Pundits’ Picks Walleye: Lake Winnebago

Anglers head to eastern Wisconsin for final regular-season event

For the first time all season, I am pleased to report that the Staff Division took two of the three head-to-head matchups from the Pro Division. While previously unbeaten Pro Division pundits Rick LaCourse and Jason Kerr stumbled at Leech Lake, winless pundit Eric Olson got off the schneid with an impressive 636 to 575 victory over Staff pundit Vince Meyer. Olson’s 636 points were the highest of any pundit and three of his five picks made the top-10 cutoff, including pro winner Dan Stier. Meyer also picked Stier but rounded out his roster with Greg Clark. Never before in the history of Pundits’ Picks has the same individual selected both the first- and last-place finisher in a single tournament. The latest loss pushed Meyer’s rookie record to a disappointing 0-3. Thankfully for the staffers, Sharon Reynolds upset the pundit powerhouse known as LaCourse 610 to 577. LaCourse picked Stier but had little else while Reynolds coupled Stier with Chris Gilman and Ross Grothe. Both Reynolds and LaCourse finished the regular season with a 2-1 record. In the final head-to-head matchup, I calmly dispatched Jason Kerr 593 to 515. Kerr may now call Minnesota home, but he’s still got a lot to learn about prognosticating in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Anchoring my roster was ice-fishing legend Brian Brosdahl and Angler of the Year leader Ted Takasaki.

Tournament No. 4 on Lake Winnebago is the first round of the Pundit Playoffs. The No. 1 seed from the Staff Division goes against the No. 3 seed from the Pro Division and vice versa. That means LaCourse will face Meyer, Reynolds will face Kerr and I will tackle the Butter Boy. The three winners of the head-to-head matchups will compete for the winner-take-all title in Bismarck.

Last thing, the disclaimer: The picks in this column in no way represent any sort of favoritism on the part of FLW Outdoors staff or its pro anglers. These are merely guesses – only arguably educated – as to who we think might do well at any given tournament. With that in mind, here are the picks. Enjoy.

– Brett Carlson

Tournament site

The final regular season event on the 2009 FLW Walleye Tour schedule takes place on Lake Winnebago in Oshkosh, Wis. Winnebago is the largest inland lake in the state of Wisconsin at just over 135,000 acres. Although the fishery is vast, it is relatively shallow with an average depth of 8 feet and a maximum depth of only 22 feet. The last time the Walleye Tour visited was 2002, back when the circuit was still called the RCL. Previously Wisconsin had a law that prohibited tournaments on inland waters from running for more than three consecutive days. A new law that took effect Jan. 1 allows for four consecutive days and FLW Outdoors quickly responded by adding Winnebago to the 2009 schedule. The 2002 tournament was held in late May and with this event in mid-July, the fishing promises to be different. Currently, the walleyes are entrenched in their summer patterns. To catch these fish, most anglers are trolling crankbaits in the mud. In addition, spinners with night crawlers are effective. Jigging could also play a role, although the current conditions don’t lend themselves particularly well. While Winnebago is known as a system full of eaters, fish up to 22 inches are common. The most current estimate has the lake’s population of walleyes of 15 inches and longer at about 650,000. Many anglers are speculating that roughly 40 pounds will be needed to advance past the three-day opening round. For this specific tournament, anglers can keep walleyes seven walleyes per day that meet the minimum length requirement of 14 inches. Only the best five fish will be weighed and upgrading is not allowed.

Walmart FLW Walleye Tour stop No. 4

Lake Winnebago, Oshkosh, Wis.

July 15-18

Brett Carlson Editor FLWOutdoors.com Record: 2-1 Points: 1677	VS.	Eric Olson FLW Walleye Tour pro Red Wing, Minn. Record: 1-2 Points: 1630
1) TOM KEENAN.This is the first round of the pundit playoffs so I’m pulling out all the stops. My first pick is Keenan. Knowing how competitive he is, the Chevy pro is probably fuming over his second-place finish on Leech. He had a great tournament, but Keenan always fishes to win. That’s the kind of guy I want on my roster come playoff time. 2) ROBERT B. BLOSSER.This young gun is no longer a secret in the walleye world. I first picked Blosser two years ago for an event on Bays de Noc. Since then he’s blossomed into one of the best fishermen on tour. I particularly like him on Winnebago, where his trolling skills will be on full display. 3) CHRIS GILMAN.It’s tough not to pick Gilman on any body of water. He’s meticulous with his preparation and come tournament time he executes. But he’s an absolute no-brainer on Winnebago, having won the PWT event in 1995. Once again, he’s in contention for Angler of the Year – having finished in the top 10 each of the last two events. 4) PAT BYLE.Byle has an exceptional opportunity to win Angler of the Year in his home state. His leads Gilman by 19 points and trails only one person – Ted Takasaki by 10 points. Like Blosser, Byle is an exceptional troller. 5) JASON PRZEKURAT.Przekurat has had a relatively quiet 2009 season. But he’s still in line to make the championship with a good Winnebago tournament. In 2002, he took 14th on Bago and I think he’ll do even better this time.		1) TOM KEENAN.Keenan is one of the favorites on Winnebago because he knows the key spots that hold the better fish (20 inches plus) and understands what triggers them to bite. The Chevy pro never stops working – look for Tom to be strutting his stuff on Saturday. 2) PETE HARSH.Harsh is another easy pick for the final stop of the season. Pete is solid and consistent – just what I’m looking for to get another win when it counts. Mr. Tiller is a meticulous fisherman and goes about his job in a workmanlike manner. I predict we’ll be seeing his tiller Ranger heading out on the final day. 3) JIMMY HUGHES.Hughes is the local favorite and has been very successful as of late on this body of water. With a win under his belt this year (Merc Nationals) and a win last year at the Walleye League Finals, Jimmy knows what it takes to get the win. It will be nice to see his smiling face on the stage come Saturday. 4) TOM KEMOS.Having fished against Tommy for many years I know how tough of a competitor he is. His quiet approach to the tourney game gives him an edge as few have noticed his many achievements. Combine this with his knowledge of the system and Tom becomes one to look for in the top 10. 5) DEAN ARNOLDUSSEN.Another local, Dean is in a great spot in that he’s got the home-field advantage without the home-field jinx. In this tournament, there are lots of tactics to think about and being versatile will make the difference. Dean’s got the talent and the decision-making skills to make it happen. I could definitely see him holding up another big check on stage Saturday.

