Liechty wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Detroit River

TRENTON, Mich. – Boater Jim Liechty of Fort Wayne, Ind., earned $4,370 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Michigan Division event on the Detroit River. The tournament was the second of five regular-season Michigan Division events and featured 166 boaters vying for the win, which earned Liechty 200 points in the Boater Division.

Liechty’s winning catch of five bass weighed 19 pounds, 5 ounces, and they were caught around a rocky ridge near Pelee. He earned a $1,000 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program, and he received another $500 from Yamaha because his boat is powered by a Yamaha outboard. Garmin awarded him $1,000 for using only Garmin electronics during the event.

Tied for second were Butch Dobransky of Canton, Ohio, and Dick Shaffer of Rockford, Ohio. Both anglers caught five bass weighing 19 pounds, 3 ounces to earn $1,835 each. Aaron Talmage of LaGrange, Ind., claimed $1,136 as the fourth-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 18 pounds, 14 ounces. Finishing fifth and earning $961 was John Hempel of Brownstown with five bass weighing 18 pounds, 11 ounces.

Bill Clark of Allegan took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $830 for a 4-pound, 14-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a tube.

David Roche of Hazel Park bested 166 Co-angler Division competitors to earn $2,185 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 18 pounds, 15 ounces that he caught jigging a 9-inch white Mizmo tube on Lake Erie.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Chris Langenfeld of Clinton, Ohio (five bass, 17 pounds, 11 ounces, $1,092); Chuck Elson of Zanesville, Ohio (five bass, 16 pounds, 3 ounces, $743); Karl Acord of Dearborn Heights (five bass, 15 pounds, 7 ounces, $568); and Ricky Miller of Newark, Ohio (five bass, 14 pounds, 13 ounces, $481).

Eddie Frye of Gallipolis, Ohio, earned $415 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 4-pound, 14-ounce bass he caught on a Lucky Strike tube.

The Michigan Division’s next event will be held Aug. 7 on the Grand River near West Olive, followed by another event on the Detroit River in Trenton Aug. 21. The Michigan Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 18-19 with a two-day Super Tournament on the Detroit River near Trenton.

Following the regular season, the Michigan Division boater with the most points will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader. The co-angler amassing the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader in the Co-angler Division.

Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points going to the winner, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on except for Super Tournaments, which award 300 points to the winner, 299 for second, 298 for third, and so on. The top 30 Michigan Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Kentucky Lake regional presented by Yamaha near Gilbertsville, Ky., Oct. 12-16, where they will compete against Choo Choo, Great Lakes and Hoosier division anglers for one of six slots in the 2005 All-American. With a $100,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and $50,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing.

The $6.3 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 24 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired, with boaters supplying the boat and fishing against other boaters and co-anglers fishing from the back deck against other co-anglers. For more information or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or browse this Web site.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services they offer, please visit FLWOutdoors.com’s sponsor page.