Virtual Championship 2006: Semifinals
Semifinal round – Bosley vs. Hibdon
Virtual Championship 2006
Semifinal round – Bosley vs. Hibdon
You’ve chosen the semifinalists, and now the head-to-head matchups are getting even more interesting, reflecting both the public’s prognostication and will. Only the Wal-Mart FLW Tour Championship remains on the tour-level bass-fishing horizon before 2006 is etched forever in the history books. Will voters correctly forecast the FLW Tour champion? Learn more about qualifying pros while casting your daily ballot.
FLWOutdoors.com is once again hosting its own “virtual championship” – a featured daily poll where readers can make their own picks and weigh in on who they think will be crowned champion during the Aug. 2-5 year-ending event on Logan Martin Lake in Birmingham, Ala.
In the days leading up to the championship, FLWOutdoors.com is asking readers to vote on who they think will advance in each of the daily bracket challenges (polls are located on the right-hand side of the FLW Outdoors and FLW Tour home pages). After each day’s votes are tabulated, the virtual championship bracket will be immediately updated to reflect the readers’ choices.
Revisit Virtual Championship 2006 daily and be a part of the voting body that could be the first to correctly anticipate the championship winner. Vote each day to support your favorite qualified angler and to learn more about the 48 pros who will actually compete on Logan Martin Lake for a top prize of $500,000.
Today’s featured bracket matchup: Brennan Bosley (No. 19) vs. Dion Hibdon (No. 43)
Brennan Bosley – No.19 seed: The 2006 season may be a defining year for this young Benton, Ark., angler’s career. Brennan Bosley’s back-to-back top-10s at lakes Murray and Pickwick catapulted him to the top of the points standings and his first FLW Tour Championship appearance. On Lake Murray, the shallow-water specialist had three consecutive limits weighing well over the magical 20-pound mark – the heaviest being 26 pounds, 5 ounces – securing a second-place finish in the points race behind Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year Anthony Gagliardi. He followed up with a solid seventh-place performance at Pickwick and remained fairly consistent at the other tour stops. This is a breakout year for Bosley, a Wet Ones pro, and a good performance at Logan Martin will only add to his outstanding 2006 season.
Dion Hibdon – No. 43 seed: After five qualifying tournaments, veteran pro Dion Hibdon was languishing in 75th place in the 2006 FLW Tour points race. He knew that in order to qualify for the 2006 FLW Tour Championship, he would need an amazing performance on legendary Lake Champlain. While Lake Champlain is notorious for having some of the best smallmouth fishing in the country, Hibdon, who has earned over $650,000 in his career, chose to target big largemouths in the grass. The Stover, Mo., pro made the hour-long run south each day to the shallow Ticonderoga, N.Y., area of the lake. The plan worked brilliantly as Hibdon bagged over 40 pounds during the opening round and finished with a fourth-place check for $25,000, and more importantly the championship berth he coveted. Hibdon who won the 2000 FLW Tour Championship on the Red River, now has the unique opportunity to become the first angler in history to win the championship twice in his career.
Virtual Championship 2006 (click for complete details and poll results)
Wal-Mart FLW Tour Championship 2006 (click for more information)
Semifinals: Chapman vs. Strader
Semifinals: Moynagh vs. Blaukat
Semifinals: Yelas vs. Lefebre
Semifinals: Rojas vs. Kennedy
Semifinals: Morehead vs. Yamamoto
Semifinals: Nixon vs. Kilby
Semifinals: Herren vs. Wendlandt
Semifinals: Gagliardi vs. Knapp
Correia vs. Knapp
Wendlandt vs. Ferguson
Couch vs. Blaukat
Chapman vs. Harrison
Robertson vs. Dudley
Bosley vs. Shaw
Morgan vs. Morehead
Browne vs. Kilby
Chapman vs. Colson
Fukae vs. Jones
Hawkes vs. Yelas
Klinger vs. Kennedy
Rojas vs. Bolton
Le vs. Lefebre
Monsoor vs. Clausen
Pirch vs. Ehrler
Nixon vs. Cochran
Bolivar vs. Yamamoto
Bennett vs. Hibdon
Martin vs. Berry
Scheide vs. Strader
Moynagh vs. Stricker
Herren vs. Namiki
Gagliardi vs. Monroe