Pundits’ Picks Walleye: Cass Lake

Tour heads to northern Minnesota for third regular-season event

The Staff Division continued to hold their own at stop No. 2 of the 2008 FLW Walleye Tour season on Lake Sharpe. Although newbie pundit Jason Kerr took top honors with 638 points, the Staff Division took two of three from the once-proud Pro Division. Last season’s pundit champion, Rick LaCourse, dropped to 0-2 and tallied the lowest score of the tournament – 488 points. His buddy to the west, Eric Olson, didn’t fare much better. The Land O’Lakes pro and regular season pundit champion in 2007, Olson also has failed to record a victory.

As expected, the theme of the Sharpe tournament was ounces. Surprisingly, many of the local sticks were unable to separate themselves from the pack. Well-known Pierre anglers such as Terry Nelson, Darold Swank and Bob Propst Jr. struggled while Walleye Tour stalwarts like Chris Gilman, Scott Fairbairn and Rick Franklin thrived. I would be remiss not to mention who currently owns the overall lead. With a record of 2-0 and 1074 points, I somehow find myself on top of the heap. The only other pundit to have a 2-0 record is Sharon Reynolds, who is having an incredible bounce-back season after failing to record a victory in 2007. Still, with only two of the five tournaments in the books, there are plenty of walleyes to be caught.

Last thing, the disclaimer: The picks in this column in no way represent any sort of favoritism on the part of FLW Outdoors staff or its pro anglers. These are merely guesses – only arguably educated – as to who we think might do well at any given tournament. With that in mind, here are the picks. Enjoy.

– Brett Carlson

Tournament site

Stop No. 3 on the 2008 Walleye Tour takes place in northern Minnesota, the Land of 10,000 lakes. The Walleye Tour has never visited Cass Lake before, but the Walleye League has made two stops in the past. In 2006, boater Dusty Minke of Forest Lake, Minn., won the League event on Cass with a five-walleye limit weighing 13 pounds, 2 ounces. That tournament was held at the end of June and the fishing promises to be better in early June – especially with the cold spring Minnesota has endured. Most pros believe there will be dozens of double-digit limits caught each day. Don’t expect 30-pound stringers like at Lake Erie, but a 15-pound bag isn’t out of the question. The tricky part about Cass is deciding which fish to keep. Just like Sharpe, anglers are allowed to keep only two fish over 20 inches. Culling isn’t permitted but anglers are allowed to keep eight in the box and weigh their best five. Although Cass may not have the numbers like Sharpe, there will be more 20-inch-plus fish caught. The most popular tactics will be jigging and rigging and a few anglers will likely find a successful trolling bite. At just over 15,000 acres, Cass is not a big lake by tournament standards. That being said, Walleye Tour competitors can also fish the connecting lakes of Big Wolf, Pike Bay, Lake Andrusia and Kitchi Lake. Still, things will be crowded at times and whoever can unlock the secret to catching highly-pressured walleyes will emerge with a six-figure payday.

Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour stop No. 3

Cass Lake, Cass Lake, Minn.

June 11-14

Sharon Reynolds Tournament administrator FLW Outdoors Record: 2-0 Points: 938	VS.	Rick LaCourse FLW Walleye Tour pro Port Clinton, Ohio Record: 0-2 Points: 894
1) DAN STIER.Dan will have a great tournament on Cass Lake. He knows this body of water and he is a very good live-bait fisherman. He will be able to put a plan into motion on where these fish are located and what they are feeding on. 2) PETE HARSH.This is Pete’s kind of lake. He will be able to give the fish what they are looking for. There will be lots of live bait used in this tournament and Pete will figure out how and where to present it. 3) MARK CHRISTIANSON.Mark has done very well in the past on this lake and he will do very well again. In fact, he has had several top-10 finishes on Cass and I expect to see him in the Saturday lineup for sure. 4) BRIAN BROSDAHL.Brian is a guide on this lake so I would be crazy not to add him to my picks. After the three-day opening round, he will be in the top 10 or very close. 5) CHRIS GILMAN.I don’t know too much about Chris on this body of water, but what I do know is that Chris has been very consistent this year. I have been watching the standings very close and Chris is really on a roll lately. I predict he will make another top 10, this time in his home state.		1) RICK FRANKLIN.Rick is one of the best when it comes to rigging for walleyes. His goal this year is to capture the Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year title, and he’s on the right track to do just that. 2) MARK CHRISTIANSON.This Cass Lake guide is a threat to win any tournament he enters. Mark always makes the right moves when the fish get pressured and the bite changes like it will on Cass. 3) DUSTY MINKE.Dusty has some history on these northern Minnesota lakes with two wins in 2006 fishing the FLW Walleye League events. He’s jumping up and fishing the Tour here on Cass. Watch for him to be near the top on day four. 4) CHAD NISSEN.If you take a look his finishes in all the local tournaments, you would be foolish not to have him on your team. He has more than proven his ability to make the right moves. 5) CHAD BENSON.Benson is another local with a long list of top-10 finishes in local events. He has never been out of the top 10 in any of the FLW Walleye League events he’s fished over the last three years. One of those was a win on Cass.

