MINNESOTA ANGLERS TO COMPETE IN $650,000 WAL-MART FLW WALLEYE
TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP MOLINE, Ill. (Aug. 18, 2005) -
Twenty walleye anglers from Minnesota will descend upon the
Mississippi River Sept. 28-Oct. 1 to compete in the Wal-Mart
FLW Walleye Tour Championship, the most lucrative walleye tournament
in the world. The event, hosted in the Quad Cities, caps the
$2.6 million 2005 FLW Walleye Tour season. As much as $125,000
cash will go to the winning pro, and as much as $22,000 cash
will go to the winning co-angler. Minnesota pros include Scott
Allar of Welch, Mark Courts of Harris, Steve Delain of Red Wing,
Chris Gilman of Chisago City, Kevin Goligowski of Maplewood,
Ross Grothe of Northfield, Jerry Hein of Stillwater, Aaron McQuoid
of Isle, Kevin McQuoid of Isle, Eric Olson of Red Wing, Brad
Powers of Princeton, Scott Steil of Richmond and Ted Takasaki
of E. Gull Lake. All of them will compete in the Pro Division
as part of the field of 50 anglers who comprise the best walleye
fishermen in the world. Minnesota co-anglers include Sandra
Don of Shoreview, Dean Holden of Red Wing, Jeff Jandl of Minnesota
City, Kelly Klemm of Wheaton, Jackie Perry of Milaca, Jeff Sather
of Montevideo and Roger Strand of Mankato. All of them will
compete among the field of 50 co-anglers. The winning pro at
the FLW Walleye Tour Championship is guaranteed a cash award
of $75,000. If the winner is a registered owner of a Ranger
boat, he will earn a $25,000 bonus, and if his boat is equipped
with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he will receive
another $25,000 for a total cash award of $125,000. The winning
co-angler is guaranteed $11,000 cash and is eligible for a $6,000
bonus from Ranger if he is a registered owner. The winning co-angler
will also receive a $5,000 bonus if his boat is equipped with
a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard for a total cash award
of $22,000. Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day
and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros compete against other
pros, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. The full
field competes during the two-day opening round for one of 10
final-round slots based on their two-day accumulated weight.
Weights are cleared for the final round, with the winning pro
determined by the heaviest two-day total weight from days three
and four. The co-angler winner is determined on day three based
on the weight of that day's catch. Television coverage of the
FLW Walleye Tour Championship will be provided by FSN (Fox Sports
Net). Check local listings for times and availability. Sunset
Park on 18th Ave. in Rock Island will host daily 7 a.m. takeoffs
throughout the event. Daily weigh-ins will be held at the Wal-Mart
store located at 3930 44th Ave. in Moline beginning at 5 p.m.
The community is invited to attend takeoffs and weigh-ins as
well as the Family Fun Zone, which opens at 3 p.m. Friday and
1 p.m. Saturday outside the weigh-in tent at Wal-Mart. The Family
Fun Zone features interactive displays, product samples and
games for the entire family. All activities are absolutely free.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L.
Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour
and eight other national tournament circuits offering more than
$30 million in purses through 214 events in 2005. The 27-year-old
organization is the purveyor of America's largest and most prestigious
fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, EverStart
Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament
Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League,
Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series and
Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series. For more information on Wal-Mart
FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, visit FLWOutdoors.com
or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about the Quad
Cities, go to Visitquadcities.com
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