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| Skarlis Wins 150K at the FLW Walleye Tour Finals |
 |  | Skarlis reacts to the weight of the bag (WalleyeFIRST Photo) |
BISMARCK, N.D. (Sept. 27, 2008) -Pro Tommy Skarlis of Waukon, Iowa, caught five walleyes weighing 13 pounds, 10 ounces Saturday to post a two-day winning catch of 10 walleyes weighing 29 pounds, 7 ounces in the sport's most lucrative event - the Walmart FLW Walleye Tour Championship - on the Missouri River in Bismarck. Not only does Skarlis have the prestigious title of champion, he also grabbed an industry leading payday of $150,000.
�"It is absolutely amazing to come out here to the Missouri River and win against this stiff competition," said Skarlis, who finished ninth in last year's championship. "The competition on this tour is extremely tough. Everyone in the top-10 deserved to be here. They are all amazing anglers. To come out number one is just incredible."
Skarlis has four PWT wins, a PWT Angler of the Year award, and four top-10 finishes on the FLW Walleye Tour. Today, he reached a milestone in his career by winning his first FLW Walleye Tour event.
|  | Skarlis comes out on top at Bismarck (WalleyeFIRST Photo) |
"I know that this is the biggest accomplishment of my career," Skarlis said. "I can't even express how I am feeling right now. This will never get old and when it does I will quite."
Skarlis explained that one of the major changes on the final day of competition was fishing without a co-angler. In the Walleye Tour Championship the full field competes for two days and then is cut to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers for day three. Anglers in both divisions start from zero on day three, and co-angler competition concludes with the winner determined by the day's heaviest catch. Pros carry their weights over to day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four. �
"I had one of the most tremendous co-anglers with me yesterday," Skarlis added. "I was luckily enough to fish with David Anderson on day three of competition. Without him in the boat today I had two or three harsh net jobs but was luckily enough not to lose any fish.
"I hope that I don't ever lose this feeling because it feels absolutely amazing."
Rounding out the top five pros were Robert Blosser of Poynette, Wis. (10 walleyes, 23-15, $65,000); Todd Frank of Pulaski, N.Y. (10 walleyes, 23-07, $17,000); Ross Grothe of Northfield, Minn. (10 walleyes, 22-13, $22,500); and Chris Gilman of Chisago City, Minn. (10 walleyes, 22-12, $18,500).
Co-angler competition ended Friday in dramatic fashion, as David Anderson of Sauk Rapids, Minn., chalked up an impressive win in just his first complete season on tour. He earned $15,000 for the victory.
�"I feel unbelievable," he said. "This has been an outstanding year. I finished third at Cass Lake and won here. It's just unreal. You dream of something like this happening and when it actually happens it is surreal."
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Del Ringling of Valley, Neb. (five walleyes, 14-03, $13,500); Nate Brunz of Madison Lake, Minn. (five walleyes, 14-01, $6,500 ); Patrick Bertelsen of Jackson, Minn. (five walleyes, 12-15, $3,500); and Scott Woodward of Glendive, Mont. (five walleyes, 12-02, $5,000).
Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros compete against other pros, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers.
Tournament anglers aren't the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing�, FLW Outdoors� offered anyone the opportunity to enter for their chance to land the catch of a lifetime with the opportunity to win $7.3 million in cash and prizes. Players could become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player's Advantage, which provided them with exclusive insider information that could have guided them to a $100,000 victory at every Walmart FLW Tour� stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player's Advantage gave them an edge over the competition and increased their shot for the $1 million cash grand prize awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Visit FantasyFishing.com today to find out more information and to register for next season.
Coverage of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship on the Missouri River will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States on Nov. 30 as part of the "FLW Outdoors" television program. "FLW Outdoors" is also broadcast in Canada on WFN (World Fishing Network) and to more than 429 million households in the United Kingdom, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through a distribution agreement with Matchroom Sport, making it the most widely distributed fishing program in the world. The program airs Sunday mornings at 11 Eastern time in most markets. Check local listings for times in your area.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits. FLW Outdoors also took fishing mainstream with the largest cash awards in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player's Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com. |
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| Observations from the FLW Top Ten Finals |
Ten random observations from the first morning of the FLW Walleye Tour Top Ten Finals.
1. Takasaki is as tightly-wound and focused as I have ever seen him, he has ALOT on his mind.
2. Bentonite is REALLLY slippery.
3. Everyone is concerned about fuel. Extra camera equipment pushing 40+ pounds and a cameraman in the boat will burn additional fuel and complicate navigation and maneuverability down the river and it is definitely on the minds of the anglers.
4. Brett King says, "It's a great day to be alive!"
5. Tommy Skarlis had to change his shirt.
6. The current looks much stronger today, even though the USGS reports a 2/100ths drop in stage.
7. Ross Grothe thinks good things are going to happen today.
8. They're calling for big winds today but I don't see any - yet.
9. Frogs have little feet.
10. Robert Blosser thinks Tom Keenan is wearing a superman thong.
Stay tuned for video, images and more from Day Three of the FLW Walleye Tour Finals in Bismarck, ND.
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| Skarlis, Anderson on top |
|  | Dave Anderson took the co-angler crown (WalleyeFIRST Photo) |
The Day Three weigh-in is a wrap, and at the end of the day, Tommy Skarlis leads the Top Ten going into the final.
The North winds did wreak some havoc with the Pros. Todd Riley reported he couldn't get to his fish, and weighed in a much lighter bag as a result.
All in all , the weigh in was very exciting, and a new 2008 Co Angler Champion, David Anderson was crowned. David sat in the hot seat looking just a little nervous as the final anglers weighed in, and held the $15,000.00 check high when the final results were announced.
Watch for continuing coverage through the evening. We are headed over to the Wal mart for the NPAA Kids program to shoot that event! |
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| Seelhoff Leads FLW Walleye Tour Championship |
BISMARCK, N.D. (Sept. 25, 2007) - Pro Ron Seelhoff of Burlington, Colo., and co-angler Del Ringling of Valley, Neb., caught five walleyes weighing 18 pounds, 8 ounces to lead day one of walleye fishing's most lucrative event - the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship - on the Missouri River in Bismarck.
One hundred and eight anglers representing 18 states and Canada are competing for top awards of $150,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division.
Rounding out the top five pros and co-anglers are Brett King of Claremont, Minn., and Edward Piekutowski of Moorhead, Minn. (five walleyes, 17-15); Ted Takasaki of East Gull Lake, Minn., and Nate Brunz of Madison Lake, Minn. (five walleyes, 17-11); Chris Gilman of Chisago City, Minn., and Chuck Jones of Michigan City, Ind. (five walleyes, 16-12); and Mark Michael of Princeton, Minn., and Darrell Martin of Forest Lake, Minn. (five walleyes, 16-02).
"We had an awesome day," said King, who is only 9-ounces behind first place leader Sheelhoff. "Fishing is tough on the river and you have to make the right decisions."
|  | King turned 12 bites into a second place position at Bismarck
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King said that he didn't have a bite until 11:30 this morning and only a total of 12 bites all day. Two main factors that affected his bite were the water levels and the water temperature falling to 62 degrees.
"The first spot I decided to fish was a big fish spot half way down the river about 20 miles," King said. I thought I would stop there since I caught some fish there in practice and that was a mistake. The rest of the boats came through and muddy up the water. After staying there an hour I decided to head south and fish 15 miles from the South Dakota border."
King pulled crawlers and spinners for the first hour of fishing then switched to pulling cranks.
"What I am doing that is a little different from the other anglers is playing with my speed," King said. I am also paying close attention to the current."
Overall, there were 237 fish caught by all 108 anglers with a total weight of 601 pounds, 6 ounces. The catch included 38 five-fish limits.
|  | WWR #1 angler Chis Gilman in fourth after Day One
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MacLean Bottoms, Riffle Range, will host daily takeoffs at 7:30 a.m. Daily weigh-ins will be held at the Bismarck Civic Center, located at 315 S. 5th Street., beginning at 4:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend takeoffs and weigh-ins as well as the Family Fun Zone, which opens at 2 p.m. on Friday and noon Saturday. Saturday is free fishing rod and reel day at the Fun Zone, where the first 200 children 14 and under receive a free fishing rod and reel courtesy of 103.3 US Country.
