Pettit wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Super Tournament on Mississippi River

PRAIRIE DU CHIEN, Wis. – Boater Tim Pettit of Moline, Ill., earned $5,342 Sunday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division Super Tournament event on the Mississippi River. The tournament earned Pettit 300 points in the Boater Division.

Pettit’s winning catch of 10 bass weighed 30 pounds, 1 ounce. He fished Pool 9 around weeds and drop-offs with a Team Supreme spinnerbait to catch his bass.

Rounding out the top five pros are Rob Leidholt of Janesville (10 bass, 28 pounds, 14 ounces, $2,607); Jeff Ritter of Prairie Du Chien (10 bass, 28 pounds, 5 ounces, $1,272); Tony Puelz of Garnavillo, Iowa (10 bass, 28 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,145); and Dave Avenarius of Yorkville, Ill. (10 bass, 27 pounds, 1 ounce, $1,017).

Terry Brandhorst of Waterloo, Iowa, earned $940 as winner of the big-bass award in the Boater Division, thanks to a 4-pound, 2-ounce bass he caught on a Zoom Fluke.

Avenarius earned an additional $500 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Craig Weidner of Trevor earned $2,671 as the co-angler winner, thanks to 10 bass weighing 28 pounds, 1 ounce that he caught on spinnerbaits and tubes.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Caleb Kuphall of Mukwonago (nine bass, 22 pounds, 13 ounces, $1,304); Michael Huffman of Ft. Madison, Iowa 10 bass, 21 pounds, 14 ounces, $636); Jonathan Schroeder of Dickeyville (nine bass, 21 pounds, 11 ounces, $572); and Kyle Vonruden of La Crosse (nine bass, 20 pounds, 11 ounces, $509).

Matt French of Congerville, Ill., earned $470 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 4-pound, 3-ounce bass he caught on a Zoom Fluke.

Following the regular season, the Great Lakes 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 Great Lakes Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Ohio River Regional near Paducah, Ky., Oct. 11-15 where they will compete against Arkie, Hoosier and Michigan 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.