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WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP OF BASS FISHING HEADS TO LAKE LANIER

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-07-26T19:56:00Z

Forrest Wood Cup Features World’s Best Bass Anglers

MINNEAPOLIS (July 26, 2010) – The Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing, is bringing the world’s best bass anglers to Lake Lanier Aug. 5-8, 2010. Seventy-eight of the greatest pros in the sport are steeling themselves for four days of exciting competition, and at the end of it all, one angler will stand alone as champion and hoist the prestigious Cup.

“The Forrest Wood Cup is the most important event, most competitive event and most difficult-to-qualify-for event in our sport,” said FLW Outdoors President and CEO Charlie Evans. “Forrest Wood Cup competitors are world-class athletes with skills that are second to none.”

In addition to the Cup, the winning pro will take home $500,000 plus a possible $100,000 Ranger Cup contingency bonus.

Nobody is eyeing the prestigious championship title more than the local anglers who have qualified for the Forrest Wood Cup.

“It’s pretty exciting, actually, to win $500,000 to catch fish,” said Chevy pro Luke Clausen of Gainesville, Ga., who won the 2004 Forrest Wood Cup at Logan Martin Lake. “And Lake Lanier is a fun place to fish. Lake Lanier is one of, if not the best spotted bass fisheries in the country.

“Lake Lanier is a typical lake that when it gets low and then the water level comes back up, there’s a lot of fertility in the water and those fish grow quick. There’s a lot of big spotted bass in there and they’re a little bit easier to catch than the largemouth are this time of year when the water’s as warm as it is.”

Tom Mann Jr. of Buford, Ga., who is a veteran Lake Lanier fisherman, said while home-lake advantage may come into play, Lake Lanier may not give up the big bite too often during the course of the tournament.

“I fished every day for two weeks up until the cutoff time,” Mann said. “Fishing is tougher than normal on the lake.

“I think there will be some decent stringers caught,” Mann added. “But normally in the past four or five years I would have said it would have taken somewhere between 16 and 18 pounds a day to win this tournament. But now with the way it’s fishing, I’m going to say it will take somewhere from 13 to 15 pounds.”

Mann said he’s still catching quality 3- and 4-pounders, just not as frequently as he has in the past. He attributes the slow bite to warmer-than-normal water temperatures and a diminished population of blueback herring. Blueback herring play a vital role as bait for Lake Lanier bass. Mann said Lanier’s elevated water level also may be a factor, as the full summer pool may have scattered bass.

Clausen said popular techniques for anglers will include small finesse worms rigged on a shaky-head rig or drop-shot rig on light line as well as topwater baits.

“On Lake Lanier you’ll see a lot of different baits thrown,” Clausen said. “Topwater baits are always hard to beat. The water is so clear … the fish are pretty smart and they can’t see things as well up on the surface. They’ll be chasing the blueback herring around, so a topwater will be hard to beat.”

Daily takeoff ceremonies will be held at Laurel Park, located at 3100 Old Cleveland Hwy. in Gainesville, Ga., each morning from 6:30 to 7 a.m. Takeoffs will commence at 7 a.m. Weigh-ins will be held daily at 5 p.m. at The Arena at Gwinnett Center located at 6400 Sugarloaf Pkwy. in Duluth, Ga.

The FLW Outdoors Expo will be held in conjunction with the Forrest Wood Cup at the Gwinnett Convention Center on Friday from noon to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. FLW Outdoors Expo includes Ranger boat simulators, angler seminars, the opportunity to meet professional anglers, see and test the latest outdoor equipment, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public.

Fishing fans can register to win a Ranger boat that will be given away after the champion is crowned. Fans can register to win at ForrestWoodCup.com and must be present to win.

Visit ForrestWoodCup.com for Forrest Wood Cup details and updated information.

Coverage of the Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Lanier will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” will air Dec. 26 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports. FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

WILKENS WINS FLW WALLEYE TOUR EVENT ON LAKE WINNEBAGO

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-07-18T20:17:00Z

Miller Hangs on for Co-Angler Title

OSHKOSH, Wis. (July 17, 2010) – Pro Brett Wilkens of Kiel, Wis., and co-angler Derek Navis of Waupun, Wis., caught three walleyes weighing 6 pounds, 6 ounces to win the FLW Walleye Tour Eastern Division tournament on Lake Winnebago. Wilkens had a three-day catch of 13 walleyes weighing 26-6. He won by only 7 ounces over his closest competitor and took home $17,973 for his efforts.

