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| Lotz, Daughenbaugh Pull Away from the Field to Take the Illinois State Championship of Walleye Fishing Title |
After building close to a two pound lead on Day I, Steve Lotz from Lena, IL and Dave Daughenbaugh from McConnell extended that lead Sunday to capture the Gander Mountain Grand National Walleye Cup's Illinois State Championship of Walleye Fishing Tournament held on the Mississippi River at the Quad Cities.
Lotz and Daughenbaugh, who had 12.73 pounds on Saturday, added another 8.67 pounds for a two-day total weight of 21.40 pounds and the winner's check of $2000.
Second place and a check for $1300 went to Scott Roehlk and Jim Bonjour from Davenport, IA with a two-day weight of 18.23 pounds. Roehlk and Bonjour were the only team to bring a limit to the scales each day.
Art and Marie Lehrman from Dubuque, IA took the third place check of $550 with a final two-day weight of 17.67.
"I think we fished about every wing dam there is," said Lotz at Sunday's weigh-in interview. With water levels fluctuating daily, teams found no real consistent pattern emerging so it became a run and gun affair with teams searching to find active fish.
Lotz and Daughenbaugh spent both days going from wing dam to wing dam casting crankbaits. The one pattern that they did discover was that dams that had a break or breach seemed to hold better fish.
Roehlk and Bonjour also worked wing dams, but they spent their time trolling crankbaits across the face of the dams.
"The fluctuating water levels really affected the fish," said Gander Mountain GNWC Executive Director Bernie Barringer. "The river dropped almost 18" today. However, if there is one thing I have learned over the years, it is that these Championship teams figure out a way to catch fish. Even though a lot of presentations are tried, by the end of the tournament the top teams seem to get it all figured out."
Several other special awards were presented at Sunday's weigh-in. The Berkley Big Fish Award of $400 in Berkley product for the largest walleye of the two-day tournament went to Bruce Sparks from Des Moines, IA and Mark Parr, JR from Rock Island, IL for their 3.04 pound-walleye.
The "Yo So Close" award of a Yo Net folding net valued at $80 went to the teams that placed just out of the money. They include Bruce Sparks and Mark Parr, JR in 6th place; Jim Wahl from Eldridge, IA and Ron Mason from Estherville, IA in 7th place; and Mica Killinger from Port Byron, IL and Steve Killinger from Hillsdale, IL.
The VIB"E" Lure award of two six-piece lure sets valued at $40 went to the two teams who finished behind the Yo So Close award. They include Dan Timmons and Brian Votroubek from Davenport, IA in 9th place; and Jeff Fore from Petersburg, IL and Todd Oliver from Springfield, IL in 10th place.
The Towtector Comeback Award of a Towtector boat protector valued at $250 went to the team advancing the most places from day one to day two. This award went to Wahl and Mason, who were shut out on Day I, but came back with five fish and a weight of 8.05 pounds to finish in 7th place overall.
The winner of the Gander Mountain "Need More Stuff" drawing of $200 for a Gander Mountain Shopping Spree went to Rob Roush from Des Moines, IA and Mike Heller from West Des Moines, IA.
The Walleye Wisdom camera crew was also on hand to film footage of the Championship. "The Walleye Wisdom camera crew will be at all of the State Championships to capture the excitement of the tournament action. The highlights of these State Championships and the National Championships, along with some great walleye fish
ing tips will appear on our 13-week Walleye Wisdom television program," added Barringer.
Those interested in checking out the standings, reading the releases about any of the eight regions or simply learning more about the circuit can access the Gander Mountain GNWC website at www.walleyecup.com.
Title Sponsor for the GNWC is Gander Mountain. Other major national sponsors include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards, the Sportsman Channel, Berkley, Aqua Innovations, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, VIB"E" Lure Company, TowTector Shield and UpNorthOutdoors.com. |
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| Illinois State Championship of Walleye Fishing Slated for Mississippi River |
With the regular season over, the top teams on the Illinois Region of the Gander Mountain Grand National Walleye Cup (GNWC) are making final preparations for the Illinois State Championship of Walleye Fishing which will be held on the Mississippi River at the Quad Cities on August 7-8. At stake will be a guaranteed $2000 for first place plus trophies, and with bonus opportunities the winners could take home up to $2500.
