Third qualifying event of $6.5 million season to air Sunday, July 16
Tune in Sunday, July 16 to “FLW Outdoors” on FSN for the $900,000 Wal-Mart FLW Series event held on Old Hickory Lake in Gallatin, Tenn. The third tournament of the $6.5 million FLW Series season concludes with the winning pro claiming a cash prize of $100,000.
A full field of 200 pros and 200 co-anglers competes for the first three days of FLW Series events. Co-angler winners are determined on day three by the heaviest accumulated three-day weight. The top 10 professionals continue competition on day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from all four days. The stories evolve and the suspense grows throughout the one-hour show until the final weigh-in results are announced.
The July 16 show features pro Sam Lashlee of Camden, Tenn., who owns a commanding lead after catching a three-day total of 43 pounds. Lashlee has been fishing the main river channel in 20 feet of water. His bites are coming when he drags a 1/2-ounce football-head jig slowly across the bottom. Lashlee, who has been fishing the Cumberland River impoundment for the better part of 30 years, is a renowned deepwater ledge fisherman. On day three, he caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 10 ounces – the heaviest limit of the tournament. Tune as the local pro puts his deepwater pattern to work on day four.
FSN also follows Michael Brown of Rocky Face, Ga., who is in second place with a three-day total of 38 pounds, 8 ounces. Brown has been working a shallow crankbait pattern in the back of a creek with much success. The bites come whenever his Lucky Craft BDS3 crankbait hits a rock or stump out off the bluff. However, after three days of intense angling pressure, Brown is banking on his shallow-water fish replenishing overnight.
Kellogg’s pro Clark Wendlandt of Leander, Texas sits in third place after three days on Old Hickory Lake. Despite the sweltering heat, Wendlandt is running a shallow-water dock pattern, fishing a Lucky Craft Pointer 100 on the fronts and between the docks while skipping a 5/16-ounce jig to the shallowest, darkest parts of the dock. This pattern has been successful due to a recent shad spawn. While the shad spawn is mostly complete, the bass are still hanging around the docks looking for an easy meal.
Also in contention is Chevy pro Luke Clausen, who won the 2004 FLW Tour Championship and the 2006 Bassmaster Classic. Clausen is using a green-pumpkin Zoom Trick Worm, rigged with a 1/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight to catch his fish. He is working the finesse presentation around a variety of cover including grass and shallow wood.
FSN broadcasts “FLW Outdoors” Sundays from 11 a.m. to noon ET. Check local listings for show times and channels in your area. FLWOutdoors.com also provides an online show guide listing what events are coming up on “FLW Outdoors.”
FSN reaches more than 81 million homes through its network of 20 regional sports channels. Established in 1996, FSN is the only cable network that supplies national, regional and local sports programming. FSN serves as the cable TV home to 62 of the 82 MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States, and produces over 4,500 live events each year. FSN has an extensive catalog of original national programs, including “Best Damn Sports Show Period” and “Beyond the Glory” documentary series, along with national packages of collegiate sports. Based in Los Angeles, FSN is part of the vast FOX Sports television family.
“FLW Outdoors” is also broadcast internationally to more than 350 million households in such countries as Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world. Additionally, FLW Outdoors is proud to provide tournament coverage to more than 800,000 service men and women stationed around the world in 177 countries and aboard Navy ships through broadcasts on the American Forces Network.
Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, call (270) 252-1000.
By: Dave Washburn, vp comm, FLW Outdoors