Wilkens said the fishing remained tough on the last day of competition. A storm system that moved through Wednesday evening made the fishing difficult for almost everyone throughout the tournament.

“Where I was fishing the water was like chocolate milk,” Wilkens said. “Today, actually the water cleaned up a little bit. So I started at my first spot and thought, ‘Hey. Maybe everything will be alright.’ But I was kind of fooled.

“Usually when the wind stays the same direction for three days things get pretty tough,” Wilkens added. “There was no little changes or anything to give you a better chance of catching them.”

Wilkens said he caught his fish by anchoring the boat and pitching jigs, leeches and nightcrawlers on rock piles in areas about the size of his boat.

“I started out at about 10 different spots and couldn’t catch a fish,” Wilkens said. “I went through 35 or 40 different spots today to try to catch a fish. I was anchoring on rocks and finally about 11 o’clock I caught the first one. I went to another spot and caught another one and then the last one I had came at 1 o’clock. They just wouldn’t cooperate today.”

Rounding out the top-5 pros are:

2^nd: Mark Keenan, Appleton, Wis., 10 walleyes, 25-13, $5,833

3^rd: Brian Deffner, Eland, Wis., six walleyes, 23-2, $3,245

4^th: Chris Gilman, Chisago City, Minn., nine walleyes, 17-14, $6,204

5^th: Paul Meleen, Isle, Minn., 11 walleyes, 17-1, $5,579

A complete list of results and prize winnings including optional pot and contingency awards can be found at FLWOutdoors.com

Bob Miller of Oshkosh led the tournament wire-to-wire to earn the victory in the Co-angler Division and $3,094. His three-day weight of 10 fish totaled 33 pounds, 11 ounces.

“This hasn’t sunk in yet,” Miller said. “Everybody told me I had it locked up and to just go out and fish and forget about it. I think we moved three times. Everything just worked out good.”

Rounding out the top-5 co-anglers are:

2^nd: Eugene Little, Milton, Wis., nine walleyes, 25-15, $1,237

3^rd: Derek Navis, Waupun, Wis., nine walleyes, 19-10, $928

4^th: Randal Sterr, Oconomowoc, Wis., 10 walleyes, 17-15, $804

5^th: Steve Beasley, Macomb, Mich., 10 walleyes, 17-1, $742

Overall there were 20 walleyes weighing 44 pounds, 15 ounces caught Saturday. The catch included one five-walleye limit.

In FLW Walleye Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are also competing for valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the 2010 FLW Walleye Tour Championship held on Leech Lake in Walker, Minn., Sept. 23-25.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

STOREY WINS FLW FANTASY FISHING LAKE GUNTERSVILLE EVENT

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-07-14T22:35:00Z

MINNEAPOLIS (July 14, 2010) – In his first ever FLW Tour win pro Brent Long of Cornelius, N.C., won the final event of the 2010 FLW Tour season on Lake Guntersville, June 26 to help Cynthia Storey of Mankato, Minn., win $5,000 in FLW Fantasy Fishing competition.

Storey’s Fantasy Fishing team was led by Long which helped her earn 11,172 valuable points that will be added to her season total. Storey has put herself in position to win the $50,000 grand prize which is based on accumulated points from all five FLW Tour stops.

“This is the craziest thing,” said Storey, who is an on again, off again player. “I don’t normally do stuff like this, but my friend turned me on to Fantasy Fishing last year and I just sort of started playing. Before each event I said a little prayer and picked the guys I thought looked good – this was pure luck!”

Fantasy Fishing winners were announced after each of the five qualifying FLW Tour stops in the 2010 season. Finishing in second place for this event was Lisa Whelan, Tampa, Fla., $500, and in third was Brian Toedt of Escondido, Calif., $100. Several other winners from California to Florida took home prizes ranging from $50 to $25.

Fantasy Fishing players are vying for an overall first place prize of $50,000. Second place will take home $25,000, while the third-place finisher will walk away with Cabela’s Ultimate Fishing Trip, which includes a trip to Lake El Salto in Mexico and a $5,000 Cabela’s gift card. The fourth-place finisher will win a Can-Am ATV valued at $9,699. All prizes for 2010 are guaranteed and will be announced prior to the Forrest Wood Cup.

