JASPER, Ala. (Oct. 30, 2006) - The $6.5 million Wal-Mart FLW Series will stop in Jasper, Ala., Nov. 15-18 for its fifth and final regular-season tournament, which will be held on Lewis Smith Lake. Hosted by the Walker County Chamber of Commerce, the tournament will feature 400 anglers from 31 states, Japan and Australia competing for top awards of $100,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division.
The tournament also represents the final step toward qualifying for the $2 million, 2007 Forrest Wood Cup in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 2-5, where the winning pro will have a shot at bass fishing's first $1 million prize. Only the top 30 pros and the top 25 co-anglers in the final points standings following the Lewis Smith Lake tournament will qualify.
"The fishing is going to depend a great deal on what the weather does," said Team Pedigree pro Greg Pugh of Cullman, Ala., who has 15 top-10 finishes and has amassed $244,546 in career winnings while fishing FLW Outdoors events. "If we have a few more cold fronts swing through and the water cools down, it should bring some of those big spots up shallower and make them easier to catch."
Crankbaits, jigs and finesse tackle will more than likely be the weapons of choice for top anglers. Locating key pieces of brush that are holding fish will also be critical.
"Most of the fish are going to be caught on a deeper pattern," Pugh said. "The fish will be anywhere from 20 to 30 feet deep over brush piles or deep rocky points."
Pugh forecasts that pros will need to land quality-sized limits of 15 to 16 pounds a day to win this event.
"I think the fishing will be similar to the Lake of the Ozarks tournament," he said. "If the weather cooperates, then a lot of fish will be caught."
Anglers will take off at 7 each morning from Lewis Smith Lake Dam. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday's weigh-ins will be held at the dam beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday's weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 1801 Highway 78 E. in Jasper beginning at 4 p.m. Children will be treated to the Fujifilm trout pond and rides in the Kellogg's Ranger boat simulator beginning at noon Saturday prior to the final weigh-in at Wal-Mart. All events are free and open to the public.
The entire field competes for the first three days of FLW Series events. Co-angler winners are determined on day three by the heaviest accumulated three-day weight. The top 10 professionals continue competition on day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days.
In FLW Series competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. The total purse for the Lewis Smith Lake tournament is $900,000, including $10,000 through 50th place in the Pro Division.
Coverage of the Lewis Smith Lake FLW Series tournament will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States as part of the "FLW Outdoors" television program airing Dec. 17. "FLW Outdoors" airs Sunday mornings at 11 Eastern time. "FLW Outdoors" is also broadcast internationally to approximately 350 million households in Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary, the United Kingdom, among other others, making it 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.
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.
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.
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