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Swanstrom On Top at Lake Erie FLW

Category: Tournament

 Apr 17th, 2008 by OutdoorsFIRST 

Modified Apr 17th, 2008 at 12:00 AM

	Swanstrom weighed 40+ to take the lead

PORT CLINTON, Ohio (April 17, 2008) – Pro John Swanstrom of Superior, Wis., caught five walleyes weighing 41 pounds, 5 ounces Thursday to take the lead in the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour season opener presented by Yamaha on Lake Erie in Port Clinton, Ohio, with a two-day total of 10 walleyes weighing 76-03. Swanstrom now holds a 1-pound lead heading into the third day of competition in the nationally televised tournament that features 300 competitors from 26 states fishing for top awards of $100,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division. “The bite was about the same as it was yesterday,” said Swanstrom, who is fishing in his first FLW Walleye Tour event. “I was able to sort through some fish and find some bigger fish today. Everything has been real consistent, with a good morning bite each day.”Swanstrom remained tight-lipped about the exact technique he used to land his solid stringer, but did say that both he and his co-angler, Paul Huckno of Union City, Pa., caught around 10 fish trolling today from their primary spot early this morning. “I am catching my fish on a little bit of everything but cranks have been hot,” Swanstrom added. “I don’t have a particular pattern just doing what I need to catch fish.”Being in first place is great but I would rather come from behind to make the cut then be in first right now. The bite has been good the last two days but that might not be the case tomorrow.”

	Second Place Chris Gilman (r) and co-angler on Day Two

Rounding out the top five pros are pro Chris Gilman of Chisago City, Minn. (10 walleyes, 75-03); Larry Stephen Smith of Berlin, Wis. (10 walleyes, 72-09); Scott Allar of Welch, Minn. (10 walleyes, 69-14); and Tom Brunz of Madison Lake, Minn. (10 walleyes, 67-07).Jason Copeland of Wellsville, Kan., leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of 10 walleyes weighing 73 pounds, 2 ounces. He caught five walleyes weighing 39-02 Wednesday while fishing with Chad Schilling of Akaska, S.D., then added another five walleyes weighing 34-00 Thursday while fishing with Tom Gatzke of Merrill, Wis. “I had another great partner today,” said Copeland, who is fishing in his first walleye tournament. “On the co-angler side it really is luck of the draw and I have had great luck the first two days of competition. Tom had us on some good fish and everything worked out well today. “Hopefully, tomorrow I will get enough weight to make the cut. You never know what will happen.”Pros and co-anglers fish for a combined boat weight. Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jeff Sather of Montevideo, Minn. (10 walleyes, 70-03), Randy Seidl of Appleton, Wis. (10 walleyes, 68-06); Kenny Henexson of Thornton, Colo. (10 walleyes, 65-00) and Paul Huckno of Union City, Pa. (10 walleyes, 64-15). Pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day and fish for a combined boat weight. Pros compete against other pros, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. The full field competes during the three-day opening round for one of 10 final-round slots based on their three-day accumulated weight. Weights carry over to day four, with winners determined by the heaviest four-day weight.

	Toyota Pro Pat Neu got in on the big fish bash on Day Two

Nor Easter Club in Port Clinton will host daily takeoffs each morning at 7. Friday’s weigh-in will be held at Water Works Park in Port Clinton beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Wal-Mart store located at 2826 E. Harbor Road in Port Clinton beginning at 4 p.m. The community is invited to attend daily takeoffs and weigh-ins, which are free and open to the public. In addition to cash awards, anglers are competing for valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the $650,000 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship – the sport’s richest event – in Bismarck, N.D., Sept. 24-27. The top 50 pros and top 50 co-anglers in the Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year points standings will advance to the Championship, where they will compete for top awards of $150,000 and $20,000, respectively. Tournament pros aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing™, FLW Outdoors® offers anyone the opportunity to enter for their chance to land the catch of a lifetime with the opportunity to win $7.3 million in cash and prizes. Players can become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player’s Advantage, providing them with exclusive insider information that could guide them to a $100,000 victory at every Wal-Mart FLW Tour® stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage will give them an edge over the competition and increase their shot for a $1 million cash grand prize that will be awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Those who visit FantasyFishing.com today can sign up for Player’s Advantage and FLW Outdoors will include a $15 Wal-Mart gift card. Coverage of the FLW Walleye Tour stop on Lake Erie will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States on June 1 as part of the “FLW Outdoors” television program. “FLW Outdoors” is also broadcast in Canada on WFN (World Fishing Network) and to more than 429 million households in the United Kingdom, Europe, Russia, Australia, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East through a distribution agreement with Matchroom Sport, making it the most widely distributed fishing program in the world. The program airs Sunday mornings at 11 Eastern time in most markets. Check local listings for times in your area. Overall there were 542 walleyes weighing 3,192 pounds, 15 ounces caught by 142 boats Thursday. The catch included 64 five-walleye limits. Awards are based on a full field of 150 boats in every tournament.