Chesney Wins Wal-Mart FLW League Michigan Division Event on Lake Erie
Category: Tournament
May 19th, 2008 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified May 19th, 2008 at 12:00 AM
MONROE, Mich. (May 19, 2008) – Chris Chesney of Romulus, Mich., caught five walleyes that weighed 21 pounds, 12 ounces and earned $3,850 plus $500 contingency bonus Saturday as winner of the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League Michigan Division event on Lake Erie. The victory placed Chesney one step closer to qualifying for the Walleye League Finals on the Mississippi River in Winona, Minn., Sept. 11-13. Chesney’s co-angler, Gene Witt of Newport, Mich., earned $1,925 for the win.
Rounding out the top five are Jonathan Rohde of Kildeer, Ill., who earned $1,925, and co-angler Matthew Buck of Mentor, Ohio, who earned $963 (five walleyes, 21 pounds, 6 ounces); Keith Strauss of Syracuse, Ind., who earned $1,650 plus $300 contingency bonus, and co-angler Robert North of Troy Ohio, who earned $825 (five walleyes, 20 pounds, 9 ounces); Dan Boileau of Romulus, Mich., who earned $1,375, and co-angler Jay Gordert of New Baltimore, Mich., who earned $688 (five walleyes, 20 pounds, 5 ounces) and Andrew Miller of Muskegon, Mich., who earned $1,100, and co-angler Terry Krampe of Rockford, Mich., who earned $550 (five walleyes, 20 pounds, 3 ounces).
Four FLW Walleye League divisions – Michigan, Minnesota, Heartland and Wisconsin – each feature three one-day events. Every angler who receives weight credit earns points, with 100 points awarded to the winner, 99 for second, 98 for third, and so on. These points determine angler standings.
The top 30 boaters and top 30 co-anglers from each FLW Walleye League division at the end of the season advance to the $133,400 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League Finals set for Sept. 11-13 on the Mississippi River in Winona, Minn. The boater and co-angler point’s champions from each division also advance to the $650,000 no-entry-fee Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship in Bismarck, N.D., Sept. 24-27 for a chance to compete for as much as $150,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division. Anglers finishing the season in the top 10 in each division also receive priority entry into the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour for 2009.
Michigan Division anglers will visit Saginaw Bay in Au Gres, Mich., Aug. 9 for their third and final regular-season event.
Tournament anglers aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing™, FLW Outdoors® offers anyone the opportunity to enter for their chance to land the catch of a lifetime with the opportunity to win $7.3 million in cash and prizes. Players can become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player’s Advantage, providing them with exclusive insider information that could guide them to a $100,000 victory at every Wal-Mart FLW Tour® stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage will give them an edge over the competition and increase their shot for a $1 million cash grand prize that will be awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Those who visit FantasyFishing.com today can sign up for Player’s Advantage and FLW Outdoors will include a $15 Wal-Mart gift card.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits targeting bass, walleye, redfish, kingfish and striped bass. FLW Outdoors is also taking fishing mainstream with the largest cash awards in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.
All awards are based on 100-boat fields in qualifying events.