Elder earns BFL win at Center Hill Lake

Botts, Williams tie for co-angler win

SILVERPOINT, Tenn. – Boater Brian Elder of Lebanon, Tenn., earned $4,686 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Music City Division event on Center Hill Lake. The tournament was the second of five regular-season Music City Division events and featured 138 boaters vying for the win, which earned Elder 200 points in the Boater Division.

Elder’s winning catch of five bass weighed 12 pounds, 5 ounces. He was fishing a watermelon and chartreuse worm around trees on very steep banks to catch his bass.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Brad Knight of Wartburg, Tenn. (five bass, 11 pounds, 12 ounces, $2,343); Danny Boggs of Fayetteville, Tenn. (four bass, 11 pounds, $1,562); Anthony Horn of Cookeville, Tenn. (five bass, 10 pounds, 15 ounces, $1,093); and Frank Lannom of Mount Juliet, Tenn., and Terry Steele of Sparta, Tenn., tied for fifth place (five bass, 10 pounds, 13 ounces, $898).

Michael Harris of Murfreesboro, Tenn., took Boater Division big-bass award honors, earning $690 for a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass.

Mike Williams of Lancaster, Ky., and Kenny Botts of Tompkinsville, Ky., tied for the Co-angler Division win to earn $1,728 each. Both anglers caught a five-bass limit weighing 9 pounds, 8 ounces on Carolina rigs around submerged structure.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Van Davidson of Tullahoma, Tenn. (five bass, 9 pounds, 6 ounces, $768); Douglas Caudill of Elizabethtown, Ky., (four bass, 8 pounds, 1 ounce, $538) and Eric Montgomery of Lebanon, Tenn., (four bass, 7 pounds, 8 ounces, $461).

Jerry Ludwig of Lawrenceburg, Ind., earned $335 as the co-angler big-bass award winner.

The Music City Division’s next event will be held May 6 on Old Hickory Lake near Gallatin, Tenn., followed by an event on Kentucky/Barkley Lakes near Buchanan, Tenn., June 17. The Music City Division will wrap up its regular season Sept. 30-Oct. 1 with a two-day Super Tournament on Old Hickory Lake near Gallatin, Tenn.

Following the regular season, the Music City Division boater with the most points who advances farthest in the Wal-Mart BFL All-American will earn $10,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion. The co-angler points champion who advances farthest will earn $5,000 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 Music City Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the Lake Chickamauga Regional Championship near Hixson, Tenn., Oct. 12-14 where they will compete against Bulldog, Dixie and LBL division anglers for one of six slots in the 2007 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 $8.8 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, as well as the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $36.9 million through 241 events in 2006.

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.