TAYLOR, Mich. – Pro angler Jeff Russell of Grand Haven, Mich., landed $50,000 cash and Ranger boat powered by Yamaha Saturday on the Detroit River after catching five walleyes that weighed 37 pounds, 1 ounce. His partner, co-angler Tom Nordyke of Newport, Mich., reeled in $15,000 cash for the catch.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet, but I’m sure it will,” said Russell, whose biggest tournament payday prior to this win was $7,000. “I knew we could catch in the mid 30-pound range if the wind didn’t blow and the sun stayed out, but I never thought for sure we had it won. I knew there were guys out on the lake, and it’s hard to beat those fish.”
Russell won the first $346,000 tournament of the $2.9 million 2002 Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit thanks in part to an 11-pound, 9-ounce walleye that ranks as the largest walleye of his life. That fish and the remainder of the pair’s impressive catch was the result of vertically jigging 3/8-ounce and 1/2-ounce chartreuse and orange jigs tipped with shiners. Russell and Nordyke fished a warm water discharge 13 miles upriver from the takeoff point at Lake Erie Metropark in Brownstown, Mich.
“I contributed a lot to my partners until [Saturday],” Nordyke said. “But Jeff was the man. I’d catch a 2-pounder, and he’d catch a 6-pounder. I’d catch a 3-pounder, and he’d catch an 11-pounder. It was great.”
Russell qualified for the final round of 10 pros in fourth place after landing five walleyes weighing 23 pounds, 11 ounces Friday with co-angler Ron Schropp of Omaha, Neb. Nordyke qualified for the final round of 10 co-anglers in first place after landing five walleyes weighing 31 pounds, 14 ounces Friday with pro Ron Gazvoda of Lakewood, Colo.
Pro Danny Plautz of Muskego, Wis., ($25,000) and co-angler Tom Harrison of Naperville, Ill., ($15,000) placed second with five walleyes weighing 35 pounds, 2 ounces. Pro John Hertensteiner of Victoria, Minn., ($20,000) and co-angler Ken Poole of Byron, Minn., ($6,000) placed third with five walleyes weighing 23 pounds, 1 ounce. Pro Rick Cole of Elwood, Ind., ($15,000) and co-angler James Jansen of Roseville, Mich., ($5,000) placed fourth with three walleyes weighing 21 pounds, 13 ounces. Pro Todd Riley of Amery, Wis., ($12,500) and co-angler Denny Eldredge of Stanton, Mich., ($4,000) placed fifth with five walleyes weighing 20 pounds.
Overall, 38 walleyes weighing 185 pounds, 7 ounces were caught Saturday, including six five-walleye limits. All of the fish were released alive.
Competition began Wednesday with 300 anglers representing 19 states and Canada. The field was cut to the top 20 anglers in each division after Thursday’s weigh-in and trimmed to the top 10 anglers in each division after Friday’s weigh-in. Weights were cleared for all anglers Friday and Saturday.
Directed by FLW Outdoors and named after Wal-Mart and boat manufacturers Ranger, Crestliner and Lund, the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit is the world’s most lucrative walleye fishing series. The circuit features four regular season tournaments each with a $346,000 cash purse and a championship with a $1.4 million cash purse. Cash payments are presented through 50th place.
The second Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit tournament is May 1-4 on Lake Sharpe in Pierre, S.D., followed by events on Lake Winnebago in Oshkosh, Wis., May 29-June 1 and Saginaw Bay in Bay City, Mich., June 26-29.
After four regular season tournaments, 200 pros and 200 co-anglers from the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit and other sanctioned tournament organizations and events will compete in the $1.4 million Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Championship for a top pro award of up to $400,000 cash and a top co-angler award of up to $150,000 cash. The championship will be held on the Mississippi River near Red Wing, Minn., Oct. 2-5. Green Bay hosted the Wal-Mart RCL Championship last season when Dean Arnoldussen of Kaukauna, Wis., won $400,000 and instantly joined the sport’s top all-time money winners.
Entry fees for regular season tournaments are $1,250 for pros and $500 for co-anglers. A limited number of co-angler spots are still available in each tournament. To enter, click here or call (270) 362-5259.