DUMFRIES, Va. – Boater Bill Naron of Huntingtown, Md., earned $5,399 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Shenandoah Division Super Tournament event on the Potomac River. The tournament earned Naron 300 points in the Boater Division. He earned an additional $1,000 as winner of the Ranger Cup award.
Naron’s winning catch of 10 bass weighed 30 pounds, 8 ounces. He threw a Berkley Power Worm around deep wood cover to catch his bass.
Finishing second was Shayne Berlo of Vienna with 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 3 ounces that earned him $2,635. Barry Steed of Balt, Md., claimed $1,285 as the third-place finisher thanks to 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 2 ounces. In fourth was Wayne Jennings of Prince George with 10 bass weighing 26 pounds, 12 ounces worth $1,157, and finishing fifth and earning $1,028 was Richard Marshall of Waynesboro, Pa., with 10 bass weighing 25 pounds, 13 ounces.
Berlo took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $950 for a 4-pound, 12-ounce bass. He caught his big bass on a spinnerbait.
Steve Seen of Davidsonville, Md., earned $2,699 as the co-angler winner, thanks to 10 bass weighing 21 pounds that he caught on Yamamoto Senkos and spinnerbaits.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Walter Whitman Jr. of Greensboro, N.C. (10 bass, 18 pounds, 15 ounces, $1,318); Marty Sparger of Reston (nine bass, 17 pounds, 8 ounces, $643); Scott Goodson of Stafford (nine bass, 16 pounds, 3 ounces, $578); and Bryan Nuckols of Frederick, Md. (seven bass, 13 pounds, 11 ounces, $514).
Kevin Bradbury of Dunkirk, Md., earned $475 as the co-angler big-bass award winner with a 5-pound, 9-ounce bass he caught on a Pop-R.
Following the regular season, the Shenandoah 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.
The top 40 Shenandoah Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Clarks Hill Regional near Augusta, Ga., Oct. 11-15 where they will compete against Choo Choo, Dixie and North 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 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.