According to Reuters, “The move gives Bass Pro the equity financing necessary to pursue Cabela’s and makes such a deal more likely, given the potential cost savings and synergies a combination of the two U.S. hunting and fishing retailers would bring.”
Bass Pro and Cabela’s are generally regarded as the number one and number two big box outdoor retailers in North America. Together they would form a giant worth upwards of $7 billion.
FLW WILL FISH FOR KIDS CHARITY TOURNAMENT RAISES MORE THAN $203,000 FOR ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
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ROGERS, Ark. (April 19, 2016) – The Walmart FLW Tour anglers weren’t the only big winners on Beaver Lake last weekend – A record-breaking total of $203,894.60 was raised for the Dental Clinic at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Monday at the Will Fish for Kids Bill Kerr Memorial Charity Tournament on Beaver Lake presented by Quaker State.
Entry fees paid by pro contestants and Walmart employees, as well as corporate boat sponsorships, were collected prior to the event. That money, along with funds raised on Sunday night’s registration dinner and silent auction, combined to smash the previous record of $88,710 which was donated in 2015.
“This was just an incredible event to be a part of and I am so proud of everybody that stayed in Arkansas after the FLW Tour event and could participate,” said Walmart FLW Tour pro Shirley Crain of Fort Smith, Arkansas, who was the honorary chair organizer for the event. “It was an honor to host this event and it warms my heart to know what we accomplished for the kids.”
Since 2005 Will Fish for Kids has raised more than $940,594 for the Dental Clinic at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
The tournament was won by Walmart pro David Dudley and Jason Piper, who also represented Walmart. The Walmart duo had a magical day on Beaver Lake, catching a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds, 7 ounces – larger than any limit ever before weighed in FLW competition at Beaver Lake. Though the charity tournament was not nearly as strenuous or stressful as a Walmart FLW Tour event, catching 23-7 on Beaver Lake was still quite a feat.
“We talk about lakes that you can make up ground at, like Okeechobee,” says Dudley. “At Beaver Lake, once you’re 5 pounds behind you’ve accepted that you’re not going to win. But after today I won’t ever count myself out again.”
The top 10 teams finished the tournament:
1st: Walmart pro David Dudley and Jason Piper (Walmart), five bass, 23-7
2nd: Old Spice pro Greg Bohannan and Tony Bauer (Anything Possible), five bass, 16-11
3rd: Kerry Milner and Tom Martin (Northside Steel, Inc.), five bass, 15-6
4th: David Knight and Kenneth Knight (Walmart), five bass, 14-14
5th: Jay Johnston and Charlie Spooner (Walmart), five bass, 14-10
6th: Walmart pro Mark Rose and Jim Enneking (Strike King), five bass, 14-5
7th: Blake Smith and Chris Smith (Reynolds Consumer Products), five bass, 14-0
8th: Bryan Thrift and Jeff George (Walmart/Charlie’s Worms), five bass, 13-12
9th: Bobby Dennis and Michael Morgan (Luck-E-Strike), five bass, 13-7
10th: Quaker State pro Jimmy Houston and Blake Stout (Quaker State), five bass, 13-5
A complete list of results can be found at WillFishForKids.com.
The Will Fish for Kids charity auction and tournament was started in 1992. In 2015, the tournament was renamed to the Will Fish for Kids – Bill Kerr Memorial Charity Tournament in memory of the late Bill Kerr.
Bill lived most of his life in Bentonville and worked for Walmart Stores Inc. for over 25 years. For the last several years Bill had been with Outdoor Cap, Inc. He also served on the board of Igloo Corporation. Bill enjoyed fishing and was a constant and enthusiastic supporter of the Will Fish for Kids tournament and Arkansas Children’s Hospital.
All the money donated through this event goes to the Dental Clinic at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Dental problems are the number one reason for children missing school and if a child has dental problems, it has a direct effect on their overall health.
The Dental Clinic at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital also provides pediatric dental care for children with significant medical and/or developmental problems.
.For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. To learn more about the Dental Clinic at the Arkansas Children’s Hospital visit ARChildrens.org.
