Evanoff wins Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Super Tournament on Lake of the Ozarks

Boater Steve Evanoff of Collinsville, Ill., earned 300 points and $6,468 as the winner of the BFL Ozark Division Super Tournament on Lake of the Ozarks. Angler: Steve Evanoff.

September 17, 2006 • MLF • Archives

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. – Boater Steve Evanoff of Collinsville, Ill., earned 300 points and $6,468 Sunday as the winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Ozark Division Super Tournament on Lake of the Ozarks.

Evanoff’s two-day winning catch of 10 bass weighed 35 pounds, 1 ounce.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Roger Fitzpatrick of Eldon, Mo. (10 bass, 32 pounds, 5 ounces, $3,234); Mark Dunbar of Jefferson City, Mo. (10 bass, 32 pounds, $2,158); Gene Lineberry of O’Fallon, Mo. (10 bass, 31 pounds, 13 ounces, $1,509); and Mike Riley of Jefferson City, Mo. (10 bass, 31 pounds, 2 ounces, $1,294).

Lineberry also won the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award with a 5-pound, 9-ounce bass that earned him an additional $915.

Jerry Robinson of Rogers, Ark., earned $3,234 as the co-angler winner thanks to seven bass weighing 21 pounds, 6 ounces.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jared Ballard of Fayetteville, Ark. (eight bass, 20 pounds, 14 ounces, $1,617); Dan Bowman of Osage Beach, Mo. (seven bass, 18 pounds, 6 ounces, $1,079); Stewart Bigelow of Columbia, Mo. (seven bass, 16 pounds, 12 ounces, $755); and William Hoffert of Columbia, Mo. (six bass, 15 pounds, $647).

Hoffert also earned an additional $457 as the co-angler Snickers Big Bass winner with a 5-pound bass.

The top 40 Ozark Division boaters and 40 co-anglers, based on year-end points standings, will now advance to the no-entry-fee Fort Madison Regional Championship near Fort Madison, Iowa, Oct. 5-7, where they will compete against Great Lakes, Illini and Michigan division anglers for a new Ranger boat, as well as 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 Boater Division points champion 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.

For complete Ozark Division standings, visit FLWOutdoors.com.

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 visit 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.