Conley wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Seminole Lake

Boater Michael Conley of Bainbridge, Ga., earned $3,596 June 4 as winner of the BFL Seminole Division event on Seminole Lake. Angler: Michael Conley.

June 4, 2005 • MLF • Archives

BAINBRIDGE, Ga. – Boater Michael Conley of Bainbridge earned $3,596 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Seminole Division event on Seminole Lake. The tournament was the fourth of five regular-season Seminole Division events and earned Conley 200 points in the Boater Division.

Conley’s winning catch of five bass weighed 19 pounds, 3 ounces. He was fishing plastic worms around hydrilla when he caught his bass.

Conley earned an additional $1,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Finishing second was Shane Semmes of Wewahitchka, Fla., with five bass weighing 18 pounds, 3 ounces that earned him $1,798. Alan Lamb of Donalsonville claimed $1,177 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 18 pounds, 2 ounces. In fourth was Steve Bushmore of Bainbridge with five bass weighing 17 pounds, 3 ounces worth $915, and finishing fifth and earning $752 was Christopher Lane of Winter Haven, Fla., with five bass weighing 16 pounds, 14 ounces.

Rusty Hatton of Donalsonville took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $545 for a 9-pound, 1-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a Mann’s Dragon Lizard.

Robert Dice of Perry, Fla., earned $1,765 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 17 pounds, 14 ounces that he caught on a Zoom Horny Toad.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Mark Thomas of Chipley, Fla. (four bass, 13 pounds, 5 ounces, $882); Kell Boyett of Bainbridge (four bass, 12 pounds, 10 ounces, $577); Barbara-Gayle Black of Jacksonville, Fla. (four bass, 11 pounds, 11 ounces, $449); and Mark Gunter of Gainesville, Fla. (four bass, 10 pounds, 3 ounces, $369).

Thomas earned $268 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 6-pound, 15-ounce bass he caught on a spinnerbait.

The Seminole Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 17-18 with a two-day Super Tournament on the St. John’s River near Palatka, Fla.

Following the regular season, the Seminole Division boater with the most points will earn $1,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion. The co-angler amassing the most points will earn $500 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion 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 40 Seminole Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Lake Toho Regional near Kissimmee, Fla., Oct. 4-8 where they will compete against Bama, Bulldog and South Carolina Division anglers for one of six slots in the 2006 All-American. With a total purse of $1 million and a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing.

The $8.4 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 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.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League and seven other national tournament circuits offering a combined $30 million in awards through 214 events in 2005. The 27-year-old organization is the purveyor of America’s largest and most prestigious fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, EverStart Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as title sponsor of the FLW Tour in 1997 and today is the title sponsor of all FLW Outdoors events. For more information on Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.