'We Love Winneconne' PWT Anglers Proclaim
The In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail touring pros and
their
amateur/co-angler partners are finalizing details for the season-opening
tournament at Winneconne, Wis. Based on the mild winter and
past experience
there, the pros are anxious to return.
Winner of the 2004 event, Tommy Skarlis, with three April
wins, said
on stage, "We love Winneconne." He said the volunteers
were very helpful
and the downtown park was a great site. Returning to defend
his victory,
Skarlis said he might chase some of the larger walleyes a bit
earlier this
year.
Winneconne boasts hundreds of thousands of walleyes that pass
through, swimming upstream to spawn in the Wolf River. They
will have
completed this cycle when the PWT arrives, and some will be
moving
downstream. Resident fish in the Wolf and Fox Rivers will be
targeted, as
will those in the Winneconne-area lakes: Poygan, Winneconne
and Butte des
Morts. Lake Winnebago, long known as Wisconsin's Walleye Factory,
is also
within tournament boundaries.
The PWT competition takes place April 19-21, with weigh-in
festivities at Winneconne's Waterfront Park, just downstream
from the Main
Street bridge. A Festival with a rock-climbing wall, Dock Dog
competition
and other events will also take place all three days, Wednesday,
Thursday
and Friday. The family-oriented Festival begins at 11 a.m.,
and the
weigh-in begins at 3 p.m.
This event, the Mercury Pro-Am, is part of the Regional Series
presented by MotorGuide. In the Regionals, the PWT doors are
open to all
pro anglers including those fishing all four Regional tournaments
-- and
about 80 anglers are doing just that. They fish to win and to
qualify for
the year-end no-entry fee Mercury Championship.
Anglers with less time may compete in one, two or three Regionals.
At Winneconne, in addition to the top touring pros, many of
the best
tournament anglers with local roots have already applied. They
will cross
the stage with their daily amateur partners and talk about their
experiences, which is why the weigh-in festivities are so popular.
The winning pro tows home a 19-foot Lund boat with a Mercury
outboard valued at $25,000, plus a check for $25,000. The top
amateur wins
a Mercury-powered Lund boat valued at $15,000. More than $200,000
will be
paid out in cash and merchandise prizes after the final day
at Winneconne.
Additional Regional events will take place on Devils Lake,
May
24-26, Lake Oahe, July 26-28, and Bay de Noc, Aug. 23-25. The
world's top
60 pro anglers fishing the PWT Super Pro series presented by
Minn Kota start
in May in South Dakota. They fish twice in Minnesota, then face
an
intriguing challenge at Michigan's Upper Peninsula Keweenaw
Waterway in
Houghton.
For entry information, site details, Mercury Real-Time scoring
at
tournaments and photos, check the PWT web:
www.professionalwalleyetrail.,com. Call 218-829-0620 to enter.
2006 PWT Special Awards
Coleman Big Fish: $2,000 per tournament
E-Cell Heavyweight: $1,000 per tournament
Johnsonville Brats Angler of the Year: $25,000
Tommy Docks Regional Champion: $5,000
Optima Top Gun: $5,000
Mercury Top Amateur: $4,000
Realtree Sportsman of the Year: $500
Norb Wallock Memorial Teaching Award: $500
Coleman Cool Under Pressure: $100 per tournament, pro &
am
The PWT is an integral element of the In-Fisherman Communications
Network
headquartered in Brainerd, Minnesota, and PRIMEDIA, America's
leading
producer of targeted media. PWT promotional partners include:
Mercury
Marine, Lund, The Outdoor Channel, Berkley, Optima Batteries,
Realtree,
MotorGuide, Lowrance, MinnKota, Trilene, Blue Fox, PowerBait,
Johnsonville
Brats, Northland Fishing Tackle, Lindy Legendary Fishing Tackle,
GULP!,
Coleman, Storm, Tommy Docks, Smooth Moves Seat Mounts, E-Village,
Kwik
Pfyt, Mack's Lure, Raymarine, Rapala, Pflueger, RAM, Gerbing's
Heated
Clothing, Aqua-Vu, Plano, Stowmaster.net, Navionics, Yellow
Bird, Beckman,
Drift Control, Gemini Sport Marketing, Yo-Zuri, Reef Runner
and the Village
of Winneconne.
Julie Meister
7819 Highland Scenic Rd.
Baxter, MN 56425
218.824.2542
Fax: 218.829.2371
www.professionalwalleyetrail.com
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