FLW Outdoors announces 2005 walleye tour schedule, new name

BENTON, Ky. ― FLW Outdoors announced its 2005 walleye tour schedule Wednesday complete with a new name, new television coverage, a $2.6 million all-cash purse and a no-entry-fee championship. The tour, formerly known as the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour, will celebrate its fifth season as the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour while offering the world’s top pro anglers a shot at $90,000 in three of four qualifiers and $100,000 in the fourth qualifier.

Competition in the five-event FLW Walleye Tour begins April 6-9 on Bull Shoals in Bull Shoals, Ark., followed by a stop on Lake Erie in Port Clinton, Ohio, April 27-30. The third qualifier will be held May 18-21 on Green Bay in Green Bay, Wis., followed by the fourth and final qualifier ﾐ the new FLW Walleye Tour Open ﾐ on Devils Lake in Spirit Lake, N.D., June 15-18.

Nearly $70,000 was added to the purse for each of the first three qualifiers, boosting the potential payout in each event to $471,000 compared to $401,750 in 2004. The winning pro in each of these events earns $40,000 cash based on a full field of 150 boats plus a $30,000 cash bonus from Ranger Boats and a $20,000 cash bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met. The winning co-angler receives $9,000 cash plus a $5,000 bonus from Ranger Boats and a $3,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met.

The fourth and final qualifier of the 2005 season features a $140,250 increase in purse size compared to 2004, as anglers will compete for a share of $542,000 in the new FLW Walleye Tour Open. The winning pro in this event earns $45,000 cash based on a full field of 150 boats plus a $33,000 cash bonus from Ranger Boats and a $22,000 cash bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met. The winning co-angler receives $10,000 cash plus a $6,000 bonus from Ranger Boats and a $4,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met.

“The introduction of all-cash purses is another milestone for the growth of professional walleye fishing,” said Mark Dorn, director of walleye operations for FLW Outdoors. “Never before have walleye anglers had so much opportunity in the sport they love. We are proud to be on the leading edge of a rapidly growing sport, and we are proud to offer competitors, sponsors and fans a quality product unlike any other.”

Awards and bonus are presented through 50th place in every qualifier and the FLW Walleye Tour Open. Additionally, the winning pro can earn a $1,000 bonus from Garmin if the pro’s boat is equipped with only Garmin electronics and at least one unit is a Fishfinder 240, Fishfinder 250 or 250C, Fishfinder 320C, GPSMAP 178 or 178C, GPSMAP 188 or 188C or any Garmin chartplotter that is interfaced with the GSD 20 for sonar.

The top 50 pros and top 50 co-angler based on point standings in the FLW Walleye Tour will advance to the new, $650,000 FLW Walleye Tour Championship on the Mississippi River in Moline, Ill., Sept. 28-Oct. 1 where they will compete for top awards of $125,000 and $22,000, respectively. The pro champion earns $75,000 cash plus a $25,000 cash bonus from Ranger Boats and a $25,000 cash bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met. The co-angler champion receives $11,000 cash plus a $6,000 bonus from Ranger Boats and a $5,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if contingency guidelines are met.

In addition to being a no-entry-fee event, the FLW Walleye Tour Championship awards pros a minimum of $1,350 just for qualifying. Co-anglers receive a minimum of $500.

Every FLW Walleye Tour event will be televised in 2005 as part of an expanded lineup of FLW Outdoors programming on Fox Sports Net. Lindner Media Productions headed by Al Lindner, Ron Lindner, and Dan Sura will produce all walleye coverage for FLW Outdoors.

“We are trilled to welcome Lindner Media Productions to the team for 2005,” Dorn said. “They wrote the book on walleye fishing and have an unmatched level of experience in covering tournaments. The addition of walleye shows to the FLW Outdoors lineup of programming represents a fantastic opportunity for competitive anglers and fans alike.”

Pro entry fees remain unchanged at $1,250 for each qualifier while co-anglers enjoy a reduced entry fee of $350, down from $500 in 2004. Entry fees for the new FLW Walleye Tour Open are $1,500 for pros and $500 for co-anglers.

Ranger owners may begin submitting entries at 8 a.m. CST Jan. 6. Champion, Stratos and Skeeter owners may begin submitting entries at 8 a.m. CST Jan. 7, and all other entries will be accepted beginning at 8 a.m. CST Jan. 10. To enter a tournament, call FLW Outdoors at (270) 252-1000 or register online at FLWOutdoors.com.

In FLW Walleye Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day and compete for a combined boat weight. One hundred and fifty pros and 150 co-anglers comprise a full field in regular-season events. The full field competes for three days to determine the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers who advance to the final round. Weights carry over to the final round, and the winners are determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days. Each angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points going to the winner, 199 to second, 198 to third, and so on. These points determine angler standings.

In the FLW Walleye Tour Championship, the top 50 pros and top 50 co-anglers compete for two days. Berths in the semifinal round are awarded to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers based on the heaviest accumulated weights from days one and two. Weights are cleared, and the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers continue competition on day three. The winning co-angler is determined by the day’s heaviest weight. The top 10 pros continue competition on day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four.

The Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour is administered by FLW Outdoors, the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing. Other FLW Outdoors tournament trails include the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League for weekend anglers; the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the world’s most lucrative bass-fishing series; the EverStart Series, designed as a pathway to the FLW Tour; the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League for weekend anglers; the Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail; the Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, and the Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its eight tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services they offer, please visit FLWOutdoors.com’s sponsor page. For more information on the Garmin Grand contingency program, visit Garmin.com.

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

Posted by DODGE at November 17, 2004 04:00 PM in Tournament (FLW)