Wal-Mart RCL Championship preview

Nation’s most lucrative walleye tournament to take place Oct. 3-6 in Green Bay, Wis.

If you were involved in the 2001 Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Circuit, as an angler or spectator, then you probably have a pretty good idea how much fun tournament walleye fishing can be. However, if you’re willing to make a trek to the shores of Green Bay, Wis., in the next week or so, you just may discover why the final RCL tournament of the year offers nearly as much excitement as the entire regular season combined.

For 200 pros and 200 co-anglers, as well as countless spectators from around the United State, the final, year-end contest represents much more than just another walleye tournament. In many respects, the Oct. 3-6 event signifies one of the most prestigious walleye tournaments in the history of the sport – the second annual Wal-Mart RCL Championship.

To be sure, each of the 400 participants is gearing up to win a big chunk of the $1.4 million total purse, representing the largest payoff of any walleye tournament in the world. However, the top individual prizes – $400,000 in the Pro Division and $150,000 in the Co-angler Division – will not be easy to earn. Not only will anglers be forced to make many tactical decisions on Green Bay – a huge body of water in-and-of-itself – but they will also have to contend with the fickle weather. And as fall displaces the summer, anglers almost certainly will be at the mercy of Green Bay’s notorious cold, wet, rainy and windy climes.

Wind, weather and walleyes

“The weather will not only determine the walleye location in the bay,” states Pro Scott Rhodes of Traverse City, Mich., “but if it blows hard enough, none of us may even make it out to the big water for a day or two. If this happens, then it will be bumper boats in the Fox River for all of us.”

The Fox River, which runs right through the city’s downtown, is Green Bay’s largest water source. However, by most accounts, the river is a great walleye fishery. The lower half of the Fox has been dredged to depths of 15 to 20 feet, as it is a major Great Lakes shipping channel. Consequently, the river makes a perfect home for large numbers of walleye throughout the year, especially during spring and fall.

Fishing techniques should be as diverse as the anglers themselves.

“There are a number of techniques you can use to catch the eyes from the river this time of year,” says Rhodes. “Trolling crankbaits like Yo-Zuris and lead-core line through the main channel is a top producer, but you can also cast these same crankbaits, or pitch jigs tipped with crawlers, along the edges of the rocky bars and humps located throughout the river system.”

The Fox River is not Green Bay’s only inlet that attracts walleye. Along the western shore of the Bay are a number of river inlets that can only be characterized as fall walleye magnets. The Big Suamico, Pensaukee, Oconoto, and Peshtigo Rivers are small enough in size to discourage boat passage, yet the waters around the inlets of these rivers could as a refuge for big walleyes shortly before making their fall migration upstream. Tournament participants could hit these walleye hot spots hard as they are not too far from the takeoff point at Metro Park Boat Launch in the city of Green Bay.

However, there are other many other options for anglers seeking large walleye limits. Farther north sits the Menominee River, which actually divides the Wisconsin/Michigan boarder. The Menominee, large enough to accommodate anglers and fertile enough to hold plenty of walleye, could be productive enough to convince tournament anglers to make the 40-mile one-way run toward it’s flowing and lucrative waters.

Big water equals big walleyes

The rivers and streams that enter the shallow waters of Green Bay are not the only places walleye congregate. The reefs and cuts within Green Bay itself, along with the open waters of Lake Michigan, also hold walleye – big walleye to be exact. This is where the biggest walleye, those 10-pound-plus hens, like to congregate; making meals of numerous types of forage that includes shiners, shad, smelt and herring.

“Actually, more walleye are relating tightly to some kind of structure out there, (as opposed) to just swimming in the open water,” says pro Mike Gofron of Antioch, Ill. “Oh, there are big walleye that seem to be suspending in open water, but they are still relating to structure as they will be within 100 yards or so of a reef or sunken island.”

Weather permitting, some anglers may choose to make the long, 90-mile run straight north toward the reefs of Little Bay DeNoc, which starts to fill up with big walleyes in early fall. However, in order to make the long run, anglers will have to be convinced that the bite is extraordinary and that the weather is calm.

Bread-and-butter techniques

There is no doubt that, wherever the big-water bite may be, trolling big crankbaits, bodybaits, and big-bladed crawler harnesses behind in-line planer boards will be the technique of choice. However, if the walleyes are tightly schooled up, some tournament anglers may opt to go vertical jigging with crawlers and minnow over the rocky points that jettison out into 20-plus feet of water.

Weather also may factor in to the seasonal walleye migration pattern. Due to the recent cold fronts that have been plaguing Green Bay for the past few weeks, walleye will almost certainly be on the move as the cold rains and gusting, north winds continue to pound the area.

Fun for anglers, spectators alike

The waters of Green Bay, known for its big walleye stores, should give spectators something to talk about for years to come. The winner of this year’s Wal-Mart RCL Championship could easily dazzle the crowd with daily stringers topping the 40-pound mark.

Strategy should also play a big part in the contest. One thing anglers and spectators will need to keep in mind is how the no-cull rule will affect tournament tactics. Not only does an angler have to find big fish, but he/she will have to judge when to keep, or release each fish at the moment of capture. Because, once a walleye is placed in a livewell, tournament rules dictate that it has to stay there.

With a big city, big water, big fish, and 400 top-notch anglers competing for the highest payoff in history, the Wal-Mart RCL Championship 2001 is going to be a great event. Remember, whether you are an angler or not, the Wal-Mart RCL welcomes everyone to come and enjoy all the weight-ins and fan-participation events throughout the week.

The RCL Championship will start Oct. 3 at 7 a.m. at the Metro Park Boat Launch on Bay Beach Road. Oct. 3-4 weigh-ins will be at the same location, starting at 3 p.m. However, the Oct. 5 weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart located at 2440 West Mason Street, starting at 5 p.m. The final weigh-in, Oct. 6, will also be held at Wal-Mart starting at 3 p.m.

Fans can meet their favorite pros Oct. 3 at 6 p.m. during a fish-fry cook-off to benefit Walleyes for Tomorrow, at the Brown County Arena. A Family Fun Zone, complete with children’s games, interactive-product displays and giveaways, will be set up at Wal-Mart starting at 3 p.m. on Oct. 5, and at noon on Oct. 6.