FLW POWERS UP SPONSORSHIP LINEUP, ADDS DURACELL
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MINNEAPOLIS (April 19, 2016) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, announced today that Duracell, the No. 1 battery brand trusted by consumers all over the world, has signed a sponsorship agreement to become the official battery sponsor of FLW. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
“Duracell is excited about this opportunity to partner with FLW and Walmart to power up the 2016 fishing season,” said Jeff Jarrett, SVP of Marketing for Duracell. “Millions of people depend on Duracell to deliver long-lasting power to the devices needed most during their fishing and camping excursions. We encourage families to get outdoors and enjoy our lakes and rivers, and appreciate the FLW organization’s commitment to growing a new generation of fishing enthusiasts.”
As an FLW sponsor, Duracell will have a presence on all FLW media platforms, including more than 235 tournaments across North America, FLW Bass Fishing magazine, the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, FLW’s social media outlets and exposure at FLWFishing.com. Duracell will also team with FLW for the National Fishing and Boating Expos being held at Walmart stores around the country, June 3-5, 2016. FLW and its partners will present a two-hour expo at local Walmart stores that will be packed with games, giveaways and fishing tips from FLW anglers for local fisheries to help families make the most of their time on the water. A complete list of Walmart stores hosting National Fishing and Boating Week expos will be posted in May at FLWFishing.com.
“Duracell is the most recognized and trusted battery brand by consumers,” said FLW President of Marketing, Trish Blake. “FLW is proud to be associated with a household name that recognizes the importance of fishing and the outdoors.”
For more than 50 years Duracell, whose batteries have offered consumers long-lasting and “Trusted Everywhere” power for flashlights, lanterns, headlamps, watches, medical devices, toys and more, from AA to rechargeable battery needs. Duracell batteries can be purchased around the world at discount stores, drug stores, markets, specialty- stores, warehouse clubs, and office supply stores, as well as Duracell.com.
April 18, 2016 by Jody White and Garrick Dixon
Beaver Lake was a little dirtier than usual this year at the Walmart FLW Tour presented by Jack Link’s, and that allowed pros to tempt bass with a wider range of baits and techniques. If you’re fishing an Ozark impoundment with a little color to it sometime in the spring, you may want to give these baits a chance.
1. Scott Canterbury earned the win with a trio of jigs. One was a 3/8-ounce Dirty Jigs Luke Clausen Signature Series Casting Jig(Canterbury craw) teamed with a NetBait Paca Slim (green pumpkin). The other two were 1/2- and 5/8-ounce Dirty Jigs Scott Canterbury Signature Series Flippin’ Jigs (Canterbury craw and chocolate thunder) trimmed with various chunks and trailers including a NetBait Paca Chunk. He fished the casting jig on 15-pound P-Line Ultimate Fluorocarbon and the other two on 20- and 25-pound-test. For all of them, the Quaker State pro used a 7-6, heavy power Halo Twilite Series II casting rod and a 7.3:1 gear ratio Ardent Apex Grand reel.
2. As usual, Darrel Robertson kept is simple, catching most of his fish on a wacky-rigged Yamamoto Senko early in the tournament and then transitioning to a 1/2-ounce jig made especially for him by Clifford Pirch.
3. Keystone Light pro Jeff Sprague caught the vast majority of his fish with a custom-painted Lucky Craft RC 1.5 squarebill. He says he also caught some on a 1/2-ounce V&M Flippin’ Jig tipped with a V&M Wild Thang Craw. For the squarebill, Sprague relied on a 7-2, moderate action, Reel Time Rod Bushido cranking rod and 12-pound-test HI-SEAS 100% Fluorocarbon.
4. Scott Martin truly used a little of everything this week. From a drop-shot to a crankbait to a ChatterBait to a swimbait, he caught fish on different tackle nearly every day. The one common line was liberal use of his signature Okuma TCS rods.
