Vande Mark continues to roll
Przekurat inches towards AOY title
ESCANABA, Mich. – It might not compare to the smallmouth slugfest in Detroit, but both the competition and the bite are beginning to heat up in Escanaba. Under ideal conditions, pro Steve Vande Mark caught five walleyes that weighed 21 pounds, 8 ounces and moved one step closer to his first Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour victory.
With slight winds allowing for long runs, many competitors spent half the day driving down south to the Green Bay region. Many of these long runs proved fruitful. But Vande Mark drove in a different direction. Instead of heading south, he has been wetting his lines to the east in Big Bay de Noc.
“It was a textbook day,” he said. “On our first pass we caught a sheephead, then we caught a 6-pounder and then a 6 1/2. We then caught a slot, then another slot. At 9:30, we already had four in the box.”
At 11 a.m., Vande Mark stuck an 8-pounder, which replaced the 6. Competitors are allowed only two fish over 23 inches and culling is allowed in Michigan, but not in Wisconsin. From 11:30 to 2 p.m., the Linwood, Mich., pro was without a fifth and final fish. At 2 p.m. he caught an 18-incher and then it was time to celebrate and relax. That fish came from a spot known as Black Bottom, which is located in Little Bay de Noc.
The rest all came from Big Bay in an area known as Garden Peninsula. Those four walleyes were caught in 22 feet of water on crawler harnesses that were trolled at 1.1 to 1.3 mph. He’s using gold blades and orange and chartreuse beads. Vande Mark said he is increasing his trolling speed as the day progresses.
“I like Big Bay because you’re somewhat protected. I prefished down near Green Bay but its so weather dependent. In these slot tournaments, it’s not necessarily who is the best fisherman but where’s the best spot. My spot has lost zero water temperature in the past three days despite the west winds. I’m going to stick to the same game plan tomorrow.”
Vande Mark is no stranger to walleye success. He won the 2005 Michigan Division Walleye League event on Saginaw Bay. But this is the Walleye Tour and a victory tomorrow would mean $100,000.
“It’s kind of like winning the lottery. I just hope I can sleep tonight.”
Vande Mark will begin the final day of competition with a 7-pound lead and a three-day total weight of 58 pounds even.
Morris moves up to second
Troy Morris moved up to second in the Pro Division, and he did so at the expense of his good friend and fishing partner Jason Przekurat. Demonstrating remarkable consistency, Morris caught five walleyes that weighed 17 pounds, 12 ounces. Morris and Przekurat are the only two anglers who have caught a tournament limit of five walleyes each day. His three-day weight stands at 51 pounds, 1 ounce.
“Today was awesome,” said the Bismarck, N.D., pro. “The wind was light and it allowed us to drive wherever we wanted.”
Wherever we wanted can be translated into Oconto, a 150-mile roundtrip run from Escanaba.
“We had one fish every half hour and were done by 11:30 a.m. Everyday it has taken us about 2 1/2 hours to get them.”
Morris said the key to his success is trolling speed. While the other 20-some boats in the area were trolling at 1 to 1.3 mph, Morris and Przekurat were trolling at 1.5 to 1.8 mph. They’re fishing in 14 feet of water and presenting their baits in the middle of the water column at about 7 feet.
“With nobody down there but Jason and I tomorrow we’ve got a great chance at some big bags.”
Despite trailing by 6 pounds, 15 ounces, the veteran pro has no plans of being picky.
“Everything goes in the box. Today we weighed a 17-incher. My goal tomorrow is four slots and one big fish. That could be enough to win it.”
Przekurat third
Przekurat once again showed why he is the hottest walleye angler on the planet. On the most pressure-packed day of the season, the BP pro caught five walleyes that weighed 16 pounds, 6 ounces. He fell one spot to third, but more importantly, he nearly sealed the deal in the Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year race.
Pro Chris Gilman finished the tournament in 13th place, but he had a 4-point lead coming into the final qualifier of the year. Przekurat made the cutoff, meaning he can finish no worse than 10th. If he finishes in ninth place, he and Gilman will tie. If he finishes in eighth or better, he will become the first walleye fisherman to twice win AOY.
Considering he has more than a 10-pound lead over Tom Keenan, the current eighth-place pro, it looks all but over for Gilman.
