Baker wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Dale Hollow

BYRDSTOWN, Tenn. – Boater Chad Baker of Piney Flats earned $4,683 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Mountain Division event on Dale Hollow Lake. The tournament was the second of five regular-season Mountain Division events and featured 183 boaters vying for the win, which earned Baker 200 points in the Boater Division.

Baker’s winning catch of five bass weighed 17 pounds, 8 ounces, and he caught them midlake on a floating worm.

Finishing second was Terry Ledford of Barbourville, Ky., with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces that earned him $2,341. Keith Monson of Burgin, Ky., claimed $1,592 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces. In fourth was J.B. King of Byrdstown with five bass weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces worth $1,217, and finishing fifth and earning $1,030 was Jordan Card of LaFollette with five bass weighing 15 pounds.

Ledford earned a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program. John Devere of Berea, Ky., took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $915 for a 6-pound, 10-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a jig.

Kelly Denton of Bristol, Va., bested 175 Co-angler Division competitors to earn $2,259 as the co-angler winner, thanks to three bass weighing 6 pounds, 10 ounces that he caught on a floating worm.

Kenny Botts of Tompkinsville, Ky., finished second with a three-bass catch weighing 6 pounds, 9 ounces worth $1,129, and in third was Johnny Taylor of Kodak with three bass weighing 6 pounds that earned him $768. Tied for fourth were Billy Gardner of Livingston (two bass) and Greg Foley of Danville, Ky. (three bass). Both anglers caught 5 pounds, 15 ounces worth of bass to earn $542 each.

Paul Flatt of Cookeville earned $438 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 4-pound, 15-ounce bass he caught on a floating worm.

The Mountain Division’s next event will be held May 15 on Douglas Lake near Sevierville, followed by an event on Watts Barr Lake in Spring City June 5. The Mountain Division will wrap up its regular season Oct. 2-3 with a two-day Super Tournament on Cherokee Lake near Morristown.

Following the regular season, the Mountain Division boater with the most points will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader. The co-angler amassing the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader in the Co-angler Division.

Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points going to the winner, 199 for second, 198 for third, and so on except for Super Tournaments, which award 300 points to the winner, 299 for second, 298 for third, and so on. The top 30 Mountain Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Wheeler Lake regional near Rogersville, Ala., Oct. 19-23, where they will compete against Bulldog, LBL and Shenandoah division anglers for one of six slots in the 2005 All-American. With a $100,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and $50,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing.

The $6.3 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 24 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 this Web site.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services they offer, please visit FLWOutdoors.com’s sponsor page.