Forrest Wood Cup TV coverage commences Sept. 28

One-hour show to cover $2 million championship on Lake Murray

MINNEAPOLIS – Seventy seven of the world’s top professional bass anglers traveled to Columbia, S.C., for a chance at winning $1 million in their sport’s crowning event, the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Murray, presented by Castrol and BP. “FLW Outdoors” will chronicle the season-ending tournament in two parts, the first airing Sunday, Sept. 28 on FSN.

Thousands of anglers from more than 40 states, Japan, Australia, Canada, Italy, Mexico and Spain have been casting for more than a year to earn a trip to the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup. Anglers from the Walmart FLW Tour, Walmart FLW Series, Stren Series, Walmart Bass Fishing League and The Bass Federation qualified for the richest championship in the history of professional bass fishing.

After four days of bright, hot August skies during the official practice period, more than 2 inches of rain fell across central South Carolina the day before the tournament began, cooling the surface temperatures at Lake Murray by 5 degrees. Overall, the rainfall and cloud cover greatly improved the shallow-water fishing. Taking advantage of the change in conditions was Duracell pro Michael Bennett. The Lincoln, Calif., native sacked up 15 pounds, 5 ounces on day two to add to his 11 pounds, 15 ounces from day one to lead with a two-day total of 27 pounds, 4 ounces. Like most of the pros, Bennett is junk-fishing around docks and isolated shoreline structure. In the Duracell Angler Spotlight, the 24-year-old Western pro talks about fishing with confidence, his first FLW Tour win at Lewis Smith Lake in April and how it feels about representing the West Coast in the Forrest Wood Cup.

Marion, Ark., pro Mark Rose is in second place after catching a two-day total of 26 pounds, 6 ounces. On day one, Rose caught 20 pounds, 2 ounces – the heaviest limit of the tournament thus far. On day two he returned to his honeyhole and struggled just to get a handful of bites. Rose’s primary area, which is located in the Crystal Lake arm of the reservoir, is loaded with deep bank grass.

In third place is National Guard pro and 2006 Forrest Wood Cup champion Brent Ehrler. The Redlands, Calif., angler has accumulated most of his opening-round total of 26 pounds, 1 ounce on a topwater frog. Ehrler and Chevy pro Dion Hibdon, who won the 2000 Forrest Wood Cup, have both qualified for the final round of 10 boats. In the Berkley flashback, these two pros reflect on their championship victories and their opportunity to become the first two-time Forrest Wood Cup champion.

FSN also follows grassroots angler Brian Travis. In April, Travis won the TBF National Championship on Lake Wylie in Charlotte, N.C. For winning the tournament, Travis claimed the “Living the Dream” package, which included $10,000 in cash, paid entry fees into the 2009 FLW Tour, the use of a wrapped Chevy vehicle and a wrapped Ranger boat. Travis also earned a slot in the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup, and he’s making the most of his rare opportunity. During the opening round, the Conover, N.C., angler boated nine bass weighing 23 pounds, 1 ounce, good enough for fifth place in the Pro Division. Although he’s a little star-struck, Travis is showing no ill effects on the water.

In addition, Chevy pro Luke Clausen of Spokane, Wash., participates in this edition of Fishing 101. Clausen, who won the 2004 Forrest Wood Cup on Logan Martin Lake in Birmingham, Ala., shows viewers how to properly fish docks.

FSN is the industry leader in providing the most up-to-date technology in TV production. FSN puts viewers in the boats with the pros, shadowing them from sunrise until the final weigh-in using innovative camera work that gives fishing fans the most intimate viewing experience available.

FSN broadcasts “FLW Outdoors” Sunday mornings. Check local listings for show times and channels in your area. FLWOutdoors.com also provides an online guide listing upcoming episodes on “FLW Outdoors.”

FSN is broadcast to more than 81 million homes through its network of 20 regional sports channels. Established in 1996, FSN is the only cable network that supplies national, regional and local sports programming. FSN serves as the cable TV home to 62 of the 82 MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States, and produces more than 4,500 live events each year. FSN has an extensive catalog of original national programs, including “Best Damn Sports Show Period” and “Beyond the Glory” documentary series, along with national packages of collegiate sports. Based in Los Angeles, FSN is part of the vast FOX Sports television family. For the latest up-to-the-minute sports news and opinions, visit the FOX Sports/FSN website at www.FoxSports.com.

“FLW Outdoors” is also broadcast internationally to more than 429 million households in such countries as Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits. FLW Outdoors also took fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million in cash and prizes.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.