By Steve Weisman
GNWC Publicity Director
    It's just around the corner! The top walleye teams in the state of Iowa
are preparing to converge on Clear Lake for the 2003 Grand National Walleye
Cup's (GNWC) Iowa State Walleye Championship.
    The championship will feature up to 30 teams who have qualified for the
two-day tournament at Clear Lake September 13-14. The Iowa circuit of the
GNWC was formerly the Iowa Walleye Tournament Trail, but has since become
part of the five-state Grand National Walleye Cup.
    Leading the way will be Dave Smithburg from Libertyville and Joel Shaw
from Fairfield, who captured the Mercury Team of the Year as the top team on
the Iowa Circuit. 
    "Clear Lake is traditionally a top walleye producing lake in Iowa," said
Barringer. "The teams have been off since the end of June, so I know they
are ready for the State competition. We're excited to be back at Clear Lake,
and I predict these guys will put on quite a show. Plus, our sponsors have
really worked hard to make this a memorable experience for all of the
qualifying GNWC teams."
    Barringer continued, "Another part of the excitement will be the filming
of the championship by the Walleye Wisdom television crews. The action will
be part of our new walleye fishing show that will be aired on the Sportsman
Channel this fall."
    Teams will be fishing for more than $12,000 in cash and prizes, with
first place getting a guaranteed $6000 in cash plus trophies.
    In addition, each day the team that catches the big walleye of the day
will be awarded two Abu Garcia 6500 Linecounter reels. An optional Big Fish
pot is $20 per team with a 100 percent payback for the largest fish of the
tournament. Another award is the Berkley Family Award of over $200 in
Berkley product that goes to the top overall family team.
    Although the tournament begins on Saturday, the activities actually
begin on Friday with an awards banquet and supper at the Best Western. "The
meal, sponsored by Con-Agra Foods, is complimentary for all qualifying
teams, and at the awards banquet we will present Dave Smithburg and Joel
Shaw their Mercury Team of the Year certificates. There will also be lots of
door prizes to give out." Following the Friday evening banquet will be the
Official Rules Meeting.
    Saturday, September 13 is the first day of the State competition with
the take-off at 7 a.m. The weigh-in will begin at 3 p.m. sharp and will be
held each day at the band shell in the Clear Lake City Park.
    "Even though Saturday is the first day of the tournament, we hope to get
a lot of people out to the weigh-in. To catch all of the action, people
should be at the weigh-in by 2:45. These are the top walleye anglers in the
Hawkeye state, and their challenge is to put together a game plan that will
take them to the top," said Barringer.
    Sunday's competition follows Saturday's agenda with the teams back in
for the 3 p.m. weigh-in. "We really encourage people to come to the second
day weigh-ins. It is exciting to see the baskets of fish come to the scales,
and it is also fascinating for the crowd to find out what the teams did to
catch their fish."
    Following the weigh-in, trophies and checks will be awarded.
    For those interested in learning more about the GNWC, call
1-800-890-3474, email the GNWC at info@walleyecup.com or check out the
official GNWC website at walleyecup.com. The website has all of the latest
in GNWC information in not only Iowa, but also in Illinois, Minnesota, South
Dakota and Wisconsin.
    Major sponsoring partners for the GNWC include Ranger Boats, Mercury
Outboards, Berkley, Abu-Garcia, The Sportsman Channel and
UpNorthOutdoors.com.
    Television viewers who do not have The Sportsman Channel and want to
watch the GNWC's television series Walleye Wisdom, are encouraged to call
their cable company or satellite television provider and ask them to include
it in their package.

Now you can Join all of Walleyes Inc. mailing lists from one spot.  Sign up  to receive notice of updates in the Walleye fishing world and be eligible for great Members only discounts on  and Church Products. Only  from your one stop resource Walleyes Inc. Enter your email address below, then click the 'Sign Up' button