FLW Outdoors offers a unique tool, Player’s Advantage, for armchair anglers who take the plunge into the fantasy sports world. Through this tool, players are able to garner additional information including history on the anglers, weather conditions and information regarding the fisheries. Players that had Player’s Advantage won at a rate of 4-to-1 over players that did not access this tool.

For a complete list of rules or to get more information, visit FantasyFishing.com.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

DILLOW WINS BASS FISHING LEAGUE SHENANDOAH DIVISION ON JAMES RIVER

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-07-13T02:30:00Z

WHAT: Chris Dillow (above in black shirt) of Waynesboro, Va. (hello Robbie, Chris and Jeff from Waynesboro!), caught a 5-bass limit weighing 16 pounds, 6 ounces Saturday, July 10, 2010 to win $5,756 in the FLW BFL Shenandoah Division tournament on the James River. Under cloudy skies Dillow was junk fishing around sticks and trees to bag his limit.

WHO: The remaining top 10 anglers were:

2^nd: Bryan Elrod, Mechanicsville, Va., five bass, 14-8, $1,878

3^rd: Fred Aldridge, Brandystation, Va., five bass, 13-12, $1,253

4^th: Gary Marean, Manassas, Va., five bass, 12-14, $876

5^th: Steve Wagner, New Kent, Va., five bass, 12-13, $751

6^th: Philip Jarabeck, Lynchburg, Va., five bass, 12-11, $689

7^th: Jeff Hamilton, Chester, Va., five bass, 12-5, $626

8^th: Kelly Pratt, Williamsburg, Va., five bass, 12, $563

9^th: Thomas Wooten, Huddleston, Va., five bass, 11-13, $1,501*

10^th: Ronnie Baker, Providence Forge, Va., five bass, 11-7, $416

10^th: Cavin Young, Prince George, Va., five bass, 11-7, $416

*Includes $1000 Evinrude bonus

WHAT: David Williams of Fredericksburg, Va., caught a 5-bass limit weighing 8 pounds, 13 ounces Saturday, July 10, 2010 to win $1,835 in the FLW BFL Shenandoah Co-angler Division on the James River. Williams traveled 25 miles away from ramp and was fishing grassy areas to bring in his limit.

WHO: The remaining top 10 co-anglers were:

2^nd: Allen Schurdell, Crab Orchard, W. Va., five bass, 8-9, $918

3^rd: Jason Swingle, Charlottesville, Va., five bass, 8-5, $612

4^th: Jason Eggleston, Roanoke, Va., five bass, 7-14, $428

5^th: James Taylor, Ruther Glen, Va., five bass, 7-12, $367

6^th: Matthew Stargell, Henrico, Va., five bass, 7-10, $336

7^th: Thomas Hassler, Woodstock, Va., five bass, 7-5, $306

8^th: Jacob Bumgarner, Monroe, Va., five bass, 7-2, $275

9^th: Robert Bruguiere, Michanicsville, Va., five bass, 6-11, $245

10^th: Gregory Scott, Ferrum, Va., five bass, 6-9, $214

NOTES: The next and last BFL Shenandoah Division tournament for 2010 is scheduled for September 11-12, at the Potomac River in Woodbridge, Va. After the fifth Shenandoah Division tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Regional Championship at the Potomac River in Marbury, Md., on Oct. 7-9, for a chance to win a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and a Chevy pick-up, co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger 198VX.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

STEPHEN F. AUSTIN WINS COLLEGE FISHING TEXAS DIVISION EVENT ON TOLEDO BEND

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-23T13:58:00Z

MANY, La. (June 19, 2010) – The Stephen F. Austin team of Robert Platt of Orange Park, Fla., and Ryan Watkins of Nacogdoches, Texas, won the National Guard FLW College Fishing Texas Division event on Toledo Bend Saturday with six bass weighing 19 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned the team $10,000 to be split evenly between the university and the university’s bass-fishing club. The win also helped them advance to the Texas Division Regional Championship where they could ultimately win a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower engine wrapped in school colors for their school’s bass club and $25,000 for the school they represent.

“We started out deep first thing in the morning and never got shallower than 19 to 25 feet all day long,” said Watkins, who is a junior kinesiology major. “We fished the north end of lake where there are a bunch of ridges and brushpiles. We threw a Rapala DT16 shad-colored crankbait and alternated that with an 11-inch NetBait soft plastic worm and a Red Bug-colored Zoom Trick Worm.

