Christie wins Wal-Mart BFL event on Grand Lake

GROVE, Okla. – Boater Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Okie Division tournament on Grand Lake Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 21 pounds, 13 ounces. The victory earned Christie $4,380 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Wright Patman Regional Championship in Texarkana, Texas, Oct. 25-27, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Christie was throwing a spinnerbait around shallow points to catch his quality-sized tournament limit of bass.

Christie also won an additional $1,000 for winning the Ranger Cup Contingency program.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Mike Collins of Eufaula, Okla. (five bass, 17-11, $2,577); Rodney Lowe of Tulsa, Okla. (five bass, 17-9, $1,719); Larry Slawson of Tulsa, Okla. (five bass, 16-4, $1,203) and James Carper of Wright City, Okla. (five bass, 16-3, $1,031).

Lowe also took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning him an additional $795 for a 7-pound, 3-ounce bass.

David Decker of Broken Arrow, Okla., earned $2,474 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 24 pounds that he caught while fishing a tube around boat docks.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are JW Blankinship of Midwest City, Okla. (five bass, 16-6, $1,237); Adam Schmidt of Joplin, Mo. (five bass, 15-15, $824); Matthew Kinsley of Columbus, Kan. (five bass, 13-5, $577) and Gregory West of Fort Gibson, Okla. (five bass, 13-3, $495).

Jeff Lander of Owasso, Okla., earned 377 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 7-pound, 7-ounce bass.

The Okie Division’s next event will be March 31 on Fort Gibson Lake in Wagoner, Okla., followed by a tournament May 12 on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Okla. The division’s fourth event will be held June 16 on the Arkansas River in Webber Falls, Okla., and the final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 15-16 on Grand Lake in Grove, Okla.

Following the end of regular-season competition, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on year-end points standings in the division will advance to the no-entry-fee Wright Patman Regional Championship where they will compete against top qualifiers from three other BFL divisions. At the Regional Championship boaters will fish for a new Ranger boat and Chevy truck and co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger boat. The top six boaters and top six co-anglers at the Regional Championship will also advance to the 2008 All-American presented by Chevy. With a total purse of $1 million, a potential $140,000 cash prize going to the winning boater and as much as $70,000 going to the winning co-angler, the All-American is one of the most prestigious and lucrative events in bass fishing. The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American also advance to the no-entry-fee $2 million 2008 Forrest Wood Cup. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the sport’s biggest championship.

The $8.8 million Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League features 28 divisions nationwide. In BFL competition, boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired. Boaters supply the boat and fish from the front deck against other boaters while co-anglers compete 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, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, 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 will offer combined purses of nearly $43 million through 238 events in 2007.

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.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.