2006 Ironman Race Heats Up Down the Stretch

Oct 13th, 2006 by OutdoorsFIRST

Modified Oct 13th, 2006 at 12:00 AM

Pro Walleye Angler Bill Ortiz retained his lead in the 2006 Ironman Rankings following the FLW Championship in Pierre, SD, but left himself vulnerable heading into the PWT Championship. Pro Scott Fairbairn, 2nd in the Ironman points race, finished strong last week at Pierre, just missing the final cut at 12th place. Pro Rick Franklin, currently third in the Ironman, made the final cut finishing 8th, while Ortiz finished 42nd. This allowed Fairbairn to close the gap to only 2 points. Franklin also gained considerable ground, but not quite enough to overcome the 30+ point gap for a realistic shot at the title. Although Franklin has a higher average finish than either Ortiz or Fairbairn, Ortiz and Fairbairn both have a larger number of adjusted Top 35’s, or what the model considers to be a money finish.The Ironman has essentialy become a two person race, which will be decided when the scales are read on Saturday in Bismarck.The 2006 Ironman is a points race which includes the eight anglers who compete in every professional level walleye tournament, including the FLW Walleye Tour and the In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail Regional and Super Pro Divisions. The Ironman is scored using the WalleyeFIRST World Walleye Rankings formula. Each tournament finish is scored based upon points assigned by the WWR model, and the scores within the ranking window are averaged to arrive at the final point total for each angler.The 2006 Ironman Champion will win a Professional Walleye Trail Entry Fee for the 2007 season, a sponsor product prize package, and the WalleyeFIRST Ironman Trophy. The winner will be announced at the Professional Walleye Trail Championship Ceremony in Bismack, ND, immediately following the final day’s weigh-in.The 2006 Ironman is sponsored by Lund Boats, Stowmaster Nets, E-Cell, Kwik-Pfyt, and WalleyeFIRST.com.Complete Ironman Standings can be viewed at:http://walleye.outdoorsfirst.com/rankings_ironman.asp

2006 Ironman Race Heats Up Down the Stretch

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