Grimes wins Thousand Islands BFL event - Major League Fishing

Grimes wins Thousand Islands BFL event

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Boater Division competitor Raymond Grimes of Albright, W. Va., was the winner of the BFL Northeast Division event on Thousand Islands in Clayton, N.Y. Angler: Raymond E Grimes.
August 21, 2004 • MLF • Archives

CLAYTON, N.Y. – Boater Division competitor Raymond Grimes of Albright, W. Va., earned $4,872 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Northeast Division event on Thousand Islands in Clayton. The tournament was the fourth of five regular-season Northeast Division events. The regular season will wrap up Sept. 11-12 with a two-day Super Tournament on Chautauqua Lake in Bemus Point.

Grimes’ five-bass catch weighed 22 pounds, 14 ounces, and he caught them on a green pumpkin tube on a 1/2-ounce jig. He was fishing in 16 to 18 feet of water on a weedline edge with rocks.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Michael Murphy of Norwich (five bass, 22 pounds, 1 ounce, $2,436); Gary Weir of Gouverneur (five bass, 19 pounds, 1 ounce, $1,657); Michael Beebe of Conneautville, Pa. (five bass, 18 pounds, 12 ounces, $1,267); and Mark Rice of Milton, Pa. (five bass, 18 pounds, 5 ounces, $1,072).

Mark Schafer of Williamstown, N.J., earned a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program, and he earned another $250 from Yamaha because his boat is powered by a Yamaha outboard. Pete Anderson of Titusville, Pa., earned $960 as the Boater Division big-bass award winner with a 6-pound, 6-ounce bass he caught on a 1/2-ounce black and blue jig.

Rex Magargle of Turbotville, Pa., won the Co-angler Division with a five-bass catch weighing 17 pounds, 13 ounces. He caught his tournament-winning bass on a Senko and earned $2,436 for the win.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Anthony Watts of Brookhaven, Pa. (five bass, 17 pounds, 3 ounces, $1,218); Tony Dorman of Springville, Pa. (five bass, 15 pounds, 6 ounces, $828); Daniel Hann of Williamson (five bass, 15 pounds, 3 ounces, $633); and John Ciavaglia of Pittsford (five bass, 15 pounds, 1 ounce, $536).

Ciavaglia caught a 6-pound bass to win Co-angler Division big-bass honors and $480. He caught his big bass on a Senko.

Following the regular season, the top 30 Northeast Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Kerr Lake regional near Henderson, N.C., Oct. 5-9. They will compete against qualifying anglers from the Buckeye, Carolina and Savannah River divisions for one of six slots in the 2005 All-American, one of competitive bass fishing’s most prestigious events. The winning boater at the All-American will take home $100,000 cash, and the winning co-angler will earn $50,000 cash.

Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points awarded 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. These points determine angler standings. The Northeast Division boater who amasses the most points at the end of the regular season will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader, and the co-angler earning the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader in the Co-angler Division.

Anglers who compete in all five regular-season events within a division but do not advance to regional competition are eligible to fish the Chevy Trucks Wild Card for an All-American berth. Six nationwide regionals plus the Wild Card will each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the All-American for a total field of 84 competitors.

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.