Carlson wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Mississippi River

Boater Larry Carlson of Rochester, Minn., earned $3,381 Aug. 20 as winner of the Wal-Mart BFL Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River. Angler: Larry Carlson.

August 20, 2005 • MLF • Archives

WABASHA, Minn. – Boater Larry Carlson of Rochester, Minn., earned $3,381 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River. The tournament was the fourth of five regular-season Great Lakes Division events and which earned Carlson 200 points in the Boater Division.

Carlson’s winning catch of five bass weighed 17 pounds, 5 ounces. Carlson fished a slop pattern with a Sumo frog to catch his bass. He also earned $505 as winner of the Boater Division Big Bass award, thanks to a 5-pound, 5-ounce bass.

Finishing second was Patrick McPhetridge of Waterford, Wis., with five bass weighing 14 pounds, 9 ounces that earned him $1,690. Robert Rice of Ottawa, Ill., claimed $1,106 as the third-place finisher thanks to five bass weighing 13 pounds, 8 ounces. In a fourth-place tie were Mike Brueggen of Cashton, Wis., and Bill Frisk of Holmen, Wis. Both anglers caught five bass weighing 13 pounds, 5 ounces worth $784.

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

Kyle Vonruden of La Crosse, Wis., earned $1,690 as the co-angler winner, thanks to five bass weighing 13 pounds, 5 ounces that he caught on a tube.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Kevin Anderson of Etterick, Wis. (five bass, 12 pounds, 15 ounces, $845); Bruce Biermann of Byron, Ill. (five bass, 11 pounds, 13 ounces, $555); Jesse Wolfe of Nelson, Wis. (five bass, 11 pounds, 4 ounces, $430); and Richard Sneath of Pecatonica, Ill. (five bass, 10 pounds, 7 ounces, $353).

Matt French of Congerville, Ill., earned $253 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 4-pound bass he caught on a Pop-R.

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, Wis.

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 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.