NATCHITOCHES, La. – The top 30 boaters and 30 co-anglers from four Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League divisions will visit the Red River near Natchitoches Oct. 21-25 for regional competition. The postseason event will determine during three competition days the lucky six who will advance to next year’s Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League All-American, which will award the winning boater $100,000 cash and the winning co-angler $50,000 cash.
Anglers from the Arkie, Bama, Cowboy and Gulf Coast divisions of the BFL competed in five regular-season events to accumulate points that determine angler standings. Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, and the top 30 boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings advanced to the regional. The full field of 120 boaters and 120 co-anglers will compete for two days to determine the top six who will advance to Saturday’s final day of competition, when the winner is determined by total three-day weight. All six boaters and co-anglers automatically advance to the All-American, which will be held April 14-17 on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Ark.
The winning boater at the regional will take home a new Chevy truck and a fully rigged Ranger 519VS Comanche bass boat powered by an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard. The winning co-angler will receive an Evinrude- or Yamaha-powered Ranger boat.
Anglers who competed in all five regular-season events within a division but did not qualify for regional competition can compete in the Chevy Trucks Wild Card, scheduled for Nov. 4-8 at a location to be announced. The Wild Card and six regional competitions will each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the championship for an All-American field of 42 boaters and 42 co-anglers. In 1984, the All-American made history as the first bass-fishing championship to award $100,000 cash to the winner, and today, the tournament remains one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in competitive bass fishing.
Nationwide, the BFL is divided into 24 divisions – each featuring four one-day qualifying tournaments and a two-day Super Tournament. Under the BFL’s boater and co-angler format, boaters supply the boats, fish from the front deck and control boat movement throughout the competition. Co-anglers fish from the back deck and are competing against other co-anglers. Two hundred points are awarded to tournament winners, 199 points are presented for second, and so on except for the Super Tournament, where the winners earn 300 points, 299 points are given for second place, and so on.
As the nation’s leading provider of affordable, close-to-home weekend tournaments, the BFL is widely credited with opening competitive bass fishing to the masses. It also serves as a steppingstone for anglers who wish to advance to the EverStart Series and ultimately the Wal-Mart FLW Tour – bass fishing’s most lucrative tournament series. Each year the top 30 boaters and co-anglers from each BFL division are eligible to advance to the EverStart Series, and the All-American champions are eligible for Wal-Mart FLW Tour competition. The top 15 pros and co-anglers from the Central, Eastern and Northern divisions of the EverStart Series (top 10 from the Western Division) are eligible to advance to the Wal-Mart FLW Tour. Former BFL anglers who have become fishing superstars on the Wal-Mart FLW Tour include Kellogg’s pro Clark Wendlandt, Chevy pro Tommy Biffle and four-time FLW Tour champion David Fritts.