FLW series heads for Arkansas

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — The $7.1 million Walmart FLW Series will visit Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Ark., Aug. 12-15 for the third BP Eastern Division tournament of the season. Hosted by the Russellville Advertising and Promotion Commission, the tournament will feature as many as 300 top bass anglers casting for top awards of $125,000 in the Pro Division and $25,000 in the Co-angler Division.

“Over the years at Dardanelle, it’s been a drop-fishing thing, like Kentucky Lake,” said Team Land O’Lakes pro Jeremiah Kindy, who has won more than $255,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “You may go out and try to catch two or three early on topwater baits, and then you switch to fishing drops and brush piles.”

Kindy said anglers will target brush piles near the main river in 6 to 8 feet of water but will fish 12 to 15 feet deep for brush piles located in bays. Kindy said baits used to probe the depths will include jigs, deep-diving crankbaits, Carolina rigs and Texas-rigged worms.

“During the summer, my rule for baits is red no matter where I go,” Kindy said. “Any kind of red. But on the Arkansas River, black with red flake and dark colors are generally better.”

Kindy said fluctuating water levels over the past two years have made the traditional fishing hot spot a shade more difficult to fish.

“I’ll tell you this,” Kindy said. “My goal is 10 pounds a day the first three days. If I can do that, I think I’ll be fishing the last day.”

Anglers will take off from Lake Dardanelle State Park located at 100 State Park Drive in Russellville at 6:30 each morning. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Walmart store located at 2409 E. Main St. in Russellville beginning at 4 p.m. Children will also be treated to a Family Fun Zone prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. at Walmart. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a trout pond, a Ranger boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and open to the public.

The entire field competes for the first three days of FLW Series events. Co-angler winners are determined on day three based on 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.

In FLW Series 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 total purse for the Lake Dardanelle tournament is nearly $900,000, including $10,000 through 50th place in the Pro Division. Ultimately, all anglers in the tournament will also be competing for valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at advancing to the $2.5 million, 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, where the winning pro will earn as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.

Coverage of the Lake Russellville FLW Series tournament will be broadcast as part of the “FLW Outdoors” television program. “FLW Outdoors” is also broadcast in Canada on WFN (World Fishing Network) and to more than 429 million households in the United Kingdom, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through a distribution agreement with Matchroom Sport, making it the most widely distributed fishing program in the world. Check local listings for broadcast times in your area.

Total awards are based on a full field of 150 boats in every tournament.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.

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.

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