(Jul. 24, 2012 - MUSKOGEE, OK.)... Blake Ellison of Inola, Okla., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 8 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Okie Division event on the Arkansas River. For his victory, Ellison earned $3,553.
"It feels pretty good," said Ellison, who now has three tournament wins in BFL competition."It was a really hot day out there. I decided to make the hour and a half run up to the Afton pool and it paid off. I had my limit by 11 a.m. We ran to two or three different spots up there, and then came back and finished the day closer to takeoff. Everything I weighed in came before 11 a.m., though."
"We were fishing shallow in 1 to 5 feet of water," Ellison continued."I was targeting the stumps, laydowns and brush in the river. I caught eight keepers, and the bite was pretty steady throughout the day.
"I think that my choice of baits is what got me the victory," Ellison went on to say."I make my own soft plastics that are called Inferno Baits. I was throwing a black and blue craw, and it was the difference. There were other boats around me fishing the same spots, but I was the only one getting bit. I definitely believe that it was the bait."
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
| 2nd: | Larry Flanary | Greenwood, Ark. | five bass | 12-13 | $1,777 |
| 3rd: | Mario Riojas | Blanchard, Okla. | five bass | 12-9 | $1,185 |
| 4th: | Earl Clinton | Stilwell, Okla. | five bass | 12-0 | $829 |
| 5th: | Kevin Ledoux | Choctaw, Okla. | five bass | 11-14 | $711 |
| 6th: | Al Monks | Panama, Okla. | five bass | 11-9 | $651 |
| 7th: | Kevin Lindesmith | Waurika, Okla. | five bass | 11-2 | $592 |
| 8th: | Mark Tyler | Vian, Okla. | five bass | 11-0 | $533 |
| 9th: | Brian Fletcher | Muskogee, Okla. | five bass | 10-12 | $444 |
| 9th: | Kyle Cortiana | Tulsa, Okla. | five bass | 10-12 | $444 |
Don Benson of Eufaula, Okla., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 11 pounds, 4 ounces Saturday to win $1,777 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
| 2nd: | Bill Gift | Alix, Ark. | five bass | 10-10 | $888 |
| 3rd: | Landon Dixon | Hinton, Okla. | five bass | 10-6 | $592 |
| 4th: | Darin Comstock | , Denison, Texas | five bass | 9-6 | $415 |
| 5th: | Nick Milligan | Muskogee, Okla. | four bass | 8-6 | $355 |
| 6th: | Tyler Keefner | Roland, Okla. | four bass | 7-3 | $326 |
| 7th: | Cody Keener | Edmond, Okla. | four bass | 7-2 | $296 |
| 8th: | Charles Weindel | Barling, Ark. | three bass | 7-0 | $267 |
| 9th: | Matt Ellis | Muskogee, Okla. | two bass | 6-8 | $222 |
| 9th: | Jonathan Shockey | Fort Smith, Ark. | three bass | 6-8 | $222 |
The final BFL Okie Division tournament is scheduled for Sept. 15-16 on Grand Lake in Grove, Okla. After that fifth Okie Division tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 18-20 Regional Championship on the Red River in Natchitoches, La. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing - the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
ABOUT FLW
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