Tucker wins BFL event on Grand River

GRAND HAVEN, Mich. – Boater Douglas Tucker of Albion, Mich., won the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Michigan Division tournament on the Grand River Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 15 pounds, 15 ounces. The victory earned Tucker $2,986 plus $527 Ranger contingency bonus and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Oct. 4-6 Mississippi River Regional Championship in Fort Madison, Iowa, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

Tucker caught his bass flipping a black-and-blue jig, fishing a deep offshore structure on the main river.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Marc Snyder of Saint Johns, Mich. (five bass, 13-15, $1,757); Scott Dye of Ionia, Mich. (five bass, 13-11, $1,172); Norm Greene Jr. of Grand Haven, Mich. (five bass, 12-11, $820); and Edward Rogers Jr. of Grand Rapids, Mich. (five bass, 12-5, $703).

Larry Regina of South Bend, Ind., took home the Boater Division Snickers Big Bass award, earning $450 for a 4-pound, 11-ounce bass.

Robert Hine of Columbia City, Ind., earned $1,757 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 10 pounds, 7 ounces that he caught while fishing a Senko near the White Lake area.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Rick Roberts of Macomb, Mich. (four bass, 10-7, $1,757); Jeremy Olson of Pierson, Mich. (five bass, 9-13, $585); Joshua Kolodzaike of Toledo, Ohio (four bass, 9-8, $410); and Paul Grove of Elkhart, Ind. (five bass, 9-6, $351).

Hine earned $450 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 4-pound, 11-ounce bass.

The Michigan Division’s fourth event will be held Aug. 25 on the Detroit River in Trenton, Mich., and the final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 15-16 on the Detroit River in Trenton.

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 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.