Johnson best boater at Wal-Mart BFL event on Hudson River

CATSKILL, N.Y. – Boater Robert Johnson of Orwigsburg, Pa., earned $2,266 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Northeast Division event on the Hudson River. The tournament was the third of five regular-season Northeast Division events and earned Johnson 200 points in the Boater Division.

Johnson’s winning catch of five bass weighed 17 pounds, 10 ounces. Johnson threw spinnerbaits around rocks and bluffs to catch his bass.

Finishing second was David Wolak of Warrior Run, Pa., with five bass weighing 17 pounds, 6 ounces that earned him $1,133. Robert Soley of Ewing, N.J., claimed $743 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 14 pounds, 2 ounces. In fourth was Russell Colwell of Baltimore, Md., with five bass weighing 12 pounds, 6 ounces worth $577, and finishing fifth and earning $474 was Thomas Lavictoire of West Rutland, Vt., with five bass weighing 10 pounds, 12 ounces.

Colwell took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $270 for a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a crankbait.

Wolak earned an additional $500 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.

Chad Shutty of Northern Cambria, Pa., earned $1,133 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 12 pounds, 8 ounces that he caught on Senkos and crankbaits.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are William Higgins of Monroe Township, N.J. (four bass, 10 pounds, 11 ounces, $567); Geoff Evans of Turnersville, N.J. (four bass, 7 pounds, 4 ounces, $370); Dan Phillips Jr. of Aberdeen, Md. (five bass, 7 pounds, 3 ounces, $288); and Frank Boncore of Pottsville, Pa. (four bass, 6 pounds, 13 ounces, $237).

Higgins earned $135 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 3-pound, 13-ounce bass he caught on a worm.

The Northeast Division’s next event will be held Aug. 27 on the Potomac River near Marbury, Md. The Northeast Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 17-18 with a two-day Super Tournament on Lake Hopatcong near Cedar Knolls, N.J.

Following the regular season, the Northeast 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 Northeast Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Kerr Lake Regional near Henderson, N.C., Oct. 18-22 where they will compete against Empire, Mountain and Music City 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 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.