“The big one came on the crankbait,” Watkins added. “For some reason, they weren’t eating a drop shot (rig), so we relied on the Texas rigs and soft plastics. Our crankbait bite really died because of the lack of wind, but we ended up catching the majority of everything before 8:30. We caught our last keeper at 12:15.”

Watkins said the weather was perfect for the event, with just enough wind to keep the team cool.

“You know, the best thing about today was not winning the money,” said Watkins, who won the 2009 College Fishing event on Toledo Bend. “The best thing was winning back-to-back tournaments. It’s been a long time since I won back to back. It means a lot to me and adds a lot of credibility to my career and is always fun. But to do it at this level makes it that much sweeter.”

Rounding out the top five teams were LSU – Douglas McClung of Gramercy, La., and Travis Laurent of Gonzales, La., (six bass, 17-5, $5,000); Lamar University – Matt Morrison of Silsbee, Texas, and Danny Iles of Hemphill, Texas, (three bass, 12-6, $4,000); Baylor University – Brian Bauer of Waco, Texas, and Joseph Garland of West, Texas, (five bass, 12-2, $3,000); LSU-Shreveport – Gavin Havard of Bossier City, La., and Joe Landry of Shreveport, La., (three bass, 8-13, $2,000).

The top five teams in each division’s qualifying events advance to one of five televised three-day National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championships. College Fishing is free to enter, boats and drivers are provided by FLW Outdoors and all collegiate teams receive a travel allowance.

The top five teams from each regional championship will advance to the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship. The National Championship is a three-day televised event hosting the top five teams from each regional, 25 total teams. Teams will be provided jerseys and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition.

The 2009 National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship was held April 10-12 at Ft. Loudoun and was hosted by the University of Tennessee. The University of Florida was the first National Guard FLW Collegiate National Champion and qualified for the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup Aug. 5-8 at Lake Lanier in Atlanta, Ga. The winners also received use of a wrapped boat and Chevy truck for Cup competition.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

URGENT-TAKEOFF, WEIGH-IN TIMES CHANGE FOR FLW TOUR EVENT AT LAKE GUNTERSVILLE

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-23T13:24:00Z

Officials Move Times Up to Promote Health of Fish

WHAT: Time changes for the 2010 FLW Tour event at Lake Guntersville presented by Ranger. The earlier times will reduce time fish are out of native habitat and promote live release.

WHEN: Wednesday, June 23 to Saturday, June 26. Takeoff times each day will be 6 a.m. Weigh-in times

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday will be 1:30 p.m. Saturday’s 4 p.m. weigh-in time will remain unchanged.

WHERE: Anglers will take off all four days of competition from Lake Guntersville Resort State Park located at 7966 Alabama Hwy. 227 in Guntersville, Ala., and weigh in the first three days at Lake Guntersville Resort State Park. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Von Braun Center located at 700 Monroe St. in Huntsville, Ala.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

Reese Looking for Redemption at Bassmaster Elite Series Postseason; Leads List of Qualifiers

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-21T11:42:00Z

After narrowly missing out on his second Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year in 2009, Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., is leaving little to chance in 2010 with a dominating regular-season Bassmaster Elite Series run, which has set him up nicely heading into the Bassmaster Elite Series Postseason, set for July 24-31 in the Montgomery, Ala., River Region.

To calculate the Postseason scores, BASS takes the regular-season Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points total and moves the decimal point to the left.  Each angler then receives a two-point bonus for each Elite Series regular-season win.  Reese, who scored six top-five finishes in the eight Elite events, ended up with a spectacular 216 points, which is miles ahead of the 204 point total he had heading into last season.

“I’ve had my eye on the Angler of the Year the entire year,” said Reese, who won the AOY in 2007.  “That is and always will be my ultimate goal.  I feel extremely confident on any body of water right now so I just can’t wait to get started.”

The Postseason is structured so that the top 12 anglers in the field all have a shot at bringing home the most coveted award in bass fishing, the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year, and the accompanying $200,000 top prize.  Of those chasing Reese, his closest competitor, Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., would appear to pose the biggest threat. Evers had a solid regular-season and amassed 201 points heading into the Postseason.

