Ark. man wins $100,000 as part of fantasy fishing contest

LITTLE ROCK Fantasy Fishing?

Go ahead and laugh then take a look at this payout.

Joe Collins of Lowell won $100,000 as part of FLW Fantasy Fishing, an online game affiliated with bass fishing's Wal-Mart FLW Tour.

"It's kind of like fantasy football, except with fish," Collins said.

Collins chose 10 pro anglers for last weekend's Wal-Mart Open on Beaver Lake in Rogers, and received points based on their performances. What makes this free fantasy contest notable is the sheer amount of money at stake.

For comparison's sake, angler Mark Pack won the actual Wal-Mart Open for a cash prize of $200,000.

This was the fourth event of this year's Wal-Mart FLW Tour, and after each, an FLW Fantasy Fishing winner for that event wins $100,000. A $1 million grand prize will be awarded to whoever earns the most fantasy points over the seven-tournament season, which concludes in August.

A $5 million bonus is paid to the first player to rank correctly the top seven finishers in a tournament. In all, over 4,000 prizes totaling as much as $7.3 million will be awarded during the FLW Fantasy Fishing season.

Irwin Jacobs is the financier responsible for helping the FLW Tour get off the ground during the mid-1990s. He said he sees this fantasy contest as a way to attract more interest in the sport.

"We saw where this fantasy sports has just gone crazy in the world," Jacobs said. "It's obviously a lot of money, but this investment, we're willing to make."

Collins, an avid angler himself, says he'll use his winnings to help his daughter through college and help raise his grandson. His daughter, Donna Jo, told him about the fantasy game and convinced him to play after a little bit of arm twisting.

Collins had to sell his bass fishing boat a few years ago while between jobs, but now he might be able to buy a new one.

Donna Jo has actually been dating the brother of angler Greg Bohannan, who Collins picked for his fantasy team. Also, Collins had participated in an event on Beaver Lake a few years ago with Pack. He figured water conditions last weekend were similar and Pack would perform well, so he picked him for his fantasy team too.

Still, Collins says that type of expertise isn't necessary to play this fantasy game.

"You don't have to be a bass fisherman to participate," he said.