"The Mississippi River around the Quad Cities is an excellent fishery," said Gander Mountain GNWC Executive Director Bernie Barringer. "This is the time of year that the wing dam fishing can be tremendous. During the pre-fishing, I expect the teams to work several of the pools up and down the river. However, locking up and down the river can pose problems, especially if a barge decides to enter a lock. They can tie up traffic for a long time, but that's all part of the game when you fish the Mississippi River system."
Leading the way and looking to defend their Illinois Region Team of the Year title is the team of Rob Roush from Des Moines, IA and Mike Heller from West Des Moines, IA.
Activities for the teams actually begin at the Holiday Inn on Friday evening, August 6 with the Illinois Championship Banquet, which is sponsored by Roehlk Construction and Dan Timmons of Edward D. Jones Co.
"I am really looking forward to the Illinois State Championship. We have some excellent teams contending for the title. The Quad Cities area is a great place to hold the Illinois championship, and I look forward to having good crowds at the weigh-ins," said Barringer.
The competition gets underway Saturday at Sunset Park boat ramp with opening ceremonies and takeoff at 7 a.m. Weigh-in begins at 3 p.m., and Barringer expects to see some impressive baskets of fish brought to the scales. "The weigh-in is the perfect time for the public to find out some of the secrets of taking fish on the Mississippi River. Since it is a two-day event, not many answers will be given on Saturday, but at Sunday's weigh-in we'll find out from the top teams exactly what their strategy was."
On Sunday, the same format is followed with take-off at 7 a.m. The weigh-in and awards ceremony takes place at 3 p.m.
Covering all of the tournament action will be the Walleye Wisdom television crew. They will be capturing footage of all eight Championships, including the Illinois Championship, for the popular 13-week television program Walleye Wisdom which airs on the Sportsman Channel, Fox Sports and several regional outlets. "Our goal is to showcase the successes of our walleye teams, share the techniques that the GNWC teams used to catch their fish and to finally give fishing hints that will help our viewers become better walleye anglers themselves," said Barringer.
Special awards will be give out at the including the Berkley Big Fish Award of $400 in Berkley product for the team that catches the largest walleye during the two-day Championships. In addition, an optional Big Fish Pot will go to the big fish taken during the Championships.
Next, will be the $200 Gander Mountain Shopping Spree. A drawing will be held of teams who do not weigh a fish, and the winner will be able to spend the $200 on gear of their choice at any Gander Mountain Store. If all teams weigh fish, all will be entered in the drawing.
YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO will offer the Yo So Close Award of an $80 folding net to the three teams finishing just out of the money.
The VIB"E" Lure Company will sponsor the VIB"E" Lure award of two six-piece lure sets valued at $40 to the two teams who finish behind the Yo So Close award. Lure sets will also be given away as door prizes at the Championship banquet.
TowTector, maker of the premium boat protector for towing vehicles, will offer the Towtector Comeback Award of a Towtector Shield valued at $250 for the the team advancing the most places from day one to day two.
Skeeter Boats is offering any owner of a Skeeter boat who wins the Illinois State Championship while fishing in the Skeeter an additional $1000 above their GNWC winnings.
Aqua Innovations will give an additional $250 to any team who wins the Illinois State Championship if their boat's livewell is equipped with the Aqua Innovations oxygen enhancement system. Plus they will be awarding systems to the anglers as door prizes at the Championship banquet.
Those interested in checking out the standings, reading the releases about any of the eight regions or simply learning more about the circuit can access the Gander Mountain GNWC website at www.walleyecup.com.
Title Sponsor for the GNWC is Gander Mountain. Other major national sponsors include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards, the Sportsman Channel, Berkley, Aqua Innovations, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, VIB"E" Lure Company, TowTector Shield and UpNorthOutdoors.com. |
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