Walmart BFL tournament preview
Bulldog, Choo Choo, LBL, Shenandoah, and Volunteer division events set for April 12
The 2014 Walmart BFL season continues with five tournaments on Saturday, April 12. The Bulldog Division will take on Lake Lanier, the Choo Choo Division heads to Lake Guntersville, the LBL Division is set to fish Kentucky and Barkley lakes, the Shenandoah Division will compete on Smith Mountain Lake and the Volunteer Division is having their second tournament of the year on Douglas Lake. Up to 400 boaters and co-anglers will be competing in each event for top awards up to $8,000 and $3,000 respectively.
When: Saturday, April 12
Where: Bulldog Division
Lake Lanier
Laurel Park
3100 Old Cleveland Highway
Gainesville, Ga.
To sign up and fish this event, click here.
Notes: The bass fishing on Lanier should be excellent. The lake is famous for its large and plentiful spotted bass but, in the spring the largemouth bite can be very good as well. Most fish will likely be caught in prespawn patterns and the whole lake will most likely be productive. Baits like umbrella rigs, drop-shot rigs, swimbaits, jigs and crankbaits will be popular choices. The winner is expected to bring in a five-bass limit weighing around 20 pounds.
Where: Choo Choo Division
Lake Guntersville
The Bait, Tackle & Grill at Goose Pond
417 Ed Hembree Drive
Scottsboro, Ala.
To sign up and fish this event, click here.
Notes: The bass fishing on Lake Guntersville is almost always excellent and this tournament is likely to be no exception. Water temperatures are being reported to be in the mid-50s and the fish will be caught all over the lake at a variety of depths. Nonetheless, shallow patterns are likely to prevail and jigs, crankbaits, umbrella rigs, lipless crankbaits, ChatterBaits and soft plastics are all likely to play a role. The winner is projected to have about 25 pounds of bass.
Where: LBL Division
Kentucky and Barkley lakes
Moors Resort & Marina
570 Moors Road
Gilbertsville, Ky.
To sign up and fish this event, click here.
Notes: The springtime bite is likely to be on in earnest for the Kentucky Lake BFL event. Most of the fish are expected to be in a prespawn pattern and jigs and crankbaits will be in heavy rotation. Secondary points, rip-rap banks, gravel bars and pockets will receive a lot of attention from tournament anglers looking for fat prespawn largemouth bass. The winning weight is expected to be close to 22 pounds.
Where: Shenandoah Division
Smith Mountain Lake
Parkway Marina
16918 Smith Mountain Lake Parkway
Huddleston, Va.
To sign up and fish this event, click here.
Notes: The bass fishing on Smith Mountain Lake should be very good. Spring is always a good time to visit Smith Mountain and despite the cold winter, the fish are likely to be moving shallow and eating well. Jigs, crankbaits, finesse baits and swimbaits will see a lot of action during the event. Competitors will be fishing throughout the lake, and spring brings the chance to see not only the big largemouth in Smith Mountain Lake but some of the scarcer smallmouth as well come to the scale. The winner is expected to bring about 20 pounds of bass to the scales
Where: Volunteer Division
Douglas Lake
Mountain Cove Marina
590 Dike Road
Kodak, Tenn.
To sign up and fish this event, click here.
Notes: The bass fishing on Douglas Lake is likely to be good. With warming waters, both largemouth and smallmouth are moving to the banks and a variety of patterns are predicted to be productive. Umbrella rigs, jigs, crankbaits, jerkbaits and soft plastics will be in the hands of many an angler. Both smallmouth and largemouth are expected to come to the scales and the winner will probably need to bring in a five-bass limit weighing nearing 20 pounds.
Walmart BFL overview
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. The 2014 BFL All-American is being held June 5-7 on Wilson Lake in Florence, Ala. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Rayovac FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
About FLW
FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2014 over the course of 229 tournaments across five tournament circuits, four of which provide an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water.” For more information about FLW and FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FLWOutdoors.com or FantasyFishing.com and look for FLW on Twitter and Facebook.