Gettys gets BFL win on Weiss Lake

CENTRE, Ala. – Boater Edward Gettys of Stevenson, Ala., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Bama Division tournament on Weiss Lake Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 20 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned Gettys $4,390 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Fort-Loudon-Tellico Lakes Regional Championship in Lenoir City, Tenn., Oct. 18-20, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Gettys was throwing a combination of crankbaits and soft-plastics around stumps and flats in shallow water to catch his bass.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Craig Daniel of Cullman, Ala. (five bass, 20-00, $2,582); Terry Goggans of Fort Payne, Ala. (five bass, 17-2, $1,722); Andy Chappell of Warrior, Ala. (five bass, 16-2, $1,205) and Jason Grape of Rainbow City, Ala. (five bass, 16-00, $1,033).

Goggans also took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $805 for a 7-pound, 1-ounce bass.

Daniel also took home and additional $500 for being the highest-placing Ranger Cup participant in the Boater Division.

Keith Henderson of Fort Payne, Ala., earned $2,577 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 14 pounds, 8 ounces that he caught while fishing a Texas-rigged Zoom Brush Hog around submerged stumps in the lower part of the lake.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jared McMillon of Ooltewah, Tenn., (five bass, 13-6, $1,288); Wayne Kilgore of Attalla, Ala. (five bass, 12-13, $858); Wayne Whisonant of Hayden, Ala. (five bass, 11-12, $601) and Jeff Benefield of Arab, Ala. (four bass, 9-15, $515).

Lester Jacobs of Rome, Ga. earned $397 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 6-pound, 4-ounce bass.

The Bama Division’s next event will be May 12 on Wheeler Lake in Decatur, Ala., followed by a tournament June 30 on Lake Neely Henry in Gadsden, Ala. The division’s final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 15-16 on Lake Guntersville in Scottsboro, Ala.

Following the end of regular-season competition, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on year-end points standings in the division will advance to the no-entry-fee Fort Loudon-Tellico Lakes Regional Championship where they will compete against top qualifiers from three other BFL divisions. At the Regional Championship boaters will fish for a new Ranger boat and Chevy truck and co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger boat. The top six boaters and top six co-anglers at the Regional Championship will also advance to the 2008 All-American presented by Chevy. With a total purse of $1 million, a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and as much as $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing. The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American also advance to the no-entry-fee $2 million 2008 Forrest Wood Cup. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the sport’s biggest championship.

The $8.8 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired. Boaters supply the boat and fish from the front deck against other boaters while co-anglers compete from the back deck against other co-anglers.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits will offer combined purses of nearly $43 million through 241 events in 2007.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.