Eakins wins Wal-Mart BFL event on Lake of the Ozarks

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. – Boater Troy Eakins of Nixa, Mo., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Ozark Division tournament on Lake of the Ozarks Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 22 pounds, 12 ounces. The victory earned Eakins $4,874 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Mississippi River Regional Championship in Fort Madison, Iowa, Oct. 4-6, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Eakins was throwing his own jig, an Eakins Jig, around shallow boat docks to catch his quality-sized tournament limit of bass.

Eakins also took home an additional $1,500 for being the highest-placing participant in the Ranger Cup and Powered by Yamaha contingency programs.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Marcus Sykora of Osage Beach, Mo. (five bass, 21-13, $2,867); James Dill of Laurie, Mo. (five bass, 21-6, $1,911); Bob Richardson of Granite City, Ill. (five bass, 20-10, $1,338) and Shawn Kowal of Linn Creek, Mo. (five bass, 20-3, $1,147).

Richardson also took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning him an additional $935 for a 6-pound, 12-ounce bass.

Timothy Vieth of Marthasville, Mo., earned $2,867 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 19 pounds, 11 ounces that he caught while fishing a jerkbait around rocky, wind-blown points.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Adrian Hymas of Wentzville, Mo. (five bass, 19-3, $1,434); Todd Eno of O’Fallon, Mo. (five bass, 17-15, $957); Steve Kiniry of Kansas City, Mo. (five bass, 15-5, $669) and Terry Bowers of Blue Springs, Mo. (four bass, 14-12, $573).

Chad Smith of Bonnots Mill, Mo., earned $467 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 6-pound, 14-ounce bass.

The Ozark Division’s next event will be April 14 on Table Rock Lake in Branson West, Mo., followed by a tournament May 5 on Grand Lake in Grove, Okla. The division’s fourth event will be held June 30 on Truman Lake in Clinton, Mo., and the final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 15-16 on Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Mo.

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 Mississippi River 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, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.