Quick Bites: FLW Walleye Tour Championship, Day 4
2005 Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour Championship
Mississippi River, Moline, Ill.
Saturday, pro finals
Mission accomplished … Sometimes the personal victories matter as much as the public ones. In the case of 2005 FLW Walleye Tour champ Robert Lampman, his personal victory this week on the tough-fishing Mississippi River translated into the richest payout in competitive walleye fishing. “I set out to better myself everyday,” he said Saturday. “I caught two fish, two fish and another two fish. Well, at least I got three fish today.” He needed all of them, too, since second-place Shannon Kehl gave him a run for the money by catching two nice walleyes himself Saturday. It was Lampman’s third and final fish, however – a nice 5-pound, 5-ounce kicker – that put him over the top for the win.
Family affair … Last year, he finished in 18th place at the championship held right here in the same place, the Quad Cities, but Robert isn’t the only championship walleye angler in the Lampman family. His wife, Colleen, also qualified and fished last year’s championship as a co-angler. This year, she was relegated to cheerleading duties here, but she couldn’t have been happier about it. “I’m going to laugh all the way to the bank,” Colleen said as Robert accepted the $125,000 winner’s check. “I’m proud of him.”
Sweet water relief … Lampman wasn’t the only one feeling fortunate at this year’s championship. The walleyes themselves had a much nicer time of it than usual thanks to the introduction of the water weigh-in system. In use for the first time at a major tournament, tournament director Mark Dorn weighed in all of this week’s fish in a water-filled, aerated tub. This greatly cut down on the stress factor for the fish, and the results were fantastic. “We released every walleye caught this week into different pools on the river,” Dorn said. “We didn’t lose a single one.”
Sweet gas relief … This tournament also marked the first time the walleye pros have gone to a bass-style, top-10 cut format. That also meant that, instead of fishing from their own boats the last two days, they fished from top-end walleye rigs provided by Ranger. Many pros voiced their appreciation for the chance to fish from sturdy new boats with big motors, but they also liked that they came with full tanks of gas. “Furnishing us with those boats and with the high price of gas and everything, it made all the difference,” well-heeled tournament pro Rick Olson said. “And I burned through pretty much all of it.”
Quick numbers
121,700: In dollars, the amount of money difference between Lampman’s 18th-place finish at the championship last year versus his victory this year. Last year, Lampman earned $3,300.
4: Lampman’s previous best finish in FLW Walleye Tour competition. He did it this year at Bulls Shoals, Ark., and collected $16,500.
5: Number of female anglers to qualify for and fish this week’s walleye championship, a tour record. Peggy Severson, Sandra Don, Jackie Perry, Janet Flynn and Doris Dehler all competed as co-anglers. The best finish was Severson, who had a great week and took home third place.
Sound bite
“I’ll tell you what, this is the most exciting thing to happen in my life, ever – other than the time I got married to that lovely lady over there.”
– Robert Lampman on being a winner.