Takasaki Leads FLW Walleye Tour Championship
Category: Tournament
Sep 25th, 2008 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Sep 25th, 2008 at 12:00 AM
BISMARCK, N.D. (Sept. 25, 2007) – Pro Ted Takasaki of East Gull Lake, Minn., caught five walleyes weighing 16 pounds, 11 ounces to give him a two day total of 10 walleyes weighing 34-06 to capture the lead on day two of walleye fishing’s most lucrative event – the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship – on the Missouri River in Bismarck.
One hundred and eight anglers representing 18 states and Canada are competing for top awards of $150,000 in the Pro Division and $20,000 in the Co-angler Division.
“I am so excited right now,” said Takasaki, who won the 1998 PWT Championship in Bismarck. “The weights zero tomorrow so we will see what happens the next two days.
“The main concern I have is the change in wind and the expected high winds for tomorrow. I am pretty exposed to the wind where I am fishing.
Winds are expected to reach 20 to 25 mph out of the north on the Missouri River for day three of competition. “That’s going to make it difficult,” Takasaki added. “My spot is very defined. I have to be right on the edge and if I stray a little bit I am hung up or I am too deep.”
Takasaki said that 65 percent of the fish he is catching are crankbait fish and the other 35 percent are jig fish.
“If I can’t keep the boat on the spot I will go in the river and troll crankbaits or jig in the river,” Takasaki said. “It will be easier for me to control my boat in the river than it will be trolling in the lake.”
Rounding out the top five pros are pro Todd Riley of Amery, Wis. (10 walleyes, 33-06); Tommy Skarlis of Waukon, Iowa (10 walleyes, 32-01); Brett King of Claremont, Minn. (10 walleyes, 31-09); and Ross Grothe of Northfield, Minn. (10 walleyes, 30-11).
Dick Wherry of Milbank, S.D., leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of 10 walleyes weighing 38 pounds, 5 ounces. He caught five walleyes weighing 14-05 Wednesday while fishing with Tom Brunz of Madison Lake, Wis., then added another five walleyes weighing 24-00 Thursday while fishing with Riley.
“I am in shock right now,” said Wherry, who is looking for his first Walleye Tour Championship victory. “. I have been very fortunate to fish with really good pros that allowed me to get where I am.”
Wherry said that his plan for tomorrow is to remain calm and have a good day of fishing with Ted.
Pros and co-anglers fish for a combined boat weight. Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Terry Etzkorn of Pierre, S.D. (10 walleyes, 31-00), David Anderson of Sauk Rapids, Minn. (10 walleyes, 30-15); Cal Van Cleve of Wilmot, S.D. (10 walleyes, 28-04) and Del Ringling of Valley, Neb. (10 walleyes, 28-01).
Overall, there were 208 fish caught by all 54 anglers with a total weight of 522 pounds, 8 ounces. The catch included 28 five-fish limits.
MacLean Bottoms, Riffle Range, will host daily takeoffs at 7:30 a.m. Daily weigh-ins will be held at the Bismarck Civic Center, located at 315 S. 5th Street., beginning at 4:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend takeoffs and weigh-ins as well as the Family Fun Zone, which opens at 2 p.m. on Friday and noon Saturday. Saturday is free fishing rod and reel day at the Fun Zone, where the first 200 children 14 and under receive a free fishing rod and reel courtesy of 103.3 US Country.
The winning pro at the FLW Walleye Tour Championship is guaranteed a cash award of $100,000. If the winner is a qualifying Ranger or G3 boat owner, he will earn a $25,000 bonus, and if the boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard, he will receive another $25,000 bonus for a total cash award of $150,000.
The winning co-angler is guaranteed $10,000 cash and is eligible for a $5,000 bonus from Ranger or G3 if he is a registered owner. The winning co-angler will also receive a $5,000 bonus from Evinrude or Yamaha if his boat is equipped with a qualifying Evinrude or Yamaha outboard.
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 for two days and then is cut to the top 10 pros and top 10 co-anglers for day three. Anglers in both divisions start from zero on day three, and co-angler competition concludes with the winner determined by the day’s heaviest catch. Pros carry their weights over to day four, and the winner is determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four.
Tournament anglers aren’t the only ones winning big this season. With the introduction of FLW Fantasy Fishing™, FLW Outdoors® offered 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 could become a virtual pro angler by signing up for Player’s Advantage, which provided them with exclusive insider information that could have guided them to a $100,000 victory at every Walmart FLW Tour® stop and the Forrest Wood Cup. Player’s Advantage gave them an edge over the competition and increased their shot for the $1 million cash grand prize awarded to the FLW Fantasy Fishing cumulative points winner. Visit FantasyFishing.com today to find out more information and to register for next season.
Coverage of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship on the Missouri River will be broadcast to 81 million FSN (Fox Sports Net) subscribers in the United States on Nov. 30 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.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. In 2008 alone the organization is offering more than 90,000 anglers the chance to win over $40 million through 230 tournaments in 10 circuits. FLW Outdoors is also took fishing mainstream with the largest cash awards in the history of fantasy sports, $7.3 million.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.