RCL Tour semifinalists on Lake Erie hope to make day three count ahead of tomorrow’s threatening weather
PORT CLINTON, Ohio – Today’s mild weather and sparse tournament field are on the side of the remaining 20 competitors in the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour event on Lake Erie. Tomorrow’s outlook, on the other hand, is downright ominous.
“Last night’s squall wasn’t very big, so I don’t think it will affect the fishing,” says 19th-place Lund pro Andy Kuffer of Fair Haven, Mich. “But with tomorrow’s forecast, I think you had better get ’em today.”
While Friday dawned with the third straight day of calm winds and moderate sun, Saturday’s finals don’t appear to be so blessed. The forecast is calling for high winds, a 15-degree drop in temperatures and scattered thunderstorms.
Like Kuffer, 11th-place Yamaha pro Shannon Kehl of Menoken, N.D., hopes to make hay while the sun shines by trolling spinners with inline weights behind planer boards.
“It’s supposed to be really nice today,” Kehl says. “This will probably be the most important day right here.”
The fewer, the better
High winds tomorrow could keep the majority of the top 20 from returning to Canadian waters approximately 20 miles from the launch in Port Clinton, keeping them closer to the Bass Islands and the one of the best big-fish spots on Erie, Kelleys Island.
That’s precisely where Lund pro Mike Gofron of Antioch, Ill., plans to troll today now that more than 130 of his peers are going home after the day-two cut.
“I’m headed out to Kelleys,” Gofron says. “The right fish are there, and I’ll have more time with the shorter run. Yesterday, with all the company, I caught some big fish, but I couldn’t always go back to them. Staying on top of the big fish is going to be key today.”
Likewise, leader Tom Brunz, an Evinrude pro from Madison Lake, Minn., should benefit from the reduced competition on his primary spot.
“I had some pressure on my spot (Thursday),” Brunz says. “So I just had to move.”
A hallmark of successful tournament anglers is the ability to get the job done in a backup spot. We’ll find out at today’s weigh-in if plan B must be pressed into action.
The top 20 return to Catawba State Park at 3 p.m., and they will bring their bags to the scales shortly thereafter at Wal-Mart, 4070 E. Arbor Road, Port Clinton.
Friday’s conditions
Sunrise: 6:01 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 53 degrees
Expected high temperature: lower 70s
Water temperature: 60-62 degrees
Wind: south-southwest at 5 mph
Relative humidity: 96 percent
Day’s outlook: partly sunny in the morning, becoming cloudy in the afternoon; west winds 5-10 mph
Day-three links: