Marina located at 24 Patriot’s Point Rd. in Mount Pleasant at 7 each morning. Scales open at the marina at 3 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and all teams must check-in by 5 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 1481 U.S. Highway 17 North in Mount Pleasant beginning at 4:30 p.m. The full field will fish Thursday and Friday, and the top five teams will continue competition Saturday. The winning team will be determined by the heaviest catch from Thursday or Friday plus the heaviest catch from Saturday. The morning start and weigh-in are free and open to the public.
The championship will be televised nationwide Dec. 24 as part of “FLW Outdoors” on FSN (Fox Sports Net). This program is broadcast to approximately 80 million households in the United States plus 350 million households in such countries as Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making “FLW Outdoors” the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world. Additionally, FLW Outdoors is proud to provide tournament coverage to more than 800,000 servicemembers stationed around the world in 177 countries and aboard Navy ships through broadcasts on the American Forces Network. “FLW Outdoors” airs Sundays at 11 a.m. Eastern time.
The Town of Mount Pleasant is hosting the event. For more information, visit their Web site at townofmountpleasant.com.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers 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, 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 offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006.
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.