“I’m speechless,” said the Stevens Point, Wis., pro. “Your goal coming into the year is A: to win a tournament, B: to win Angler of the Year and C: to win the championship. I’ve already got A and B and now I can set my sights on C. My confidence is sky-high right now.
“It’s surreal. It’s almost like you’re looking at it from the outside. Anything that happens tomorrow is a bonus. I’m just going to have fun tomorrow and whatever happens, happens.”
Przekurat had four fish in the box within his first hour of fishing. Both his presentation and location are identical to Morris’. He starts 7 pounds, 15 ounces off the lead tomorrow with a three-day total weight of 50 pounds, 1 ounce.
Byle slips to fourth
Falling one spot to fourth was Colgate, Wis., native Pat Byle. After bringing in 18 pounds, 2 ounces on day two, Byle was only able to catch two walleyes that weighed 12 pounds, 3 ounces on day three. His opening-round total is 45 pounds, 9 ounces. Despite only falling one place, Byle was disappointed with his performance.
“I’m not happy with it,” he said. “We should have had three or four hours to fish for slot fish. Instead, we got our second over at 2:15 p.m.”
Byle is fishing the northeast corner of Chamber’s Island, which is located approximately 40 miles from Escanaba Harbor. He’s running his spinners/crawler harnesses in the middle of the water column at 1.1 to 1.2 mph and is varying his colors.
Klemm fifth
In fifth place was young pro Kelly Klemm, who caught four walleyes that weighed 20 pounds, 11 ounces. Klemm’s three-day total was 44 pounds, 12 ounces. This is the Beardsley, Minn., native’s first appearance in the top 10 as a professional.
Rest of the best
Rounding out the top 10 pros, who will be fishing on day four at Bays de Noc:
6th: Tom Kemos of Oconomowoc, Wis., 42-11
7th: Todd Riley of Amery, Wis., 39-13
8th: Tom Keenan of Hatley, Wis., 39-1
9th: Mark Courts of Harris, Minn., 38-5
10th: Dustin Kjelden of Brookings, S.D., 36-15
Rookie co-angler on top
Trent McLaughlin of Hays, Kansas, leads the Co-angler Division with 14 walleyes weighing 45 pounds, 7 ounces. On day three, he caught five walleyes that weighed 16 pounds, 6 ounces. This is McLaughlin’s first walleye tournament of any kind with FLW Outdoors. Tomorrow he has a chance to earn a five-figure payday.
“Today was a heck of a day and Jason is a heck of a fisherman,” said McLaughlin, referring to third-place pro Przekurat. “It’s been a crazy ride and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Coming in second for the co-anglers was Lawrence Booghier of Lakeview, Ohio. Booghier partnered with pro Jeff Seyka on day three and the two caught three walleyes weighing 20 pounds, 6 ounces. His opening-round total is 41 pounds, 3 ounces, only 4 pounds, 4 ounces behind the leader.
Roy Hammond of New Berlin, Wis., is in third place thanks to four walleyes that weighed 20 pounds, 11 ounces. Hammond’s catch brought his three-day combined weight to 40 pounds, 8 ounces. Hammond’s son, John, also of New Berlin, is in fifth place in the Co-angler Division with 36 pounds, 7 ounces. This is both Roy and John’s first tour-level event after having competed in several Wisconsin Division League events.
FLW Tour, Stren Series and Bass Fishing League veteran James Plummer of Fairborn, Ohio, currently sits in fourth place with 40 pounds, 4 ounces. This is his third Walleye Tour event of his career. On day three, he was partnered with Keenan, the Chevy pro. Together, they caught two walleyes that weighed 13 pounds even.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers, who will fish on day four at Bays de Noc:
6th: Shannon Larson of Rice Lake, Wis., 36-7
7th: Doug Lampen of Allegan, Mich., 34-4
8th: Kevin Kerkvliet of Maplewood, Minn., 33-3
9th: Joseph Manenti of Troy, Mich., 30-5
10th: Chris Pluntz of Maple, Wis., 30-0
The final day of FLW Walleye Tour competition on Bays de Noc begins as the top 10 pros and 10 co-anglers take off from Escanaba Harbor at 7 a.m. Eastern time Saturday. The final weigh-in, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 4 p.m. at the Wal-Mart store located at 601 North Lincoln Road in Escanaba.