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Aaron Arning wins co-angler title

Westland Michigan bass tournament angler Tommy Robinson won the BFL Regional on Barren River with a three-day total of fifteen bass weighing 40 pounds 12 ounces.   Photo Credit: FLW Outdoors

SCOTTSVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 24, 2011) – Tommy Robinson of Westland, Mich., won the Walmart Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional on the Barren River Saturday with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 40 pounds, 12 ounces. For his victory, Robinson won a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor plus a Chevy 1500 Silverado and a berth in the BFL All-American Championship tournament. This regional tournament featured the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers from the Great Lakes, Hoosier, Illini and Michigan divisions of the Walmart FLW BFL circuit.

“I was fishing as far back in Peter’s Creek as you could get,” said Robinson. “I was bumpin’ stumps in 3 to 5 feet of water for the entire tournament. I started flipping with an EmGem by Garneau and then changed to Strike King 1.5 crankbaits which is what I caught most of my big fish on. There were a lot of guys fishing in the creek but they were mostly using jigs and flipping soft plastics. I was the only one throwing a crankbait.

“I literally paddled my way to the championship,” Robinson continued. “On the last day I lost my trolling motor so had to use a wooden paddle to keep me in my key area. No one fished the creek on the final day with me and I knew I had a pretty good chance of winning when on my second cast I caught a 3-pounder. I knew then that the area had replenished and I had a good shot at winning.

The remaining top six boaters and also qualifying for the BFL All-American were:
2nd: John Wright, Shelbyville, Ill., 15 bass, 39-0, $1,500
3rd: Eric Snow, Clarksville, Ind., 13 bass, 33-14, $1,100
4th: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., 13 bass, 30-8, $1,000
5th: Derek Jenkel, Pinkneyville, Ill., 12 bass, 23-10, $900
6th: Dick Shaffer, Rockford, Ohio, 10 bass, 23-1, $800

Rounding out the top 10 boaters were:
7th: Jimmy Johnson, La Crosse, Wis., nine bass, 22-10, $700
8th: Todd Hensley, New Albany, Ind., 10 bass, 22-0, $650
9th: Mike Brewington, Columbus, Ind., 10 bass, 20-15, $600
10th: Aaron McManaway, Altamont, Ill., nine bass, 20-11, $550

Aaron Arning won the co-angler division of the BFL Regional on Barren River with a three-day total of ten bass weighing 23 pounds 5 ounces.   Photo Credit: FLW Outdoors

Aaron Arning of Walnut Hill, Ill., won the Co-angler Division on Saturday with a three-day total of 10 bass weighing 23 pounds, 5 ounces. He took home a 198VX Ranger boat including a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor along with a berth in the BFL All-American Championship tournament.

The remaining top six co-anglers and also qualifying for the BFL All-American were:
2nd: David Michaelis, Commerce, Mich., nine bass, 22-5, $750
3rd: Gary Melson, Louisville, Ky., nine bass, 19-0, $550
4th: Cody Kelley, Schoolcraft, Mich., seven bass, 17-14, $500
5th: Nathan Halliday, Morehead, Ky., nine bass, 17-4, $450
6th: Dustin Burk, Brookville, Ind., nine bass, 17-0, $400

Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
7th: Joey Von Hoene, Erlanger, Ky., seven bass, 16-13, $350
8th: Robby Tufte, Fountain City, Wis., eight bass, 16-9, $325
9th: Doug Ruster, Greenfield, Ind., eight bass, 15-13, $300
10th: Scott Moon, Beech Grove, Ind., eight bass, 15-12, $275

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 one of six regional tournaments and are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifes 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.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWOutdoors.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the EverStart Series on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWEverStartSeries and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWOutdoors.

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