But Reese’s – and every other Elite angler’s – worst nightmare, Kevin VanDam finished ultra-strong in the regular season.  After looking unlikely to qualify for the Postseason, VanDam, who has won the previous two AOY titles, scored a victory at the seventh Elite event of the season on Kentucky Lake and posted a strong sixth-place finish at this week’s Sooner Run.  VanDam’s strong closing performance lifted him into a tie for fourth in the Postseason standings with 185 points.

“No matter what sport it is, you always want to be performing your best when you head into the Postseason,” said VanDam, a five-time Angler of the Year.  “And I feel like I am fishing to the best of my abilities right now.  I’m excited to get into that Postseason. To be able to have a chance at the Angler of the Year, no matter what seed you are, you need to be in the Postseason.  It’s such an exciting format.”

Reese and VanDam are both repeat qualifiers for the Postseason as is third-place competitor, Cliff Pace of Petal, Ala.  Pace quietly put together a stellar season, cashing a check in seven of eight Elite events.  Two Postseason newcomers, Derek Remitz of Grant, Ala., (tied for fourth with VanDam) and Terry Butcher of Talala, Okla., (sixth) round out the top half of the field.  The full list of qualifiers is below, including the reset points each angler will hold heading into the Postseason.

On the strength of his Sooner Run victory, Tommy Biffle of Wagoner, Okla., moved up to seventh in the standings with 182 points.  Biffle is one of three Okie anglers in the field.  Alabama also will send three to the event.

The Postseason will feature two two-day competitions, each scored on a 50-point sliding scale.  First place will receive 50 points in each event while 12^th will receive 10.  The Postseason, Toyota Trucks Championship Week, is set for July 24-31 and will be played out once again on two productive Alabama fisheries. The first leg, the July 24-25 Ramada Trophy Chase, returns to Lake Jordan out of Wetumpka. The finale, the Evan Williams Bourbon Trophy Triumph, is slated for July 30-31 on the Alabama River from Montgomery.

Bassmaster Elite Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Skeeter and Yamaha

Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Lowrance, Triton Boats, Nitro Boats, Bass Pro Shops and Ramada.

About BASS

For more than 40 years, BASS has served as the authority on bass fishing. The organization advances the sport through advocacy, outreach and its expansive tournament structure while championing efforts to connect directly with the passionate community of bass anglers through its Bassmaster media vehicles.

The Bassmaster brand and its considerable multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer; comprehensive Web properties in Bassmaster.com, BASSInsider.com, ESPNOutdoors.com and ESPN360.com, and ESPN2 television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle.

BASS oversees the prestigious Bassmaster Tournament Trail, which includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bassmaster Opens, BASS Federation Nation and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bassmaster Classic.

BASS offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members while spearheading progressive, positive change on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.

2010 Bassmaster Elite Series Toyota Trucks Championship Week Standings

      Name, Hometown                                           Postseason Points

1.       Skeet Reese, Auburn, Calif.                       216

2.       Edwin Evers, Talala, Okla.                          201

3.       Cliff Pace, Petal, Miss.                              187

4.       Derek Remitz, Grant, Ala.                           185

4.   Kevin VanDam, Kalamazoo, Mich.              185

6.       Terry Butcher, Talala, Okla.                         184

7.       Tommy Biffle, Wagoner, Okla.                    182

8.       John Crews, Salem, Va.                             181

9.       Gary Klein, Weatherford, Texas                  177

9.   Greg Hackney, Gonzales, La.                      177

      9.    Aaron Martens, Leeds, Ala.                       177

9.       Russ Lane, Prattville, Ala.                          177








Courtesy of BASS Communications

DATE CHANGES ANNOUNCED FOR COLLEGE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-16T23:17:00Z

WHAT: Date changes for 2010 National Guard College Fishing Northern and Texas Regional Championships.

WHEN: The Northern Regional is scheduled for Nov. 11-13. The Texas Regional is scheduled for Oct. 28-30.

WHERE: Northern - Jordan Lake, Raleigh, N.C., North Carolina State University; Texas - Sam Rayburn, Nacogdoches, Texas, Stephen F. Austin State University.

MORE: The full 2010 National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championship schedule includes:

· West Regional Championship

Oct. 7-9, 2010

Folsom Lake, Sacramento, Calif.

