Christie victorious on Arkansas River

WEBBER FALLS, Okla. – Boater Charles Christie of Sallisaw, Okla., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Okie Division tournament on the Arkansas River Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 12 pounds, 15 ounces. The victory earned Christie $3,329 plus a $587 Ranger Boat contingency bonus and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Wright Patman Lake Regional Championship in Texarkana, Texas, Oct. 25-27, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Christie fished a black and blue 1/2-ounce swimming jig in the weeds. He caught fish all day but caught larger ones in the afternoon.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Walter Andries of Coweta, Okla. (four bass, 11-6, $1,958); Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla. (four bass, 11-0, $1,307); Chris Jones of Pocola, Okla. (four bass, 10-15, $914); and John Garcia of Mustang, Okla. (four bass, 10-14, $783).

Darren Hahne of Ottawa, Ill., took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $520 for a 5-pound, 13-ounce bass.

Nathan McCartney of Enid, Okla., earned $1,958 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to three bass weighing 9 pounds, 4 ounces.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Clayton Coppin of Muskogee, Okla. (three bass, 7-4, $816); Nick Muzljakovich of Wagoner, Okla. (three bass, 7-4, $816); Mark Johnson of Henryetta, Okla. (two bass, 7-1, $457); and Brent Haggard of Gans, Okla. (three bass, 7-0, $392).

McCartney earned $260 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 5-pound, 3-ounce bass.

The Okie Division’s next event 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 Lake 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 241 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 Walmart.com.

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