TRENTON, Mich. – With snowflakes in the air and temperatures hovering around freezing, it hardly feels appropriate to commence the 2006 FLW Walleye Tour season. But don’t ask the weather; ask the 150 pro and 150 co-anglers who came out in full force Wednesday for the most lucrative season in professional walleye-fishing history.
While the weather outside is frightful, fishing for $100,000 can prove to be delightful, especially when angling for Detroit River pigs. In a local tournament last weekend, the first-place team caught five walleyes that weighed over 43 pounds. The largest weighed in at over 13 pounds. In contrast, however, was the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League event the same weekend in which boater Ernest Plant of Pinconning, Mich., caught a limit weighing 25 pounds, 1 ounce to win by nearly 10 pounds.
While the fishery’s capabilities are impressive, the consensus is that most of the big fish are still out in Lake Erie, which, along with Lake St. Clair, are off limits for this event. Small waves of fish are periodically moving in, yet the big schools have yet to concentrate in any specific area.
Pro Jeff Ryan of Lake View, Iowa, described the fishing as hit-or-miss.
“It’s been tough for me, but there’s definitely big fish being caught.”
In addition, last night’s mix of rain and snow has temporarily muddied up the river. That mud put a damper on most of the jig fishermen’s spirits, while the handliners were licking their chops. Despite the difficult conditions, Ryan plans to get vertical all day with 1/2-ounce to 5/8-ounce jigs tipped with minnows.
“Right now it’s shaping up to be a crapshoot,” Ryan said.
Logistics
A full field of 150 pros and 150 co-anglers will take on the Detroit River for their share of a $503,300 purse, including as much as $100,000 for the winning pro and $18,000 for the winning co-angler.
Elizabeth Park Marina in Trenton will host daily takeoffs each morning at 7 Central time. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 23800 Allen Road in Woodhaven, Mich., beginning at 4 p.m. The community is invited to attend daily takeoffs and weigh-ins, which are free and open to the public.
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 during the three-day opening round for one of 10 final-round slots based on their three-day accumulated weight. Weights carry over to day four, with the winner determined by the heaviest four-day weight.
Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 150 points awarded to the winner, 149 to second, 148 for third, and so on. These points determine angler standings. The top 50 pros and 50 co-anglers based on year-end points standings will advance to the 2006 FLW Walleye Tour Championship.
Wednesday’s conditions
Sunrise: 7:09 a.m.
Temperature at takeoff: 33 degrees
Expected high temperature: 49 degrees
Water temperature: 40-49 degrees
Wind: NW at 12 mph
Maximum humidity: 62 percent
Day’s outlook: morning snow showers