Lake Murray to Host WalMart Bass Fishing League Regional Championship
Category: press release
Oct 10th, 2008 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Oct 10th, 2008 at 12:00 AM
PROSPERITY, S.C. – The $8.8 million Walmart Bass Fishing League will visit Lake Murray in Prosperity, S.C., Oct. 23-25 for one of seven no-entry-fee Regional Championships. During the tournament hosted by the Capital City Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism Board, top Bama, Bulldog, Gator and Volunteer division anglers will compete for a $60,000 prize package that includes a new Chevy truck and Ranger 198VX powered by Evinrude or Yamaha in the Boater Division and a $40,000 Ranger 198VX powered by Evinrude or Yamaha in the Co-angler Division.
Boater Eddie Jackson of Trussville, Ala., and co-angler Thomas Helton of Charleston, Tenn., will lead the Bama qualifiers on Lake Murray while boater Nathan Fuller of Hillsboro, Ga., and co-angler Ryan Lamb of Lilburn, Ga., lead the Bulldog division contingent. Boater Tony Davis of Williston, Fla., and co-angler Robert Crosnoe of Inverness, Fla., are the No. 1 qualifiers from the Gator division, and boater Larry Neal of Piney Flats, Tenn., and co-angler Kibbee McCoy of Crossville, Tenn., are the top qualifiers from the Volunteer division.
Overall, 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers qualified from each of these divisions for a total field of 160 boats on Lake Murray. The anglers qualified for the Regional Championship through a series of four one-day tournaments and a two-day Super Tournament in each of their respective divisions.
Dreher Island State Park located at 3677 State Park Rd. in Prosperity will host daily takeoffs at 7:30 a.m. Dreher Island State Park will also host Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins beginning at 3:30 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in featuring the top six boaters and six co-anglers will be held at the Walmart located at 2812 Main St. in Newberry, S.C., beginning at 4 p.m. The winners will be determined by the heaviest total catch from all three days of competition.
Boaters and co-anglers who finish in the top six at the Lake Murray Regional Championship will also advance to the $1 million no-entry-fee 2009 All-American championship presented by Chevy where they will fish for as much as $140,000 in the Boater Division and $70,000 in the Co-angler Division. The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American will also advance to the no-entry-fee $2 million 2009 Forrest Wood Cup. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the most lucrative tournament in all of competitive bass fishing.
In all, the BFL offers weekend anglers the opportunity to qualify for three no-entry-fee championships with total cash awards exceeding $3 million. Additionally, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers from each BFL division may move up to the Stren Series for 2009 while All-American champions have the option to advance directly to the Walmart FLW Tour.
In BFL competition, boaters supply the boat and compete from the front deck against other boaters. Co-anglers compete from the back deck against other co-anglers.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.
Total awards are based on a full field of 200 boats in every tournament.