Phillips wins Walleye League Heartland event on Lake Rathbun

Kackley tops co-anglers in Walmart FLW Walleye League tourney

CENTERVILLE, Iowa – Bradly Phillips of Granger, Iowa, caught five walleyes that weighed 11 pounds, 4 ounces and earned $2,450 Saturday as winner of the Walmart FLW Walleye League Heartland Division event on Lake Rathbun. Phillips’ co-angler, Kevin Kackley of Stanhope, Iowa, earned $1,225 for the win.

Phillips said he caught his fish using crankbaits on wind-blown points and mud lines in California Cove and Crappie Cove.

Rounding out the top five are Jason Ross of Collins, Iowa, who earned $1,225 and co-angler Jim Lukancic of Channahon, Ill., who earned $613 (five walleyes, 10 pounds, 9 ounces); Robert Apple of Chadwick, Ill., who earned $1,050 and co-angler Jerry Manning of Maquoketa, Iowa, who earned $525 (five walleyes, 10 pounds, 7 ounces); John Balla of Bartlett, Ill., who earned $875 and co-angler Lance Hamman of Stratford, Iowa, who earned $438 (five walleyes, 9 pounds, 14 ounces); and Bruce Sparks of Des Moines, Iowa, who earned $700 and co-angler Bernie Arterberry of Maquoketa, Iowa, who earned $350 (five walleyes, 9 pounds, 10 ounces).

Boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired for the event and fish for a combined boat weight. Boaters compete against other boaters, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. Cash payouts extend through 20th place based on a full field of 100 boats.

Four FLW Walleye League divisions – Michigan, Minnesota, Heartland and Wisconsin – each feature three one-day events. Every angler who receives weight credit earns points, with 100 points awarded to the winner, 99 for second, 98 for third, and so on. These points determine angler standings.

The top 30 boaters and top 30 co-anglers from each FLW Walleye League division at the end of the season advance to the 2009 Walmart FLW Walleye League Finals set for Sept. 17-19 on Lake Wissota in Chippewa Falls, Wis., where they will compete for a Ranger 621 powered by a 200 horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and a Ranger Reata 1760 Angler, respectively. Anglers competing in the no-entry-fee League Finals may also participate in an optional payout that could boost boater winnings by $8,400 and co-angler winnings by $4,200 based on 120 boaters and co-anglers participating. The fee for participation in the optional payout is $300 for boaters and $150 for co-anglers. Qualifiers may elect to participate any time after qualifying through the Sept. 16 FLW Walleye League Finals pretournament meeting. Please check the online rules to view the payout table.

The boater and co-angler point’s champions from each division also advance to the no-entry-fee 2009 Walmart FLW Walleye Tour Championship in Bismarck, N.D., Sept. 30-Oct. 3 for a chance to compete for as much as $150,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division. Anglers finishing the season in the top 10 in each division also receive priority entry into the Walmart FLW Walleye Tour for 2010.

The third and final regular-season event for Heartland Division anglers will be on the Illinois River in Spring Valley, Ill., Aug. 1.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.