Hartman, Severson win Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League event on Big Stone Lake

Boater Jim Hartman (pictured) of Milbank, S.D., and co-angler Peggy Severson of Ft. Pierre, S.D., combined for a total of five walleyes weighing 13 pounds, 2 ounces to win the RCL Walleye League tournament held June 12 on Big Stone Lake near Corona, S.D.

June 12, 2004 • MLF • Archives

CORONA, S.D. – Boater Jim Hartman of Milbank, S.D., and co-angler Peggy Severson of Ft. Pierre, S.D., combined for a total of five walleyes weighing 13 pounds, 2 ounces to win the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League tournament held Saturday on Big Stone Lake near Corona, S.D. Hartman claimed $1,120 plus a $500 contingency bonus for the win, with Severson earning $560 from the South Dakota Division event.

Hartman and Severson caught their winning limit in 6 feet of water on rock piles and weeds. They looked for cloudy water and mostly cast Shad Raps. Their biggest walleye came on a black jig with a minnow.

Finishing second were Tim Tesch of Watertown, S.D., ($576) and Larry Bawdon of Highmore, S.D., ($288) with four walleyes weighing 10 pounds, 13 ounces. Brandon Finck of Milbank, S.D., ($480 plus $300 bonus) and Jim Ellenbecker of Pierre, S.D., ($240 plus $150 bonus) caught three walleyes weighing 10 pounds, 7 ounces to finish third. Todd Steffensen of Watertown, S.D., ($416 plus $250 bonus) and Dean Arndt of Ortonville, Minn., ($208) claimed fourth place with five walleyes that weighed 10 pounds, 1 ounce. Tied for fifth were the teams of boater Scott Arndt of Ortonville, Minn., ($264 plus $200 bonus) and co-angler Douglas Chapman of Hills, Minn., ($132 plus $100 bonus) and boater Artie Arndt of Ortonville, Minn., ($264) and co-angler Jerry Galloway of Sioux Falls, S.D., ($132 plus $100 bonus) with four-walleye catches that weighed 8 pounds, 2 ounces.

The South Dakota Division’s next stop will be the regular-season finale – a two-day super tournament on July 17-18 on Lake Oahe. Boaters and co-anglers who finish in the top 25 in final points standings in each RCL Walleye League division will advance to the $100,000 RCL League Finals Sept. 2-4 on Bays de Noc in Escanaba, Mich. The winning boater at the finals will receive an Evinrude- or Yamaha-powered Ranger, Crestliner or Lund boat. Every angler who receives weight credit in a tournament earns points, with 200 points awarded to the winner, 199 points for second, and so on, except for Super Tournaments, which award 300 points to the winner, 298 to second, and so on.

Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League boaters and co-anglers fish together for a combined boat weight, with boaters competing against other boaters and co-anglers fishing against other co-anglers. The Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League meets the needs of America’s fishing masses by providing professionally administered, close-to-home, affordable events with lucrative cash purses.

The Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League is administered by FLW Outdoors, the world’s leading marketer of competitive fishing. Other FLW Outdoors-sanctioned tournament trails include the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye Tour, the world’s most lucrative walleye-fishing series; the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, the world’s most lucrative bass-fishing 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’s sponsor page.

For more information about the Wal-Mart RCL Walleye League or to enter a tournament, call (270) 252-1000 or browse this Web site.