Rayburn to host Wal-Mart Texas Trail Championship

The Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail Championship presented by Abu Garcia will be held on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Jasper, Texas, Oct. 13-14. The lucrative tournament will feature 100 of Texas' finest bass-fishing pros and co-anglers casting for top awards of $75,000 and $50,000, respectively.

"This is going to be a great tournament, with a lot of fish caught," said pro James Stricklin Jr. of Jasper, Texas, who landed a TTT win earlier this year on Lake Amistad. "The weight is going to be down compared to what it could be because the water temperature hasn't dropped. I would say 17 to 19 pounds a day will be enough to win."

Stricklin said that Sam Rayburn is typically a hydrilla lake but with the lake being so high this year, very little hydrilla is left. He believes this will play a big factor in the tournament. Anglers will be looking for isolated grass patches and will likely be flipping a jig or throwing a frog over pepper grass. Stricklin will be focusing his fishing on brush piles and grass.

"I really don't feel the pressure of this being my home lake," he said. "I'm out here to catch two big stringers. Either, I will do really well or not good at all."

Anglers will take off at 7 each morning from Umphrey Family Pavilion located at 5438 RR 255 W. in Sam Rayburn. Weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13 and Sunday, Oct. 14. The community is invited to attend all activities.

The Sam Rayburn Reservoir Texas Tournament Trail Championship is hosted by the City of Jasper.

The winning pro will receive a top award of $55,000, which includes a $40,000 Ranger 198VX powered by a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard and equipped with Minn Kota trolling motor, Lowrance electronics and EverStart batteries plus $15,000 cash. If Ranger contingency guidelines are met, the winner will also receive a $20,000 cash bonus for a top award of $75,000.

The winning co-angler will receive a top award of $45,000, which includes a $40,000 Ranger boat plus $5,000 cash. If Ranger contingency guidelines are met, the winner will also receive a $5,000 cash bonus for a top award of $50,000.

Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Coanglers fish from the back deck against other coanglers. The full field competes Saturday and Sunday with the winners determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from both days.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Ranger Owners Tournament Championship Series, Wal- Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal- Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $43 million through 241 events in 2007.

Wal-Mart and many of America's largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal- Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world's leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal- Mart, visit Walmart.com.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000.