Murphy wins Wal-Mart BFL event on Lay Lake

CALERA, Ala. – Boater Patrick Murphy of Sylacauga, Ala., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Dixie Division tournament on Lay Lake Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 16 pounds, 10 ounces. The victory earned Murphy $4,809 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Lake Seminole Regional Championship in Bainbridge, Ga., Oct. 25-27, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Murphy caught his fish around mid-lake on rocky points and shallow flats.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Jamie Horton of Centerville, Ala., (five bass, 15-15, $2,829); Scott Canterbury of Odenville, Ala., (five bass, 13-14, $1,886); Patrick Dobbins of Opelika, Ala., (five bass, 13-10, $1,320) and Allen Hayes of Pell City, Ala., (five bass, 13-9, $1,132).

Murphy took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $915 for a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass.

Michael Heard of Red Level, Ala., earned $2,829 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 14 pounds, 2 ounces that he caught while fishing a shaky-head rig on flats in 5 feet of water in creeks.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Mark Moore of Prattville, Ala., (five bass, 12-4, $1,414); James Feenker of Pell City, Ala., (five bass, 11-12, $945); Chad Bailey of Warrior, Ala., (five bass, 11-11, $660) and Jeff Ford of Trion, Ga., (five bass, 11-4, $566).

Chris Hawkins of Adger, Ala., earned $457 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 4-pound, 9-ounce bass.

The Dixie Division’s next event will be June 9 on West Point in Lanett, Ala., followed by the final event of the regular season, a two-day Super Tournament held Aug. 25-26 on Logan Martin in Pell City, 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 Lake Seminole 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, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.