Muir wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League event on Chesapeake Bay

ELKTON, Md. – Boater Donald Muir of Nottingham, Md., earned $3,592 Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Northeast Division event on Chesapeake Bay. The tournament was the fourth of five regular-season Northeast Division events and earned Muir 200 points in the Boater Division.

Muir’s winning catch of five bass weighed 15 pounds, 8 ounces. He was throwing a top-water Yum Buzz Frog over submerged wood and weeds.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Chris Swearer of Pottstown, Pa. (five bass, 15 pounds, 6 ounces, $1,796); Howard Mahan of Oxford, Pa., and Joseph Thompson of Ridley Park, Pa., tied for third (five bass, 14 pounds, 6 ounces, $1,019); and Kenneth Enders of Joppa, Md. (five bass, 14 pounds, $718).

Swearer also won the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award with a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass earning him an additional $460.

Steven Wannberg of Wilmington, Del., won the Co-angler Division and earned $1,796 thanks to five bass weighing 16 pounds, 3 ounces. Wannberg also earned $230 as the co-angler Snickers Big Bass winner with a 4-pound, 8-ounce bass.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Brandon Pyles of Frederick, Md. (five bass, 15 pounds, 1 ounces, $898); Stephen Watts of Rising Sun, Md. (five bass, 11 pounds, $598); Joseph Booker of New London Township, Pa. (five bass, 10 pounds, 13 ounces, $419); and Dan Phillips Jr. of Aberdeen, Md. (five bass, 10 pounds, 4 ounces, $359).

The Northeast Division next stop will be held on the Potomac River near LaPlata, Md., Sept. 9-10 for their two-day Super Tournament.

The top 40 Northeast Division boaters and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the no-entry-fee Smith Mountain Regional Championship near Moneta, Va, Oct. 19-21, where they will compete against Empire, North Carolina and Piedmont anglers for a new Ranger boat and a Chevy truck in the Boater Division plus six slots in the no-entry-fee 2007 Wal-Mart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. With a total purse of $1 million and a potential $140,000 cash 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 Northeast Division boater with the most points who advances the farthest at the All-American will earn $10,000 as the Yamaha “Be the Best” points champion. The co-angler points champion who advances the 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 $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.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006.

For more information or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or browse FLWOutdoors.com.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.