EUFAULA, Okla. (May 14, 2007) - Boater Joe Erwin of Claremore, Okla., won the Bass Fishing League Okie Division bass fishing tournament on Lake Eufaula Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 14 pounds, 14 ounces. The victory earned Erwin $3,507 plus a $619 Ranger contingency bonus and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Wright Patman Lake Regional Championship in Texarkana, Texas, Oct. 25-27, where he could ultimately win a new 519VX Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.
Erwin caught his bass throwing a Zoom Brush Hog on mid-lake points.
Rounding out the top five boaters are Terry Eskew of Grove, Okla. (four bass, 12-14, $2,064); Blake Ellison of Inola, Okla. (five bass, 10-13, $1,377); Rodney Lowe of Tulsa, Okla. (four bass, 10-11, $963) and Robert White of Moore, Okla. (four bass, 9-9, $825).
Paul Smith of Copan, Okla., took home the Boater Division Big Bass award, earning $575 for a 5-pound, 2-ounce bass. Ronnie Weisinger of Miami, Okla., earned $2,064 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 11 pounds, 14 ounces.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Brad Bailey of Cashion, Okla. (three bass, 6-14, $1,032); Wade Garcia of Alma, Ark. (three bass, 6-10, $688); David Decker of Broken Arrow, Okla. (two bass, 6-9, $482) and Derek Holmes of Broken Arrow, Okla. (three bass, 5-12, $413).
Matthew Clark of Norman, Okla., earned $287 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 4-pound, 14-ounce bass.
The division's fourth event will be held June 16 on the Arkansas River in Webber Falls, Okla., and the final event of the regular season will be a two-day Super Tournament held Sept. 15-16 on Grand Lake in Grove, Okla.