Folks finds winning pattern at Super Tournament on Lake Toho

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Boater Jim Folks of Melbourne earned $5,356 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Gator Division Super Tournament event on Lake Toho. The tournament earned Folks 300 points in the Boater Division.

Folks’ winning catch of 10 bass weighed 34 pounds, 11 ounces. Folks threw a Zoom Horny Toad and a 10-inch worm to catch his bass. He earned an additional $2,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup and Bombardier bonus awards.

Finishing second was Clint Boyles of Deltona with 10 bass weighing 30 pounds that earned him $2,614. Joseph Kramer of Osteen claimed $1,275 as the third-place finisher thanks to 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 13 ounces. In fourth was Dave Thomas of Winter Park with 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 8 ounces worth $1,148, and finishing fifth and earning $1,020 was Donald Dwayne Davis of Summerfield with seven bass weighing 27 pounds, 2 ounces.

Lisa Opel of Hernando took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $960 for a 7-pound, 6-ounce bass. She caught her big bass on a Bass Assassin worm.

Shaun Lambert of Melbourne earned $2,671 as the co-angler winner, thanks to eight bass weighing 27 pounds, 8 ounces that he caught on a Zoom Horny Toad. Lambert earned an additional $470 as winner of the big-bass award in the Co-angler Division, thanks to a 9-pound, 9-ounce bass.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Robbie Engel of Altamonte Springs (10 bass, 24 pounds, 10 ounces, $1,304); Kenneth Bivins of Orlando (10 bass, 24 pounds, 9 ounces, $636); Danielle Kramer of Osteen (10 bass, 22 pounds, 4 ounces, $572); and Corby Wimmer of Ocala (eight bass, 20 pounds, 12 ounces, $509).

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

The top 40 Gator Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Lake Martin Regional near Alexander City, Ala., Oct. 18-22 where they will compete against Everglades, Mississippi, and Savannah River division anglers for one of six slots in the 2006 All-American. With a total purse of $1 million and a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing.

The $8.4 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 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 FLWOutdoors.com.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League and seven other national tournament circuits offering a combined $30 million in awards through 214 events in 2005. The 27-year-old organization is the purveyor of America’s largest and most prestigious fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, EverStart Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as title sponsor of the FLW Tour in 1997 and today is the title sponsor of all FLW Outdoors events. For more information on Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.