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Updated: 10/05/03
VANDERSTEEN, FLUEKIGER LEAD $1.4 MILLION WAL-MART
RCL WALLEYE CHAMPIONSHIP
RED WING, Minn. (Oct. 1, 2003) – A day of brilliant sunshine provided
a stark contrast to chilly temperatures on the Mississippi River near Red
Wing Wednesday as 440 anglers kicked off the four-day, $1.4 million Wal-Mart
RCL Walleye Championship. Two hundred and twenty pros are angling for a
top prize worth as much as $400,000 cash, the richest payout in walleye-tournament
history, and Douglas Vandersteen of Lundar, Manitoba, and his co-angler
partner Jarrad Fluekiger of Alma, Wis., lead the charge with a four-walleye
catch weighing 22 pounds, 6 ounces. Two hundred and twenty co-anglers are
in the hunt for a top co-angler award of $150,000 cash.
Many championship contenders found the mighty Mississippi
to be mighty miserly Wednesday, with only 26 boats landing five-walleye
limits. Vandersteen and Fluekiger, however, lead the field by a 3-pound,
5-ounce margin thanks to solid pre-fishing by Vandersteen.
“I found decent fish in Pool Four about a week and
a half ago, but I spent last week in Pool Three and figured out how some
things were working,” said Vandersteen, who caught most of his walleyes
Wednesday using Shad Raps. “But we laid it all on the line and went to
Pool Four today, and it came through.”
Fluekiger, no stranger to the leaderboard after
finishing ninth in last year’s championship, put himself in position to
claim a second consecutive RCL Walleye Championship top-10 finish. “I had
a blast,” he said. “This feels great, and I hope I can stay here.”
2003 Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour Angler of the Year
Jason Przekurat of Stevens Point, Wis., sits in 150th place after Wednesday’s
competition with one walleye weighing 1 pound, 9 ounces. Dr. Bruce Samson,
$300,000 winner of the 2002 championship that was also held on the Mississippi
River, weighed three walleyes weighing 5 pounds, 9 ounces to claim the
60th position. However, RCL Tour veterans Scott Allar of Welch; Rick Walter
of Casper, Wyo.; and Pete Harsh of Sauk Centre each remain solidly in contention
with top-25 rankings after opening day.
Rounding out the top four are pro Steve Lamb of
Nashville, Tenn., and co-angler Chad Carroll of Machesney Park, Ill. (four
walleyes, 19 pounds, 1 ounce); pro Robert Bodin of Red Wing and co-angler
Derek Ferestad of Overland, Kan. (five walleyes, 15 pounds, 12 ounces);
and pro Randy Carroll of Oswego, Ill., and co-angler Rob Jiminez of Missoula,
Mont. (five walleyes, 13 pounds, 12 ounces). Three teams caught 12 pounds,
13 ounces to form a three-way tie for fifth: Allar and his co-angler partner
Karl Elsner Jr. of West Monroe, N.Y.; John Hertensteiner of Victoria and
his co-angler partner Philip Bear of West Des Moines, Iowa; and Jack Neuman
of Naperville, Ill., and co-angler Glenn Rosenfeldt of Sabin.
Anglers take off each morning at 7 a.m. from Treasure
Island Resort and Casino in Tower. Thursday’s weigh-in will also be held
at Treasure Island beginning at 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday’s weigh-ins
will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 1752 Frontage Road in Hastings
beginning at 5 p.m. Friday and 3 p.m. Saturday. The community is encouraged
to attend daily takeoffs and weigh-ins. The Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour Family
Fun Zone featuring boat and truck displays, sponsor giveaways and children’s
games will open at the Hastings Wal-Mart at 3 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.
Admission is free.
The Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Championship field is comprised
of anglers who qualified for the event via the $3.07 million Wal-Mart RCL
Walleye Tour or other sanctioned tournament organizations. Pros and co-anglers
are randomly paired each day and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros
supply the boat and tackle and control boat movement.
The full field will compete again Thursday, after
which the top 12 pros and 12 co-anglers advance to Friday’s semifinal round
based on their two-day accumulated weight. Weights are cleared for the
semifinal round, and pros compete for one of six final-round slots. Co-angler
competition concludes Friday based on their one-day weight.
The winning pro is guaranteed $150,000 cash. Qualified
Ranger, Crestliner and Lund owners are eligible for a $150,000 bonus, and
if the winner’s boat is equipped with an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he
will receive another $100,000 for a top pro award of $400,000 cash. The
winning co-angler is guaranteed $75,000 cash, and if he is a registered
owner of a Ranger, Crestliner or Lund boat, he will receive a $45,000 bonus.
If his boat is equipped with an Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he will receive
another $30,000 for a top co-angler award of $150,000.
The Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Championship is administered
by FLW Outdoors and named after boat manufacturers Ranger, Crestliner and
Lund. FLW Outdoors, the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing,
is named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood.
Other FLW Outdoors tournament trails include the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League
for weekend anglers; the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the world’s most lucrative
bass-tournament series; the EverStart Series, designed as a pathway to
the FLW Tour; the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League for weekend anglers; and
the Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail.
Wal-Mart and many of America’s most respected companies
support FLW Outdoors and its six tournament trails. Wal-Mart has been the
title sponsor of FLW Outdoors since 1997. For a complete list of FLW Outdoors
sponsors and for more information about the premier products and services
they offer, please visit FLWOutdoors.com.
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Walleye Circuit and the Wal Mart RCL Circuit. All rights reserved.Copyright
1999/2003
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