Brett Carlson Editor FLWOutdoors.com Record: 2-0 Points: 1074	VS.	Jason Kerr FLW Walleye Tour pro Holly, Mich. Record: 1-1 Points: 1022
1) RICK FRANKLIN.Although he grew up in Kansas, Franklin has been fishing Cass and the surrounding area lakes for years. He’s a rigger and a jigger and seems to improve with every tournament. His fast ascension to the top of the walleye world will reach its pinnacle when he claims his first FLW Walleye Tour victory. 2) CHRIS GILMAN.If not for a mental error (keeping six fish in the livewell) on day three of the Lake Erie tournament, Gilman would be crushing in the Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year race with two top-10 finishes. As it stands, the Chisago City, Minn., angler is 15th. Wouldn’t that be something if he came back and won AOY despite having an entire day’s weight excluded? 3) TODD RILEY.Riley is the consummate professional walleye angler. His experience, patience and versatility will take him a long way at Cass. If you look at his past PWT tournaments in northern Minnesota (Leech, Lake of the Woods, Cass) Riley’s finishes speak for themselves. 4) JASON PRZEKURAT.So far, 2008 has been nothing like 2007 for the BP pro. As of right now, Przekurat isn’t even in line for a berth in the no-entry-fee FLW Walleye Tour Championship. Knowing his immense talents, I expect that to change in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. 5) SCOTT STEIL.An up-and-coming young pro, Steil grew up fishing the plentiful lakes in central and northern Minnesota. He’s an excellent jigger and an excellent troller. Barely missing a top-10 at Sharpe, he’s got all the motivation he needs for this one.		1) MARK CHRISTIANSON.Mark is a northern Minnesota fisherman through and through. You would be crazy not to pick him as the favorite for this event. Minnesota law only allows one rod per angler. This guy’s one rod will outfish many others. 2) TONY RENNER.I have a lot of confidence in Tony for this event. He is an excellent fisherman and will crack the code of Cass Lake’s ultra-pressured fish. Make room for Tony’s rig to be parked at the Wal-Mart store on Saturday. 3) CHRIS GILMAN.It does not matter where we fish Gilman always seems to find and catch the best walleyes in the system. Simply put, he is a walleye magnet. I am baffled at how consistently he brings big fish to the scale. With live bait likely to play a prominent role on Cass, Gilman looks golden in his home state. 4) SCOTT STEIL.Steil is another Minnesota boy that has had success on Minnesota waters. Scott does some guiding on Mille Lacs which means he has a lot of rigging experience to bring to Cass Lake. He was less than an ounce short from making the top 10 at Sharpe and is looking for redemption on these northern waters in early June. 5) SCOTT FAIRBAIRN.Scott is one of those guys you can never count out. Rarely does he not make the adjustments to be in contention. I respect Scott’s fishing ability; he has a ton of experience and is an excellent decision maker.

Mark Dorn Director of Operations FLW Outdoors Record: 1-1 Points: 981	VS.	Eric Olson FLW Walleye Tour pro Red Wing, Minn. Record: 0-2 Points: 828
1) GARY ROACH.This Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame angler should be on top of his game for this event. The finesse bite likely to emerge on Cass Lake should play to Gary’s strong suit. 2) BILL SHIMOTA.Shimota, who won the FLW Walleye League Championship in 2007, is making his mark on the Walleye Tour this year. His past experience gained from the Walleye League events on Cass should help him dial in on the bite. 3) SCOTT FAIRBAIRN.Fairbairn is quite possibly the most versatile angler on tour. The Evinrude pro rarely misses the bite and his past experience on Cass will make him one to watch. 4) PETE HARSH.Known on tour as Mr. Tiller, Pete will not get fooled on this one. In the walleye dictionary, finesse bite and Pete Harsh are synonymous with one another. Just look up the word and you are likely to see Pete’s photo. You are also likely to see Pete in the top 10 on Saturday. 5) CHRIS GILMAN.Chris is having another phenomenal season. If he hadn’t had a little miscue at Erie (keeping six fish in the livewell on day three) he would probably be leading the Angler of the Year race. Look for Chris to make yet another cut in this one.		1) ERIC OLSON.I’ve never done this before, but desperate times call for desperate measures. After winning the regular season in 2007 I am 0-2 thus far this year. So I’m going out on a limb and picking myself in my home state. Pete did it last year at Devils and he won. Why not me? 2) MARK CHRISTIANSON.Being a northern Minnesota boy, Marks knows this lake and how the fish relate to the conditions. Live-bait rigging is going to play big and Mark is well aware of the key structure that holds the over fish. 3) JASON PRZEKURAT.I picked Jason at every tournament last season and it won me the regular-season Pundits title. So I have decided to go back to what works. It really goes without saying, but Jason is an awesome fisherman too. 4) PETE HARSH.After watching Pete over the years on Devils Lake, I know he’s excellent with live bait. It sounds simple, but there are very subtle things that make him better than everyone else. Beyond his presentations, Pete has the patience and decision-making ability to win a no-cull tournament. 5) TODD RILEY.Todd is due for another win and this might be the one. In tough tournaments like this, he seems to find the right fish at the right time. He’s got the nerve, the talent and experience – making him a solid pick.