Vince Meyer Staff Reporter FLWOutdoors.com Record: 0-3 Points: 1561	VS.	Rick LaCourse FLW Walleye Tour pro Port Clinton, Ohio Record: 2-1 Points: 1818
1) BRIAN BJORKMAN.On the strength of back-to-back fifth-place finishes at Pepin and Leech, and because he’s had a strong season (fourth in the Angler of the Year race) I’ll predict Bjorkman picks up his first tour win. 2) CHRIS GILMAN.Before he started tournament fishing, Gilman worked at a Gander Mountain store not far from Winnebago. He knows the lake well and won a PWT event here in 1995. 3) DAVID KRAFT.This veteran North Dakota pro is having one of his best years in recent memory, placing eighth on Erie and 16th on Leech. He stumbled at Pepin, finishing 87th, but he’s 17th in the Angler of the Year race and could surprise on Winnebago. 4) TOM KEENAN.My momentum pick for this tournament. Keenan had one of the better performances of his career at Leech, holding onto first place until the last day. Now he’s back in his home state on a lake he knows well. Here’s saying he drums up the same magic that propelled him to a PWT victory here in 1999. 5) SCOTT ALLAR.Seven top 10s without a win and three second-place finishes. I’d say Allar is due for a breakthrough tournament. Four of his top 10s came on rivers, so it might not make sense to pick him on a big lake like Winnebago. But the Wolf and Fox rivers both feed the system. Something tells me Allar will feel right at home.		1) TOM KEENAN.Tom is no stranger to the winner’s circle at Winnebago and I expect to see him running and gunning from spot to spot picking off the best fish at each. He will use everything from trolling spinners and cranks to pitching jigs on rock points to make the cut. 2) DEAN ARNOLDUSSEN.This is Dean’s home body of water and I expect him to do well. He is ready for a break-out tournament and this will be it. Dean is one of the best with spinners and he will have the open-water bite dialed in. 3) KEVIN BLANCK.Kevin knows the system like the back of his hand and has the tools to make the right changes depending on the weather conditions. He will be fishing both the upper lakes along with the main lake if the weather allows it. 4) RANDY SEIDL.Ask anyone who is one of the best fishermen on Winnebago and Randy’s name will pop up. He has no weak spots in his arsenal and he knows how to use them all. 5) DAN STIER.After a tough start at Lake Erie, Dan has been on a roll, including a win at Leech Lake. At Winnebago, I think he will get his first five keepers pitching jigs or cranks in areas that have spot-on-the-spot rock piles. He will then go for kicker fish on the main lake pulling spinners.

Sharon Reynolds Tournament administrator FLW Outdoors Record: 2-1 Points: 1576	VS.	Jason Kerr FLW Walleye Tour pro Holly, Mich. Record: 2-1 Points: 1658
1) TOM KEENAN.He is one of the favorites for this tournament because he has won here before and has numerous top-10 finishes. I would be crazy not to pick him on this lake. 2) CHRIS GILMAN.I have picked Chris since the beginning of the year and I am not stopping now. He is on a roll and I just feel that Chris is going to have another awesome finish on Lake Winnebago. He is just having that kind of year. 3) PATRICK NEU.I have never picked Pat for my Pundits’ Picks before, but something tells me I need too. Call it what you want, but I really think Pat will be in the top 10 on Saturday. As a troller, this is his kind of water. 4) JIMMY HUGHES.As I was looking at the results from past events Jimmy’s name was there several times. So when I saw that he was fishing this event I had to add him to my picks. Jimmy is a great guy, a great fisherman and this is his home water. I feel that this will be one of those tournaments that will make history. 5) ROBERT B. BLOSSER.I am picking Robert for this event. He is a solid Wisconsin angler and has probably fished this lake more than I could count. Plus, he is due for another top 10. Robert is my sleeper for this tournament.		1) TOM KEENAN.I have to assume that my opponent is picking Keenan, so this will probably be a wash. If its not, I will be raking in some serious points. Keenan is a stick on Winnebago and he is even hungrier after taking second on Leech. 2) TOMMY SKARLIS.Skarlis is having a good season and he is a threat to win everywhere we go. He works well with partner Ross Grothe and the two are usually able to put the pieces of the puzzle together. 3) CHRIS GILMAN.With a good finish on Winnebago, Gilman has a shot at winning Angler of the Year. Each of his last two tournaments have been top-10s and with his track record on Bago I expect that number to climb to three. 4) JASON PRZEKURAT.Jason lives in Wisconsin and is one of the best walleye fishermen in the world. He also has a knack for finding fish off the beaten path. Sounds like a recipe for success to me. 5) SCOTT FAIRBAIRN.Scott is one of my favorite anglers because he is so consistent. No matter the venue, he puts quality fish in the boat everyday. He is excellent at pitching jigs and cranks. While everyone else is trolling the main lake, Scott might be jigging a small rock pile all by himself.