Weir wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Super Tournament on Lake Wylie

Boater Eric Weir of Belmont, N.C., earned $4,966 as winner of the BFL North Carolina Division Super Tournament event on Lake Wylie. Angler: Eric Weir.

October 2, 2005 • MLF • Archives

LAKE WYLIE, S.C. – Boater Eric Weir of Belmont, N.C., earned $4,966 Sunday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League North Carolina Division Super Tournament event on Lake Wylie. The tournament earned Weir 300 points in the Boater Division.

Weir’s winning catch of 10 bass weighed 30 pounds, 12 ounces. Weir threw a tandem gold-blade chartreuse spinnerbait around mid-lake points to catch his bass. Weir earned an additional $1,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Rounding out the top-five pros are Tom Russell of Charlotte, N.C. (10 bass, 25 pounds, 2 ounces, $2,424); Todd Auten of Lake Wylie (nine bass, 23 pounds, 10 ounces, $1,182); Scott Hamrick of Denver, N.C. (10 bass, 23 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,064); and Cliff Kirby of Catawba, N.C. (10 bass, 23 pounds, 1 ounce, $946).

Jerry Lucas of Raleigh, N.C., earned $840 as the big-bass award winner in the Boater Division with a 4-pound, 11-ounce bass he caught on a Carolina-rigged worm.

John Strempke of Monroe, N.C., earned $2,476 as the co-angler winner, thanks to eight bass weighing 14 pounds that he caught on a Pop-R. Strempke earned an additional $410 as winner of the big-bass award in the Co-angler Division, thanks to a 4-pound, 7-ounce bass.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Gordon Smith of Lake Wylie (four bass, 10 pounds, 7 ounces, $1,209); Randy Weddington of China Grove, N.C. (five bass, 10 pounds, 5 ounces, $590); Bryan Moeller of Columbia, S.C. (four bass, 9 pounds, 15 ounces, $531); and Carl Williams Sr. of Gastonia, N.C. (four bass, 9 pounds, 12 ounces, $472).

Following the regular season, the North Carolina 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 North Carolina Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Clarks Hill Regional near Augusta, Ga., Oct. 11-15 where they will compete against Choo Choo, Dixie, and Shenandoah 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.