The winning pro at the FLW Walleye Tour Championship is guaranteed a cash award of $100,000. If the winner is a qualifying Ranger or G3 boat owner, he will earn a $25,000 bonus, and if the boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he will receive another $25,000 bonus for a total cash award of $150,000.
The winning co-angler is guaranteed $10,000 cash and is eligible for a $5,000 bonus from Ranger or G3 if he is a registered owner. The winning co-angler will also receive a $5,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if his boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard.
Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros compete against other pros, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. The full field competes for two days and then is cut to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers for day three. Anglers in both divisions start from zero on day three, and co-angler competition concludes with the winner determined by the day's heaviest catch. Pros carry their weights over to day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four. �
Tournament anglers aren't the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing�, FLW Outdoors� offered anyone the opportunity to enter for their chance to land the catch of a lifetime with the opportunity to win $7.3 million in cash and prizes. Players could become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player's Advantage, which provided them with exclusive insider information that could have guided them to a $100,000 victory at every Walmart FLW Tour� stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player's Advantage gave them an edge over the competition and increased their shot for the $1 million cash grand prize awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Visit FantasyFishing.com today to find out more information and to register for next season.
Coverage of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship on the Missouri River will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States on Nov. 30 as part of the "FLW Outdoors" television program. "FLW Outdoors" is also broadcast in Canada on WFN (World Fishing Network) and to more than 429 million households in the United Kingdom, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through a distribution agreement with Matchroom Sport, making it the most widely distributed fishing program in the world. The program airs Sunday mornings at 11 Eastern time in most markets. Check local listings for times in your area.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits. FLW Outdoors is also taking fishing mainstream with the largest cash awards in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player's Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com. |
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| Ten Advance to the 2008 FLW Walleye Tour Finals |
|  | Ted Takasaki on Day Two
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The Missouri River levels fell an additional eight inches for Day Two of the 2008 FLW Championship, compounding the already tricky 40+ mile drive to Lake Oahe. Air temps in the forties cooled the surface temps overnight, which put fish in upper Lake Oahe on the move.
Ted Takasaki backed up his impressive 17 lb basket on Day One with another 16-lbs 11 oz on Day Two to lead all anglers in to the finals with 34 lbs 6 oz.
|  | Todd Riley weighed 24+ on Day Two |
Todd Riley shot out of the pack with a monster bag weighing 24 lbs to qualify in second. Tommy Skarlis rebounded similarly on Day Two, posting 19 lbs 3oz to qualify in third.
Brett King added to his 17 lbs on Day One with 13-11 on Day Two to qualify in fourth.
The remaining qualifiers are as follows:
Ross Grothe - fifth
Joe Okada - sixth
Todd Frank - seventh
Robert Blosser - eighth
Tom Keenan - ninth
Chris Gilman - tenth
Co-anglers advancing are:
Dick Wherry
Terry Etzkorn
David Anderson
Cal Van Cleve
Del Ringling
Fred Gordon
Patrick Bertelsen
Nate Brunz
Boyd Strissel
Scott Woodward
Day One leader Ron Seelhoff finished two spots out of the cut, weighing just over 8 lbs on Day Two.
The FLW Finals consists of a two-day cumulative weight shootout; weights from days one and two are discarded and all anglers start at zero. The co-angler champion will be crowned after the third day of competition.
Toyota Rewards are still hotly contested; Takasaki and Gilman are both Tundra owners battling it out for an additional $3,000.00 in contingencies.
FLW Walleye Tour Finals coverage continues tomorrow morning, and live coverage of the weigh-in begins at 4:30 PM CST. |
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| Takasaki Leads FLW Walleye Tour Championship |
BISMARCK, N.D. (Sept. 25, 2007) � Pro Ted Takasaki of East Gull Lake, Minn., caught five walleyes weighing 16 pounds, 11 ounces to give him a two day total of 10 walleyes weighing 34-06 to capture the lead on day two of walleye fishing�s most lucrative event � the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship � on the Missouri River in Bismarck.
One hundred and eight anglers representing 18 states and Canada are competing for top awards of $150,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division.
��I am so excited right now,� said Takasaki, who won the 1998 PWT Championship in Bismarck. �The weights zero tomorrow so we will see what happens the next two days.
