Wal-Mart, FLW Outdoors announce launch of FLW Redfish Series

MINNEAPOLIS - As the leader in professional tournament fishing, FLW Outdoors has provided bass and walleye anglers the chance to get hooked on lucrative tournament circuits for years. Now, FLW Outdoors is finally ready to offer redfish anglers nationwide the same opportunity as their bass and walleye counterparts. On Aug. 30, FLW Outdoors announced plans to add a redfish tournament series to its 2005 professional fishing lineup. The new Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series aims to meet demand and grow the market for competitive redfish angling, making the sport bigger and better than ever before. The tournament trail boasts an unprecedented $1.9 million cash purse.

The FLW Redfish Series will consist of two divisions ? East and West. Each division will have four events in the 2005 season. The eight qualifying events are two-day team events with a $200,000 purse for each event. The season concludes with the no-entry-fee $300,000 Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series Championship.

Irwin L. Jacobs, chairman of FLW Outdoors, said the Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series will help to further propel the sport of professional redfish angling into the national spotlight.

“The demand for a new redfish tournament trail is unquestionable and through it we plan to take competitive redfish angling to a new level. Undoubtedly, FLW Outdoors has the professional expertise and resources needed to execute the most successful redfish tournament trail in America," explained Jacobs. “Since its inception, FLW Outdoors has proven that professional angling has been a substantial opportunity for many of the world’s premier consumer brands to target market their products to anglers, families and fans, all who have proven their loyalty to those sponsors and their products participating and partnering with FLW Outdoors. The Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series will garner a great deal of attention and support for the sport of professional angling, our sponsors and participants.”

The winning team in each qualifying event will take home a guaranteed $25,000 cash payout with the opportunity to win an additional $25,000 cash in contingency bonuses. If the winner is a registered owner of a Ranger boat that is used during competition, the winner will receive an additional $12,500 cash bonus. Additionally, if the winner’s Ranger boat is equipped with a Yamaha outboard engine, the winner will receive another $12,500 cash bonus. Ranger will be the primary boat sponsor, and Ranger boat owners will receive priority entry into the qualifying tournaments. Hydra-Sports will be an associate boat sponsor, and Hydra-Sports boat owners will receive priority entry into the qualifying tournaments after Ranger boat owners.

The top 100 teams ? 50 from each division after four qualifying events ? will qualify for the three-day no-entry-fee championship to be held in October 2005. The championship winner will take home a guaranteed $50,000 cash, plus additional boat and engine contingencies of $50,000 in cash for a total of $100,000.

The complete Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series schedule will be announced in the fourth quarter of 2004.

FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the world’s most lucrative bass-tournament series; the EverStart Series, the pathway to the Wal-Mart FLW Tour; and the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, the weekend tournament series designed for working anglers. FLW Outdoors also operates the Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour and the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors is the world’s leading marketer of competitive, high-profile fishing. Wal-Mart serves as the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors as it has since 1997.

+For more infomation, clickwww.FLW Outdoors.com.

Posted by DODGE at August 30, 2004 07:55 PM in Tournament (FLW)