5. Finally getting a little revenge on Beaver Lake, JT Kenney primarily flipped and cranked. When flipping, he used either a Gambler MegaDaddy or Burner Craw on the back of a 3/8-ounce, JT’s the best color ever-colored Nichols Lures Impact Flipping Jig. On the cranking side, Kenney used a blue-truese-colored 6th Sense Crush 250 MD. He fished both baits on Halo rods and used 16-pound-test Sunline Shooter Fluorocarbon for the jig and 10-pound-test for the crank.
6. Andy Morgan caught ‘em on a good selection of baits, but his two primary weapons were a 1/2-ounce, sexy shad-colored, double willow War Eagle spinnerbait and a War Eagle Flipping Jig in the 1/2-ounce model and a prototype 5/8-ounce size. For a little more glide, Morgan tipped the jig with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk. Using Lew’s reels and 16-pound-test Gamma Edge Fluorocarbon throughout, the G.O.A.T. paired his spinnerbait with a 7-foot, heavy-action iRod Genesis II casting rod and used his signature Andy’s Light Flip/Junk Rod model for the jig.
7. Using the same stuff he used at Grand Lake last week, Quaker State pro Matt Arey caught most of his fish on a homemade jig and a Lunkerhunt Revealer Tube with chartreuse in the tentacles. For tackle, Arey used Okuma Helios rods – a 7-6, heavy-action rod for the jig and a 7-3, heavy-action rod for the tube – with an 8.1:1 gear ratio Okuma Helios TCS reel and 20-pound-test P-Line Ultimate Fluorocarbon.
8. For the first FLW Tour top 10 of his career, Chris Whitson tossed a pretty eclectic combo. An orange, 1/2-ounce Showboat Lures spinnerbait and blue shad-colored War Eagle spinnerbait got the call some of the time, as well as a white Z-Man ChatterBait and a Showboat Lures flipping jig with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk. He fished all of it with 15-pound-test Vicious Fluorocarbon.
9. For ninth, Livingston Lures pro Stetson Blaylock mostly relied on a Livingston Lures Primetyme CB 2.0 fished on a 7-1 13 Fishing Envy Black Crankbait Rod with 15-pound-test Seaguar InvizX and a 13 Fishing Concept E reel.
10. Finally, Andrew Upshaw reports catching fish off beds with a Texas-rigged Gene Larew Biffle Bug Jr., casting a Ned rig with half of a Gene Larew Salt Flick’R as well as catching some on a Bill Lewis Echo 1.75 Squarebill.
Our guests this week were Bassmaster Classic Champion Rick Clunn and the Natureboy Paul Lee.
If you missed the show, you can listen to the podcast here.
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POWROZNIK WINS FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE SHENANDOAH DIVISION EVENT ON LAKE GASTON
Robertson wins co-angler title
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BRACEY, Va. (April 18, 2016) – Ryan Powroznik of Prince George, Virginia, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 18 pounds even Saturday to win the second FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Shenandoah Division tournament of 2016 on Lake Gaston. For his victory, Powroznik took home $6,665.
“I started out sight-fishing on the lower end of the lake in Pea Hill Creek,” said Powroznik, who earned the third win of his FLW career. “It was just about the only place on the lake where the water wasn’t stained, so I knew I wanted to be there for the tournament. I was able to get two decent bass in the boat using a green-pumpkin-colored Zoom Trick Worm rigged on a custom shaky-head jig.
“Around 9 o’clock I began skipping docks in Pea Hill and Lee’s Creek that had produced for me in the past,” Powroznik continued. “I probably hit 50 of them and used the shaky-head to catch my first limit. I almost had my weight by 10:30 a.m.”
Powroznik said he relocated to the north end of the lake around 1:30 p.m. to fish docks, laydowns and rocks. He said he caught his final bass with minutes to spare on a green-pumpkin jig rigged with a green-pumpkin Zoom Super Chunk.
“I figured I needed one more bite to push me over the top and that was it,” said Powroznik. “Even though it was just over 3 pounds, it was the difference maker at the scale. Those ounces earned me the win.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Ryan Powroznik, Prince George, Va., five bass, 18-0, $6,665
2nd: Brandon Abernathy, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 17-13, $2,582
3rd: Sean Lewis, Baskerville, Va., five bass, 17-0, $1,722
4th: Les King, Owings, Md., five bass, 16-13, $1,205
5th: Chris Dillow, Waynesboro, Va., five bass, 16-12, $1,333
6th: Ryan Harrell, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., five bass, 16-7, $947
7th: Michael Garner, Skippers, Va., five bass, 16-5, $861
8th: Rob Uzzle, Hampton, Va., five bass, 16-3, $775
9th: Bo Grosvenor, Forest, Va., five bass, 16-1, $689
10th: Shane Burns, Durham, N.C., five bass, 15-10, $603
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Ricky Bomar of Lynchburg, Virginia, caught a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $805.
Mark Robertson of Henderson, North Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 13 pounds, 14 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $2,582.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Mark Robertson, Henderson, N.C., five bass, 13-14, $2,582
2nd: Scott Howard, Bedford, Va., five bass, 13-13, $1,291
3rd: Jamaine Brown, Halifax, Va., three bass, 13-8, $863
4th: Lew Jenkins, Waldorf, Md., three bass, 12-10, $961
4th: Stevie Mazingo, Bedford, Va., five bass, 12-10, $559
6th: Garrett Towler, Powhatan, Va., four bass, 11-15, $473
7th: Angello Bryant, Wake Forest, N.C., four bass , 10-13, $430
8th: Joe Rinaldi, Ashburn, Va., five bass, 10-9, $387
9th: Brett Stewart, Hopewell, Va., two bass, 10-6, $344
10th: Gregory Dawson, Rustburg, Va., five bass, 10-1, $301
Jenkins caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 15 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $402.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 6-8 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 50 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 BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Costa 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.
GEORGIA’S EVANS HIGH SCHOOL WINS HIGH SCHOOL FISHING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON TABLE ROCK LAKE
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ROGERS, Ark. (April 18, 2016) – Georgia’s Evans High School duo of Tyler Matthews and Blake Stephens brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 15 pounds, 6 ounces to win the 2016 TBF/FLW High School Fishing National Championship on Table Rock Lake. The win earned the team trophies, the title of national champions and a $10,000 scholarship to their college of choice.
Twelve teams competed in the two-day event, which launched from Kimberling City in Missouri. The Evans High School duo’s two-day total of nine bass totaling 27-1 gave them a narrow 1-pound, 11-ounce edge over Arkansas’ Chase Meyers of Cabot, and Cole Swede of Little Rock, who represent the Anvil Jaw Bass Club.
Matthews and Stephenson reported catching their entire limit both days using shaky heads rigged with green pumpkin craw imitators.
“I used a Buckeye Lures Sled rigged with a Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw the entire tournament,” Matthews said. “Nothing else I threw would catch the bigger fish.”
Stephenson utilized the same Speed Craw in green pumpkin but opted for a different jighead.
“When I fish a shaky head, the only one I use is a Green Fish Tackle Creeper Head,” he said.
Matthews competed in his final event as a high school angler. He qualified last year for this event prior to graduating in June from Clarks High School in Evans, Ga. Matthews is making plans to attend college in the fall of 2016 but has yet to decide on a school. When not working, he spends his free time pursuing his passion for fishing.
Stephenson will complete eighth grade this year in Evans. When he finds free time from his studies, he enjoys being outdoors and fishing.
The top five teams on Table Rock Lake finished:
1st: Evans High School, Evans, Ga. – Tyler Matthews and Blake Stephens, nine bass, 27-1, $10,000 Scholarship
2nd: Arkansas Anvil Jaw Bass Club – Chase Myers, Cabot, Ark., and Cole Swede, Little Rock, Ark., 10 bass, 25-6
3rd: Alabama Student Angler Federation. – Zeke Gossett, Pell City HS, and Ryan Shields, Hazelgreen HS, nine bass, 19-14
4th: Colerain High School, Cincinnati, Ohio – Daniel Hechler and Cole Wessner, eight bass, 19-7
5th: Abbeville High School, Abbeville, S.C. – Daelyn Whaley and Carter McNeil, five bass, 13-14
Complete results for the remaining teams and photos from the event will be posted at HighSchoolFishing.org.
The 2016 TBF/FLW High School Fishing National Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12. The top 10 percent from each TBF/FLW state championship field advanced to a High School Fishing conference championship tournament along with the top three teams from each of the seven TBF/FLW High School Fishing Opens held last season. The top 10 percent of each conference championship field then advanced to the High School Fishing National Championship, coinciding with the TBF National Championship on Table Rock Lake and the Walmart FLW Tour at Beaver Lake. The High School Fishing national champions each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2016 High School Fishing World Finals. At the 2015 World Finals more than $20,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded. Visit HighSchoolFishing.org for details.
MONTGOMERY WINS FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE BAMA DIVISION EVENT ON LAKE EUFAULA PRESENTED BY POWER-POLE
Ford wins co-angler title
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EUFAULA, Ala. (April 18, 2016) – Local angler Scott Montgomery of Eufaula, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Bama Division tournament on Lake Eufaula presented by Power-Pole. For his victory, Montgomery took home $4,279.
Montgomery said he began his day targeting spawning shad along a 100-yard stretch of mid-lake rocks.
“I used a Gizzard Shad-colored Strike King KVD HC 2.5 Square Bill Silent Crankbait, but the bite was really slow,” said Montgomery, who earned his second career win in FLW competition. “I decided to go with my backup plan and ran to the south end of the lake. I hit around 30 different points and rocky areas and it ended up being my main deal.
“I used the Strike King and boated nearly 10 keepers throughout the day from the clearest water possible,” Montgomery continued. “There were certain areas you could actually see the mudline outside of the pockets.”
Around 1:30 p.m., Montgomery said he brought in a 6-pounder out of some rocks using a chartreuse-colored Big Bite Baits Suicide Shad Swimbait.
“The swimbait is brand new and has great action to it,” said Montgomery. “The 6-pounder was a great addition to the livewell. I didn’t catch a lot of fish, but the ones I did were decent. Luckily, I went with my backup plan.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Scott Montgomery, Eufaula, Ala., five bass, 20-9, $4,279
2nd: Scott Armstrong, Headland, Ala., five bass, 19-15, $2,140
3rd: Bobby Padgett, LaGrange, Ga., five bass, 19-8, $1,726
4th: Chad Newbolt, Opelika, Ala., five bass, 18-7, $998
5th: David Gaston, Sylacauga, Ala., five bass, 18-0, $856
6th: Barry Hooper, Monticello, Ga., four bass, 17-13, $1,390
7th: Michael Smith, Andalusia, Ala., four bass, 17-11, $713
8th: Alan Brightwell, Moultrie, Ga., five bass, 16-7, $642
9th: David Lowery, Phenix City, Ala., five bass, 16-3, $571
10th: Sean Buntin, Satsuma, Ala., five bass, 16-1, $499
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Hooper caught a 7-pound, 14-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $605.
Jeffrey Ford of Trion, Georgia, weighed in five bass totaling 14 pounds, 6 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $2,140.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Jeffrey Ford, Trion, Ga., five bass, 14-6, $2,140
2nd: Emory Walden, Newnan, Ga., five bass, 13-14, $1,070
3rd: Ben Waldrop, Hiram, Ga., five bass, 13-10, $712
4th: Rodney Graham, Childersburg, Ala., five bass, 11-12, $499
5th: Lee Gissendaner, Eufaula, Ala., four bass, 10-10, $428
6th: Luke Williamson, McCalla, Ala., five bass, 10-3, $392
7th: Steve Watson, Panama City, Fla., four bass, 10-0, $357
8th: Bailey Boutries, Daphne, Ala., three bass, 9-12, $321
9th: Ryan Muccio, Columbia, Ala., three bass, 9-10, $285
10th: Todd Radney, Oxford, Ala., five bass, 9-8, $250
Christopher Fowler of Andalusia, Alabama, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 15 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $302.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 27-29 Regional Championship on Lake Hartwell in Seneca, South Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 50 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 BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Costa 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.
