Angler of the Year race up for grabs at FLW Tour finale at Lake Guntersville

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The FLW Tour will visit Lake Guntersville in Huntsville, Ala., June 23-26 for the final stop of the FLW Tour circuit.

Bryan Thrift of Shelby, N.C. currently holds 21-point lead in AOY standings

15.Jun.2010

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The FLW Tour will visit Lake Guntersville in Huntsville, Ala., June 23-26 for the final stop of the FLW Tour circuit. The event, presented by Ranger and hosted by the Huntsville/Madison County Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Marshall County Convention and Visitors Bureau, will feature as many as 300 top bass anglers casting for top awards up to $125,000 cash in the Pro Division and up to $25,000 cash in the Co-angler Division.

“It’s got big ones in it,” said Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., who has four FLW Tour top-10 finishes and is hunting his first Tour win. “I like places like that. I think the tournament will be a deep deal cranking (Bomber) Fat Free Shads out there on those ledges.

“It’s got me confused this year,” Christie added. “There’s water in the bushes, and that’s where I like to be. I caught some good ones in practice, and I just can’t leave them.”

Christie said he doesn’t predict the lake will produce the stringer weights it is capable of producing in the spring time, but he does predict anglers will catch a lot of fish, including multiple 20-pound-plus stringers a day.

“If the grass isn’t topped out yet, (the fish) are going to be on the outside edge and 15-20 feet (deep) out on the river channel points,” Christie said. “If we get lucky and the grass is topped out, there could be some fish caught out of the grass — flipping, topwater and all that kind of stuff.”

The Angler of the Year race will be decided at the conclusion of the Lake Guntersville event. Going into the season’s final event, Bryan Thrift of Shelby, N.C., is leading the pack with 775 points. National Guard pro Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., is hot on his heels with 754 points. Rounding out the top five in contention for the title are Ishama Monroe of Hughson, Calif., (741), Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., (721) and Rusty Salewske of Alpine, Calif., (712).

Anglers will take off from Lake Guntersville Resort State Park located at 7966 Alabama Hwy. 227 in Guntersville, Ala., at 6:30 each morning. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at Lake Guntersville Resort State Park beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Von Braun Center located at 700 Monroe St. in Huntsville beginning at 4 p.m.

Fans will be treated to the FLW Outdoors Expo at the Von Braun Center on Friday from 5-9 p.m. and Saturday prior to the final weigh-in from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. The final weigh-in will be held at the Von Braun Center. There will be a drawing for a Can-Am ATV compliments of the Huntsville Times and rod and reel combos will be given to the first 300 kids under 14 in attendance on Saturday compliments of WDRM. The FLW Outdoors Expo includes Ranger boat simulators, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public. For a full schedule of events, additional information and to register for the ATV, visit FLWOutdoors.com/huntsville.

In FLW Tour competition, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Cup will be in Atlanta Aug. 5-8 on Lake Lanier and the full field of competitors will be determined following this final regular season event.

Coverage of the Lake Guntersville tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” will air Oct. 3 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.

About FLW Outdoors

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports. FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.

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