Curmi, Hilts win Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League event on Houghton Lake

Boater Paul Curmi (left) of Belleville, Mich., and co-angler Richard Hilts of Roscommon, Mich., combined for a total of five walleyes weighing 15 pounds, 2 ounces to claim victory at the FLW Walleye League Michigan Division tournament held June 11 on Houghton Lake. Anglers: Paul Curmi, Richard Hilts.

June 11, 2005 • MLF • Archives

HOUGHTON LAKE, Mich. – Boater Paul Curmi of Belleville, Mich., and co-angler Richard Hilts of Roscommon, Mich., combined for a total of five walleyes weighing 15 pounds, 2 ounces to claim victory at the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League Michigan Division tournament held Saturday on Houghton Lake. Curmi claimed $2,065 for the win, with Hilts earning $1,033.

The duo trolled spinners less than 10 feet deep over 14 feet of water for their five-fish limit that included an 8-pounder.

Finishing second were Keith Strauss of Syracuse, Ind., ($1,062 plus $400 bonus) and Dennis Gulau of Midland, Mich., ($531) with five walleyes weighing 10 pounds, 12 ounces. Bob Baughman of Alpena, Mich., ($885) and Will Kleehammer of Traverse City, Mich., ($443) caught five walleyes weighing 10 pounds, 10 ounces to finish third. David Carlisle of Commerce, Mich., ($767) and Michael Elliott of Redford, Mich., ($383) claimed fourth place with five walleyes that weighed 10 pounds. Finishing fifth were Jon Odykirk of Clare, Mich., ($531 plus $200 bonus) and Lance Keene of Grand Blanc, Mich., ($265) thanks to a five-walleye catch that weighed 9 pounds, 9 ounces.

The Michigan Division’s next event will be July 23 on Saginaw Bay. Boaters and co-anglers who finish in the top 35 in final points standings in each FLW Walleye League division will advance to the no-entry-fee $115,000 Wal-Mart FLW League Finals Sept. 8-10 on the Mississippi River in Winona, Minn. The winning boater at the finals will receive an Evinrude-or Yamaha-powered Ranger 621 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.

FLW 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 FLW Walleye League meets the needs of America’s fishing masses by providing professionally administered, close-to-home, affordable events with lucrative cash purses.

Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League and seven other national tournament circuits offering a combined $30 million in awards through 214 events in 2005. The 27-year-old organization is the purveyor of America’s largest and most prestigious fishing tournaments, including the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, EverStart Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour and Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series.

For more information on FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, browse this Web site or call (270) 252-1000.

Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as title sponsor of the FLW Tour in 1997 and today is the title sponsor of all FLW Outdoors events. For more information on Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.