Sanders wins Wal-Mart BFL event on Lake Winneconne

Boater Ed Sanders of Fremont, Wis., earned $4,195 June 18 as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division event on Lake Winneconne. Angler: Ed Sanders.

June 18, 2005 • MLF • Archives

WINNECONNE, Wis. – Boater Ed Sanders of Fremont earned $4,195 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division event on Lake Winneconne. The tournament was the second of five regular-season Great Lakes Division events and featured 136 boaters vying for the win, which earned Sanders 200 points in the Boater Division.

Sanders’ winning catch of five bass weighed 12 pounds, 4 ounces. Sanders was fishing heavy cover with a scum frog when he caught his bass.

Sanders earned an additional $2,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup and Garmin Grand awards.

Finishing second was Robert Greenwood of Barneveld with five bass weighing 11 pounds, 9 ounces that earned him $2,097. Jay Wollenburg of Waukesha claimed $1,373 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 11 pounds, 6 ounces. In fourth was Troy Anderson of Galesville with five bass weighing 11 pounds, 4 ounces worth $1,068, and finishing fifth and earning $877 was Wayne Meetz of Appleton with five bass weighing 11 pounds, 3 ounces.

Anderson took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $680 for a 3-pound, 8-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a jig.

Thomas Darst Jr. of Franklin earned $2,082 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 10 pounds, 13 ounces that he caught on a Senko.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Dave Durbala of Ft. Madison, Iowa (five bass, 10 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,041); Derek Meier of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Rob Russow of Brookfield, Ill., tied for third place. Each co-angler caught five bass weighing 9 pounds, 6 ounces worth $605. Scott Zagrodnik of Brooklyn finished in fifth place (three bass, 7 pounds, 6 ounces, $435).

Pat Herolt of Waterford earned $338 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 3-pound, 2-ounce bass he caught on a jig.

The Great Lakes Division’s next event will be held July 23 on the Mississippi River near Prairie Du Chien, followed by an event on the Mississippi River near Wabasha Aug. 20. The Great Lakes Division will wrap up its regular season Oct. 1-2 with a two-day Super Tournament on the Mississippi River near Prairie Du Chien.

Following the regular season, the Great Lakes 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 Great Lakes Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Ohio River Regional near Paducah, Ky., Oct. 11-15 where they will compete against Arkie, Hoosier and Michigan 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 visit FLWOutdoors.com.

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.