Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail to wrap up season on Lake Travis
JONESTOWN, Texas – The $1 million Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Lay’s will stage its fourth and final regular-season event May 22-23 on Lake Travis near Jonestown. Hosted by Lago Vista Economic Development Committee, the tournament will pay out as much as $205,500 to as many as 200 Pro Division anglers and 200 co-anglers.
Water level is likely to play a big factor at Lake Travis, according to central Texas fishing guide Mike Hastings. “The lake was 15 feet low in early February, but all that could change by the end of May,” Hastings said. “If the lake gets up, they’ll be flipping jigs and soft plastics in the willows and buck brush. If it stays low, they’ll be relating to man-made brush piles in 4 to 10 feet of water.” Hastings says May is a prime time to fish Travis and expects winning weights to reach the 25- to 30-pound mark. He named medium-diving crankbaits as the lure likely to haul in the winning limit.
Anglers will take off from Jones Brothers Marina located at 10601 Lakeside in Jonestown at 6:30 a.m. both days. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m., and Sunday’s weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 201 Walton Way in Cedar Park beginning at 4 p.m. The community is encouraged to attend takeoffs and weigh-ins.
Pro Division anglers will be looking to earn as much as $10,000 cash plus a 519 VS Ranger boat valued at $35,000 as the winner. If the winner is the original owner of a Ranger boat, he is eligible to earn another $20,000 cash for a total prize package worth $65,000. Ranger will also award $5,000 to the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program, and Garmin will award the winning pro $1,000 if the winning pro uses only Garmin electronics and at least one unit is a qualifying unit. Co-anglers will compete for a top award worth as much as $34,000, including a 195 Ranger if contingency guidelines are met.
The top 50 pros and co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the $195,000 Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail Championship Oct. 16-17 on Lake O’ the Pines near Longview. The winning pro at the championship can earn as much as $70,000 in cash and prizes, including a Ranger boat.
In TTT competition, 200 points are awarded to the winner, 199 points for second, 198 for third, and so on. Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points. These points determine angler standings. Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. Two hundred pros and 200 co-anglers comprise a full field.
For more information about the Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or visit FLWOutdoors.com. Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors is the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing. Other FLW Outdoors tournament trails include the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the EverStart Series, the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour, and the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997.