| The Lowrance sponsored Pro Team Walleye Circuit Prepares for the "Minn-Kota/Mack's Lure Spring Tournament-Big Stone Lake, MN.
By Billy Brenton
Tournament Director
Casper, WY-Last week we kicked off Division One at Lake Francis Case with some nice weights and next week we will be holding the first tournament for Division Two at Big Stone Lake in Ortonville, MN. Last season the community of Ortonville welcomed us to the area and we are pleased to be back again this year.
Set for May 4th,5th,6th, the Minn-Kota/Mack's Lure tournament at Big Stone Lake is the first tournament of Division Two...the other tournament will be the Navionics Challenge at Devil's Lake on May 19th, 20th, 21st. Teams can fish one division, both divisions, or the open tournament and try to qualify for the Princecraft Boats Championship on Lake Oahe September 8th, 9th, 10 and a chance at $50,000 cash.
Also on the line is the chance to win the Division Title or Team of the Year. Matt Walsh and Mark Hagen were team of the year in 2004 and are off to a good start this year by placing fourth at Lake Francis Case with 94.44 points. However, they are closely being chased by two young guns, Cory Jueneman and Brent Beitelspacher, with 92.59 points. The team that finishes the season with the most points, based on their best four out of five finishes, will win the title and $18,000 in cash and prizes. Big Stone Lake is 27 miles long with the average depth of 15 feet. With the teams not able to start prefishing until the waters open on April 30, it should make for a real equal playing field for the tournament. Last year, the tournament was won by Jim and Donna Gregory, they were the only team to bring a limit of fish to the scale and walked away with the $20,000 cash first place prize. Most of the teams will be working the shallow water with plastic and crank baits. Weigh-ins will start at 3:00pm in the Ortonville City Park, and hot dogs and beverages will be free to everyone at the finals on Friday.
The top 40 teams from each division (based on points) will qualify for the championship. Teams that are going to try to win the division title or qualify for the Championship must be signed up for both Big Stone Lake, and Devil's Lake tournament BEFORE the start of the the first tournament in their division. For those interested in entering Big Stone, send e-mail by APRIL 30TH to [email protected] or you can go to our website at www.westernwalleye.com
Tournament sponsors: Lowrance Electronics, Princecraft Boats, FoodSource Lures, Minn-Kota Motors
Troll Master, Fish-Itt First, Beckman Nets, Drift Control, ShoreMaster Docks, Tow Tector Shields, Navionics,
Mack's Lure, Ram Mounts, Aqua-Vu, Devil's Lake Chamber of Commerce, Chamberlain Chamber of Commerce,
Big Stone Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, Cedar Shore Resort, and Western Walleye Magazine.
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