04-21-2010, 02:10 PM
* After the season-opening event at the Red River was cancelled because of unsafe conditions, anglers began the 2010 FLW Tour season in early March at Table Rock Lake. National Guard pro Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., dominated that event and took the early lead in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year race. The Table Rock win also helped Ehrler knock off Kevin VanDam as No. 1 in the world in BassFan's World Rankings. The next event at Lake Norman featured another dominant performance, this time by local favorite Bryan Thrift of Shelby, N.C. On the heels of a fourth-place finish at Table Rock Lake, Thrift turned in a four-day total of 58 pounds, 5 ounces and led the last three days of competition. After two events, Thrift leads the Angler of the Year race with 397 points and Ehrler sits in eighth place with 367 points. Now anglers are making the turn at Fort Loudoun/Tellico lakes and face future regular season events at Lake Ouachita and Lake Guntersville. The Forrest Wood Cup will cap off the 2010 season at Lake Lanier in Atlanta, Ga., Aug. 5-8.
Hooks & Lures:
* Bryan Thrift's win at Lake Norman was his first FLW Tour victory and pushed him to almost $600,000 in career winnings.
* Brent Ehrler's highest finish in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year race came in 2008 when he finished as the runner-up to David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va. In 2009, Ehrler finished third in the points race behind Luke Clausen of Gainesville, Ga., and the defending AOY Clark Wendlandt of Leander, Texas, who posted his unprecedented third AOY title.
* Western angler Rusty Salewske of Alpine, Calif., finished 24th at the Table Rock Lake opener and posted a second-place finish at Lake Norman. 2010 marks Salewske's return to the FLW Tour after a four-year absence.
* Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., notched his second consecutive top-10 finish in 2010. He currently is ranked second in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year points race.
* Rusty Trancygier of Hahira, Ga., posted his first career top-10 finish at Lake Norman when he made the top-5 cut in fifth place.
* Defending FLW Tour AOY Clark Wendlandt opened the season with a strong 11th-place effort at Table Rock Lake and managed a 37th-place finish at Lake Norman. He now sits in 11th place in the AOY race and has an amazing fourth title within reach.
* Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio, posted his highest FLW Tour top-10 finish (8th - Lake Norman) since a second-place effort at the Detroit River in 2008. Vatalaro finished third at the 2007 FLW Tour stop at Lake Norman.
* Greg Pugh of Cullman, Ala., is off to a fantastic start in 2010 after a 5th-place finish at Table Rock Lake and a 12th-place effort at Lake Norman. Pugh currently is ranked third in the AOY race with 385 points.
* Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., is currently fourth in the AOY race with 380 points. Monroe is fishing his first FLW Tour season following a three-year hiatus.
* Ron Shuffield of Bismark, Ark., is continuing right where he left off in 2009. Shuffield finished the AOY race in sixth place in 2009 and currently sits in fifth with 378 points.
* Only 39 points separate Bryan Thrift's Angler of the Year lead and the 10th-place angler, Todd Auten (358 points) of Lake Wylie, S.C.
* Jason Meninger of Gainesville, Ga., is the rookie sitting highest in the AOY race (16th - 345 points).
* The next Tour event will be at Lake Ouachita - the Chevy Open - May 26-29. The last major event held on Lake Ouachita was the Forrest Wood Cup in 2007, where hometown favorite Scott Suggs of Bryant, Ark., became professional fishing's first instant millionaire with a victory in front of his family and friends. The BFL All-American presented by Chevy will be held on DeGray Lake and in conjunction with the FLW Tour event in Hot Springs.
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, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.
www.FLWOutdoors.com
Media Contact<br />
Chad Gay, FLW Outdoors (270) 703-3346 or cgay@flwoutdoors.com
Hooks & Lures:
* Bryan Thrift's win at Lake Norman was his first FLW Tour victory and pushed him to almost $600,000 in career winnings.
* Brent Ehrler's highest finish in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year race came in 2008 when he finished as the runner-up to David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va. In 2009, Ehrler finished third in the points race behind Luke Clausen of Gainesville, Ga., and the defending AOY Clark Wendlandt of Leander, Texas, who posted his unprecedented third AOY title.
* Western angler Rusty Salewske of Alpine, Calif., finished 24th at the Table Rock Lake opener and posted a second-place finish at Lake Norman. 2010 marks Salewske's return to the FLW Tour after a four-year absence.
* Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn., notched his second consecutive top-10 finish in 2010. He currently is ranked second in the FLW Tour Angler of the Year points race.
* Rusty Trancygier of Hahira, Ga., posted his first career top-10 finish at Lake Norman when he made the top-5 cut in fifth place.
* Defending FLW Tour AOY Clark Wendlandt opened the season with a strong 11th-place effort at Table Rock Lake and managed a 37th-place finish at Lake Norman. He now sits in 11th place in the AOY race and has an amazing fourth title within reach.
* Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio, posted his highest FLW Tour top-10 finish (8th - Lake Norman) since a second-place effort at the Detroit River in 2008. Vatalaro finished third at the 2007 FLW Tour stop at Lake Norman.
* Greg Pugh of Cullman, Ala., is off to a fantastic start in 2010 after a 5th-place finish at Table Rock Lake and a 12th-place effort at Lake Norman. Pugh currently is ranked third in the AOY race with 385 points.
* Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., is currently fourth in the AOY race with 380 points. Monroe is fishing his first FLW Tour season following a three-year hiatus.
* Ron Shuffield of Bismark, Ark., is continuing right where he left off in 2009. Shuffield finished the AOY race in sixth place in 2009 and currently sits in fifth with 378 points.
* Only 39 points separate Bryan Thrift's Angler of the Year lead and the 10th-place angler, Todd Auten (358 points) of Lake Wylie, S.C.
* Jason Meninger of Gainesville, Ga., is the rookie sitting highest in the AOY race (16th - 345 points).
* The next Tour event will be at Lake Ouachita - the Chevy Open - May 26-29. The last major event held on Lake Ouachita was the Forrest Wood Cup in 2007, where hometown favorite Scott Suggs of Bryant, Ark., became professional fishing's first instant millionaire with a victory in front of his family and friends. The BFL All-American presented by Chevy will be held on DeGray Lake and in conjunction with the FLW Tour event in Hot Springs.
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, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.
www.FLWOutdoors.com
Media Contact<br />
Chad Gay, FLW Outdoors (270) 703-3346 or cgay@flwoutdoors.com