Cooper wins Wal-Mart BFL event on James River

RICHMOND, Va. – Boater Greg Cooper of Yorktown, Va., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Shenandoah Division tournament on the James River Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 13 pounds, 11 ounces. The victory earned Cooper $3,607 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Potomac River Regional Championship in Marbury, Md., Oct. 11-13, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Cooper fished a run-and-gun pattern in grass and wood, flipping a buzzbait.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Chris Atwell of Mechanicsville, Va. (five bass, 12-6, $2,122); Steve Wagner of New Kent, Va. (five bass, 11-7, $1,413); Jeff Francis of Richmond, Va. (five bass, 11-5, $990); and Wesley Harris of Rustburg, Va. (five bass, 11-1, $849).

Mark Rossow of Alexandria, Va., took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $600 for a 4-pound, 13-ounce bass.

William Ambler of Roanoke, Va., earned $2,041 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to four bass weighing 13 pounds, 1 ounce that he caught while fishing a Texas rig on bushes using Berkley PowerBait worms.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Austin Harris of Cayce, S.C. (five bass, 9-13, $1,021); Dana Thomas of Appomattox, Va. (three bass, 9-7, $683); David Deciucis of Chester, Va. (five bass, 8-13, $476); and Kirk Horton of Fredericksburg, Va. (five bass, 8-5, $408).

Gary Payne of Goochland, Va., earned $280 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 5-pound, 7-ounce bass.

The Shenandoah Division’s final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 22-23 on the Potomac River in Woodbridge, Va.

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 Potomac 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 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.