�The main concern I have is the change in wind and the expected high winds for tomorrow. I am pretty exposed to the wind where I am fishing.
Winds are expected to reach 20 to 25 mph out of the north on the Missouri River for day three of competition. �That�s going to make it difficult,� Takasaki added. �My spot is very defined. I have to be right on the edge and if I stray a little bit I am hung up or I am too deep.�
Takasaki said that 65 percent of the fish he is catching are crankbait fish and the other 35 percent are jig fish.
�If I can�t keep the boat on the spot I will go in the river and troll crankbaits or jig in the river,� Takasaki said. �It will be easier for me to control my boat in the river than it will be trolling in the lake.�
Rounding out the top five pros are pro Todd Riley of Amery, Wis. (10 walleyes, 33-06); Tommy Skarlis of Waukon, Iowa (10 walleyes, 32-01); Brett King of Claremont, Minn. (10 walleyes, 31-09); and Ross Grothe of Northfield, Minn. (10 walleyes, 30-11).
Dick Wherry of Milbank, S.D., leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of 10 walleyes weighing 38 pounds, 5 ounces. He caught five walleyes weighing 14-05 Wednesday while fishing with Tom Brunz of Madison Lake, Wis., then added another five walleyes weighing 24-00 Thursday while fishing with Riley.
�I am in shock right now,� said Wherry, who is looking for his first Walleye Tour Championship victory. �. I have been very fortunate to fish with really good pros that allowed me to get where I am.�
Wherry said that his plan for tomorrow is to remain calm and have a good day of fishing with Ted.
Pros and co-anglers fish for a combined boat weight. Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Terry Etzkorn of Pierre, S.D. (10 walleyes, 31-00), David Anderson of Sauk Rapids, Minn. (10 walleyes, 30-15); Cal Van Cleve of Wilmot, S.D. (10 walleyes, 28-04) and Del Ringling of Valley, Neb. (10 walleyes, 28-01).
Overall, there were 208 fish caught by all 54 anglers with a total weight of 522 pounds, 8 ounces. The catch included 28 five-fish limits.
MacLean Bottoms, Riffle Range, will host daily takeoffs at 7:30 a.m. Daily weigh-ins will be held at the Bismarck Civic Center, located at 315 S. 5th Street., beginning at 4:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend takeoffs and weigh-ins as well as the Family Fun Zone, which opens at 2 p.m. on Friday and noon Saturday. Saturday is free fishing rod and reel day at the Fun Zone, where the first 200 children 14 and under receive a free fishing rod and reel courtesy of 103.3 US Country.
The winning pro at the FLW Walleye Tour Championship is guaranteed a cash award of $100,000. If the winner is a qualifying Ranger or G3 boat owner, he will earn a $25,000 bonus, and if the boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he will receive another $25,000 bonus for a total cash award of $150,000.
The winning co-angler is guaranteed $10,000 cash and is eligible for a $5,000 bonus from Ranger or G3 if he is a registered owner. The winning co-angler will also receive a $5,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if his boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard.
Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros compete against other pros, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. The full field competes for two days and then is cut to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers for day three. Anglers in both divisions start from zero on day three, and co-angler competition concludes with the winner determined by the day�s heaviest catch. Pros carry their weights over to day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four. �
Tournament anglers aren�t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing�, FLW Outdoors� offered anyone the opportunity to enter for their chance to land the catch of a lifetime with the opportunity to win $7.3 million in cash and prizes. Players could become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player�s Advantage, which provided them with exclusive insider information that could have guided them to a $100,000 victory at every Walmart FLW Tour� stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player�s Advantage gave them an edge over the competition and increased their shot for the $1 million cash grand prize awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Visit FantasyFishing.com today to find out more information and to register for next season.
Coverage of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship on the Missouri River will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States on Nov. 30 as part of the �FLW Outdoors� television program. �FLW Outdoors� is also broadcast in Canada on WFN (World Fishing Network) and to more than 429 million households in the United Kingdom, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through a distribution agreement with Matchroom Sport, making it the most widely distributed fishing program in the world. The program airs Sunday mornings at 11 Eastern time in most markets. Check local listings for times in your area.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits. FLW Outdoors is also took fishing mainstream with the largest cash awards in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player�s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com. |
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