Brown best boater on DeGray Lake

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Boater Kevin Brown of Malvern, Ark., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Arkie Division tournament on DeGray Lake Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 20 pounds, 12 ounces. The victory earned Brown $4,233 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Wright Patman Lake Regional Championship in Texarkana, Texas, Oct. 25-27, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Brown fished the lower end of the lake and targeted inside edges of grass 12 to 13 feet deep with a Carolina rig.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Clinton Mayfield of Hot Springs, Ark., (five bass, 16-9, $2,490); Kendall Smith of Benton, Ark., (five bass, 15-14, $1,662); Jeff Vanderpool of Pine Bluff, Ark., (five bass, 15-10, $1,162) and Matthew Mize of Ben Lomond, Ark., (five bass, 15-1, $996).

Brown took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $760 for a 6-pound, 15-ounce bass.

Pete Clark of Malvern, Ark., earned $2,490 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 15 pounds, 4 ounces that he caught while fishing a Carolina rig in 8 to 10 feet of water off of points on the inside edge of grass.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Donny Holloway of Sheridan, Ark., (five bass, 14-8, $1,245); William Fitzgerald of Greenbrier, Ark., (five bass, 13-14, $829); Johnny Manning of Arkadelphia, Ark., (five bass, 13-10, $581) and Albert Clark of Malvern, Ark., (five bass, 13-8, $498).

Jerry Harvin of Texarkana, Ark., earned $380 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 6-pound, 3-ounce bass.

The Arkie Division’s next event will be May 5 on Greers Ferry in Greers Ferry, Ark., followed by a tournament June 9 on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Ark. The final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Oct. 6-7 on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Ark.

Following the end of regular-season competition, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on year-end points standings in the division will advance to the no-entry-fee Wright Patman Lake Regional Championship where they will compete against top qualifiers from three other BFL divisions. At the Regional Championship boaters will fish for a new Ranger boat and Chevy truck and co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger boat. The top six boaters and top six co-anglers at the Regional Championship will also advance to the 2008 All-American presented by Chevy. With a total purse of $1 million, a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and as much as $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing. The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American also advance to the no-entry-fee $2 million 2008 Forrest Wood Cup. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the sport’s biggest championship.

The $8.8 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired. Boaters supply the boat and fish from the front deck against other boaters while co-anglers compete from the back deck against other co-anglers.

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, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, 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 of nearly $43 million through 241 events in 2007.

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.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.