Sacramento State University

· Southeast Regional Championship

Oct. 21-23, 2010
Lake Monroe, Orlando, Fla.
University of Central Florida

· Northern Regional Championship

Nov. 11-13, 2010
Jordan Lake, Raleigh, N.C.
North Carolina State University

· Central Regional Championship

Nov. 4-6, 2010
Lake Monroe, Bloomington, Ind.
Indiana University

· Texas Regional Championship

Oct. 28-30, 2010
Sam Rayburn, Nacogdoches, Texas
Stephen F. Austin State University

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world and is offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing. Sign up for an FLW Outdoors Membership featuring Player’s Advantage to get your edge and win. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

FLW WALLEYE TOUR TO VISIT LAKE OAHE

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-13T01:58:00Z

PIERRE, S.D. (June 11, 2010) – The FLW Walleye Tour Western Division will visit Lake Oahe in Pierre, S.D., June 24-26 for the second of three stops in the Western division. Hosted by the Pierre Area Chamber of Commerce, the tournament will feature as many as 300 top walleye anglers casting for top awards up to $35,000 in the Pro Division and $7,500 in the Co-angler Division.

“I still consider myself a rookie,” said Richard Lowe of Soldiers Grove, Wis., who finished fifth in the season opener at the Mississippi River event at Welch, Minn. “I’m going to have to put the pedal to the metal and really work on this one. It’s like any battle plan — you make a great detailed plan and the minute the first shot is fired you throw it out and try to figure out what you have to adjust.”

Lowe said he’s researched Lake Oahe and has put together a “five- or six-step approach” to the event. Lowe said Lake Oahe is a large body of water that will allow anglers to try a number of techniques and give them the chance to fish to their strengths.

“My strength traditionally in walleye fishing has been hand-on-a-tiller trolling,” said Lowe. “You need to be versatile and know a lot of different techniques, but on the other hand, if you try to do too many different things you become mediocre at everything. I’m going to hope I can go out there and find areas that match my personal strengths. I’m going to hopefully make the lake come my way rather than go the other way.

“I’ve boiled it down basically to ‘Walleye 101,’” Lowe added. “You know, where would they be, what’s the ideal habitat and where’s the forage?”

Anglers will take off from Spring Creek Resort and Deep Water Marina located at 28229 Spring Creek Place in Pierre at 7 each morning. Weigh-ins will also be held at Spring Creek Resort and Deep Water Marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Beck Chevrolet located at 500 South Grant in Pierre beginning at 4 p.m.

In FLW Walleye Tour competition, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2010 FLW Walleye Tour Championship held on Leech Lake in Walker, Minn., Sept. 23-25.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

Courtesy of FLWOutdoors.com

BASS Announces College Classic Event to be held on Fort Gibson Lake

Mr I Hog the Bass 01 — 2010-06-10T04:35:00Z

BASS announced Tuesday the addition of the 2^nd Bassmaster College Classic to coincide with the final Elite Series regular-season event, the Sooner Run.

BASS introduced the tournament format at the 40^th Bassmaster Classic. The event will feature six two-angler college bass fishing teams, the University of Arkansas Bass Team, the Oklahoma State Bass Fishing Club and the OU Bass Fishing Team.

The competition will take place on Saturday, June 19 from first light to 2:00 p.m. CT on Oklahoma’s Fort Gibson Lake. Competitors, who will fish within the confines of a five-fish limit, will weigh their catches on the Bassmaster Elite Series main stage immediately before the Elite competitors tote their catches to the scales at Three Forks Harbor in Muskogee, Okla.

“This is an excellent opportunity to provide some ancillary competition, in the form of schools with strong rivalries and passionate fan bases, surrounding our Elite Series regular-season finale,” said Jamie Wilkinson, BASS’ senior director of event operations and business development.

The weigh-in will be streamed live on Bassmaster.com. The team with the heaviest cumulative weight will score victory in the fledgling competition circuit and will be recognized on the Elite Series stage. The full list of competitors can be found below.

University of Arkansas Bass Team:

Jerid Jones and Turner Hall

Clay Ramey and Taylor Denniston

Oklahoma State Bass Fishing Club:

Chip Porche and Mark Johnson

Paul Muzljakovich and Tyler Nipper

OU Bass Fishing Team:

Brody Hensley and Orie Chambers

Trevor Parks and Chase Edmiston

About BASS

As the flagship offering of ESPN Outdoors, the Bassmaster brand and its considerable multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer; comprehensive Web properties in Bassmaster.com, BASSInsider.com, ESPNOutdoors.com and ESPN360.com, and ESPN2 television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle.