THE LATEST NEWS
FLW Teams with Walmart and Take Me Fishing™ to Kick Off National Fishing and Boating Week
MINNEAPOLIS (May 21, 2018) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, has teamed with Walmart, The Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF) and its Take Me Fishing
and Vamos A Pescar campaigns, Jack Link’s, Pringles and Zip Firestarters to celebrate National Fishing and Boating Week June 2-10.National Fishing and Boating Week is a national celebration that highlights the importance of recreational boating and fishing and will encourage anglers of all ages across the United States to get out on the water and find their new favorite fishing hole.
The week will be kicked off with #ReelFun Fishing events hosted by FLW tournament anglers June 1-3 at more than 2,000 Walmart® stores. The events will help families prepare for fishing success as the anglers provide expert tips for local fisheries and guidance on tackle and gear selection. Children are invited to test their casting skills and receive a free fishing lure courtesy of Wildlife Forever’s State-Fish Art Contest. Every child will also receive a future FLW Tour pro sticker. Adults will receive a free fishing license holder and free digital subscription to FLW Bass Fishing magazine. Everyone will receive free Jack Link’s beef jerky samples while supplies last.
“We are thrilled to team with our partners at Walmart, RBFF, Jack Link’s, Pringles and Zip Firestarters to showcase National Fishing and Boating Week to the millions of Walmart shoppers and outdoor enthusiasts that attend our #ReelFun Fishing events,” said Trish Blake, FLW President of Marketing. “There are very few experiences that compare to landing your first fish, and our FLW ambassadors will be on-site to help everyone select the right gear and discuss their favorite fishing tips.”
While National Fishing and Boating Week coincides with free fishing days in many states, prospective anglers are encouraged to purchase a fishing license while at Walmart for continued fun on the water all year long. To find out if your state is among those offering free fishing days and to find places to fish and boat, visitTakeMeFishing.org .
“The #ReelFun events provide additional resources for families across the country to have their #FirstCatch during National Fishing and Boating Week,” said Frank Peterson, RBFF President and CEO. “We hope everyone from curious beginners to experienced anglers and boaters will feel inspired to get out on the water and create memories with their families and friends.”
For more information about the local #ReelFun Fishing events happening at more than 2,000 participating Walmart stores across the country or to find a store near you, visit TakeMeFishing.org/ReelFun. For more information about FLW, visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, news and more, follow FLW on their social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube andSnapchat.
Fans are encouraged to share their catch during National Fishing and Boating Week with @FLWFishing and @Take_Me_Fishing with the hashtags #ReelFun and #FirstCatch.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube andSnapchat.
About the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF)
RBFF is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to increase participation in recreational angling and boating, thereby protecting and restoring the nation’s aquatic resources. RBFF’s recently announced 60-in-60 effort strives to attract 60 million anglers to the sport by the end of 2021. To help recruit, retain and reactivate participants, RBFF developed the award-winning Take Me Fishing and Vamos A Pescar campaigns creating awareness about boating, fishing and conservation, and educating people about the benefits of participation. These campaigns help boaters and anglers of all ages and experience levels learn, plan and equip for a day on the water. The campaign websites feature how-to videos, information on how to get a fishing license and boat registration, and an interactive state-by-state map that allows visitors to find local boating and fishing spots.
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, nearly 270 million customers and members visit our more than 11,700 stores under 65 banners in 28 countries and eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2018 revenue of $500.3 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visitinghttp://corporate.walmart.com , on Facebook athttp://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/walmart.
Benton on the “W”
Congratulations to Drew Benton on winning the 2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Drew explains how he got it done this week at Lake Travis.
Pace’s 10 pounder Nets Tundra
The biggest bass of Toyota Basssmaster Texas Fest to benefit Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was a 10 pound 5 ounce Lake Travis giant that bit Cliff Pace’s tiny finesse lure while his fellow competitors were still running to their first fishing spot early on Day 1 of the tournament.
The big largemouth bit a 3 ¾” V & M Drop Shad on a Carolina Rig in 27-feet of water. Pace used 20-pound HI-SEAS fluorocarbon as his main line, and 15-pound HI-SEAS fluorocarbon for the leader.
“That fish was a gift. I stopped on that spot on a whim. That fish was meant to be,” Pace told fans from the weigh-in stage.
When asked what the biggest bass he had ever caught in his life was, he explained it was another Texas 10-pounder caught during a Bassmaster Elite on Lake Falcon a few years back.
Texas ten pounders aren’t new to the 2013 Bassmaster Classic Champion from Mississippi, and neither are Toyota Tundras. Pace was actually the very first Elite Series pro to tow with a Tundra long before the truck became the tow vehicle of choice for most Elite Series pros.
“You’ll laugh, but one of the things I loved most about that first Tundra was it had a really long bed, so I could store an 8’ flippin’ stick in there with plenty of room,” says Pace, who is also one of the longest registered members in the Toyota Bonus Bucks contingency program for tournament anglers.
Having plenty of room for storing extra long fishing rods is great, but ultimately, it’s reliability that has lead Pace to purchasing eight Toyota Trucks.
“I don’t have to take them to the shop for repairs. That’s what I like most about owning a Toyota. I put 100,000 miles on my Tundras every two years, and the only thing I have to buy for them is gas, oil, and new tires,” says Pace who is now the proud owner of his 9th Toyota Tundra.
This one not purchased, but very much deserved through great skill and a little luck to lure a 10-pounder to bite his tiny finesse bait.
Drew Benton Wins First Elite Series Title At Texas Fest On Lake Travis Inbox
Drew Benton of Panama City, Fla., won the 2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department out of Jonestown, Texas, with a four-day total weight of 67 pounds, 15 ounces.
Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.
JONESTOWN, Texas — Drew Benton of Panama City, Fla., capped off an impressive week with a Championship Sunday five-bass limit that weighed 16 pounds, 15 ounces to win first place and $100,000 at the 2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
The third-year pro finished in fourth place at his first tournament as a Bassmaster Elite Series contender; today he bested the Top 108 bass anglers in world with a four-day weight of 67-15.
Benton’s final day didn’t start out as planned.
After a minor rule infraction, he had to endure a 15-minute delay at take off, which he feared would impact his morning bite.
“It was a stupid mistake on my part,” he said. “But over the past couple of days, I was catching my best fish during the first 15 to 20 minutes of the morning in a marina up Lake Travis. I was sharing water with Marty Robinson, and he graciously agreed to let me have that area to myself, even after I sat in the penalty box for 15 minutes. That was huge, and I’m grateful he worked with me.”
Benton was sure to acknowledge Robinson’s generosity and sacrifice, although he later found out that due to the cloudy, rainy weather the action in his marina had faded.
“I’m confident the weather this morning really suppressed the shad activity that had the bass feeding so heavily during the previous mornings,” he said. “The weather also kept the pleasure boaters off the water, which allowed me to fish some areas that were otherwise unfishable.”
The 30-year-old angler had two different patterns going: One in the morning and one in the afternoon.
“I found some fish during practice that helped me throughout this tournament,” he said. “But I really didn’t put it together until later in the day on Day 1. I was using a walking topwater presentation that was working well throughout the day, even in the hot sun and clear skies. I decided to give it an hour during the first day, and it paid off.”
Benton was using a 7-foot, 1-inch Phenix Rods Feather casting rod paired with a Lew’s Team Pro Magnesium Speed Spool baitcaster in a 7.5:1 gear ratio loaded with 65-pound Smackdown Seaguar braid.
His topwater lure of choice was a Bagley Knocker B rigged with Owner No. 2 trebles that caught bass around docks in marinas, over schooling bass, near bushes and along rocky shorelines that were protected from the wind and boat-traffic wake.
“I’ve been close to winning one of these before,” he said. “And I know it’s been said before, but everything has to go right to be the last man standing at a Bassmaster Elite Series tournament. If it’s meant to be, and it’s your time it’s going to happen.
“This is a dream come true, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am to win this thing,” Benton said. “Things were going my way early on, and I felt that momentum swing my way. I knew that I had to be smart with every cast. This was an awesome win for me and my family.”
Jacob Wheeler of Harrison, Tenn., caught 16-2 pushing his four-day total to 64-8, which was good enough for second place and valuable Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points.
“I spent most of my time up the Colorado River fishing water that was dirtier than the rest of the lake,” he said. “Most of my fish came on a 7/8-ounce silver jigging spoon that mimicked the plentiful shad in the lake. I also caught a few bass on a custom topwater prop bait when they were on the surface chasing bait.”
Cliff Pace of Petal, Miss., caught a 10-5 largemouth bass on the first morning of the event. That fish held up as the tournament’s biggest bass, and earned Pace a brand new Toyota Tundra pickup valued at $50,000.
That big bass helped Pace finish in third place, which is a position he held down all four days of the event.
“That was the very first fish I caught during the first morning of the tournament,” Pace said. “I caught that bass from 27 feet of water on a Carolina rig with a V&M Drop Shad in green pumpkin.”
This tournament was held under a unique format where the fish were immediately weighed, recorded and released. However, each pro could bring one bass back to weigh-in if it measured over 18 inches. A $1 million purse was paid out to the entire field.
Brent Chapman of Lake Quivira, Kan., was awarded $1,000 for the leading the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race at the end of the event.
Gerald Spohrer of Gonzales, La., earned the Power-Pole Captain’s Cash Award of $1,000 for being the highest-placing angler who is registered and eligible and uses a client-approved product on his boat.
Benton also won the Toyota Bonus Bucks Award of $3,000 for being the highest-placing eligible entrant in the program. The second-highest-placing eligible entrant, Pace, received $2,000.
2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Title and Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2018 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Abu Garcia, Berkley, Huk
2018 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Lowrance, Phoenix Boats, T-H Marine, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Carhartt, Livingston Lures
2018 Bassmaster Elite Series Elite Partner: Black Velvet Canadian Whisky
2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Beneficiary: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
2018 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Local Hosts: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Gulf States Toyota and the City of Jonestown, Texas
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 500,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2), radio show (Bassmaster Radio), social media programs and events. For 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.
The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Series presented by Magellan Outdoors, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.
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Lambert Shatters Records, Wins FLW Tour at Kentucky Lake
GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (May 20, 2018) – Pro Jason Lambert of Michie, Tennessee, brought five bass weighing 27 pounds, 3 ounces, to the FLW weigh-in stage Sunday to win the FLW Tour at Kentucky Lake presented by Costa Sunglasses by a margin of 28 pounds even – a new all-time FLW Tour record for margin of victory. Overall, Lambert’s four-day total of 101 pounds, 9 ounces, was the most weight to ever win an FLW Tour event at Kentucky Lake, and the tenth-largest total-tournament catch in FLW Tour history. For his dominant performance on the water this week, Lambert earned $100,000.
“To catch over 100 pounds here – that’s history. It’s something that will last forever,” said Lambert, who claimed his third career win on Kentucky Lake in FLW competition. “This whole week has been phenomenal – this lake is special to me.”
Lambert’s first stop on championship Sunday was a point protruding from the mouth of Pisgah Bay, the location where he upgraded his limit with a 9-pounder Saturday. With a 19-pound advantage heading into today’s competition, Lambert knew that all he needed was a few keeper bites to shut the door.
“I started out this morning and got like two 3’s and a 5 on my first three casts, and immediately the pressure was off,” said Lambert. “I knew at that point in time that the game was over.”
As the morning progressed, Lambert moved to an area that produced for him both on Thursday and Saturday – a south-facing point on a main-lake ridge, just north of the U.S. Highway 68 bridge.
“I caught around five there, including a few 4-pounders that didn’t help and a giant,” said Lambert. “The fish were in about 24 feet of water and right on the break of the point.”
Lambert’s main lure for the week was a 5- and 7-inch Green Shad-colored Castaic Jerky J soft jerkbait on a 1-ounce Scrounger Head-type jig on 18-pound-test Sunline Super FC Sniper Fluorocarbon line with a 7-foot, 11-inch Duckett White Ice II swimbait rod and a Duckett 360RW reel. On Friday, Lambert also used a Gene Larew Tattletail Worm on a jighead to catch his limit south of Paris from a ditch on a shallow roadbed.
“For me, the Jerky J is a confidence bait more than anything. Everybody throws a paddle tail swimbait and it’s got that big wide wobbling tail on the back, but the Jerky J has a sleeker, more subtle approach – it really looks like a shad swimming in the water. I have the confidence in it to throw it, and I love it.”
The final 10 pros finished on Kentucky Lake:
1st: Jason Lambert, Michie, Tenn., 20 bass, 101-9, $100,200
2nd: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 20 bass, 73-9. $30,100
3rd: Josh Douglas, Isle, Minn., 20 bass, 72-12, $25,000
4th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., 19 bass, 72-3, $20,000
5th: General Tire pro Mark Rose, West Memphis, Ark., 19 bass, 71-11, $19,000
6th: Alex Davis, Albertville, Ala., 18 bass, 67-13, $18,000
7th: Jeff Gustafson, Keewatin, Ontario, Canada, 20 bass, 67-0, $17,000
8th: Cody Meyer, Auburn, Calif., 20 bass, 64-8, $16,000
9th: John Cox, DeBary, Fla., 19 bass, 59-8, $15,000
10th: Pennzoil Marine pro Matt Arey, Shelby, N.C., 19 bass, 55-2, $14,000
For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.
Overall there were 48 bass weighing 180 pounds, 8 ounces, caught by all 10 pros Sunday. Eight of the final 10 pros caught a five-bass limit.
Ronny Webb of Dyersburg, Tennessee, won the Co-angler Division and $25,000 Friday with a two-day total of nine bass weighing 26 pounds, 14 ounces, followed by Stephen Crawley of Bush, Louisiana, who finished in second place with eight bass totaling 25-4, worth $7,600.
Television coverage of the FLW Tour at Kentucky Lake presented by Costa Sunglasses will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) June 27 from Noon-1 p.m. EST. The Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide.
The total purse for the FLW Tour at Kentucky Lake presented by Costa Sunglasses was more than $930,000. The event was hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau. The next tournament for FLW Tour anglers will be the FLW Tour at Lake St. Clair presented by Mercury, June 28 to July 1, in Detroit, Michigan, hosted by the Detroit Sports Commission, Macomb County, Huron-Clinton Metroparks Authority, and the Sterling Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce.
In FLW Tour competition, 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. The full field of anglers competed in the two-day opening round. Co-angler competition concluded following Friday’s weigh-in, while the top 30 pros based on their two-day accumulated weight advanced to Saturday. Only the top 10 pros continued competition Sunday, with the winner determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from the four days of competition.
Throughout the season, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will be on Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Aug. 10-12 and is hosted by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Visit Hot Springs.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the sport’s top anglers on the FLW Tour on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.