DEVILS LAKE, N.D. – Pro Jason Feldner of Minnewaukan, N.D., and co-angler Justin Steinke of Birnamwood, Wis., caught 5 walleyes weighing 15 pounds, 2 ounces Friday to maintain the lead at the FLW Walleye Tour Western Division tournament on Devils Lake. Feldner now has a two-day catch of 10 walleyes weighing 33-1 and a 1-pound, 6-ounce lead over second place going into the final day of competition. Anglers from 17 states and Canada are fishing for top awards of up to $35,000 in the Pro Division and up to $7,500 in the Co-angler Division.
“I knew the bite was going to be slower today after the storm that rolled through last night,” said Feldner. “We had to work really hard to get what we got today, we only had about a quarter of the bites we had yesterday and I just didn’t get that kicker fish. I will be happy if I can duplicate today’s weight tomorrow.”
Continuing to remain tight lipped about where he is fishing and what baits he is using Feldner thinks the bite might be a little bit more stable tomorrow if the weather holds up, however there were clouds building to the west so anything can happen.
Rounding out the top-10 pros are:
2nd: Scott Larson, Mayville, N.D., 10 walleyes, 31-11
3rd: Chris Burns, Davenport, Iowa, 10 walleyes, 31-8
4th: Tommy Skarlis, Waukon, Iowa, 10 walleyes, 29-1
5th: Chad Schilling, Akaska, S.D., 10 walleyes, 29-1
6th: National Guard pro Mark Courts, Harris, Minn., 10 walleyes, 28-15
7th: Paul Meleen, Isle, Minn., 10 walleyes, 28-12
8th: Kevin McQuoid, Isle, Minn., 10 walleyes, 28-8
9th: Gary Maher, Menoken, N.D., 10 walleyes, 28-8
10th: Eric Olson, Red Wing, Minn., 10 walleyes, 28-6
Don Karlgaard of East Gull Lake, Minn., leads the Co-angler Division with 10 walleyes weighing 32-8 followed by Ted Kaminski of St. Anthony, Minn., in second place with 10 walleyes weighing 30-7.
“I just had an awesome day,” said Don Karlgaard, who was fishing with pro Paul Meleen. “We were busy catching fish and fighting the weeds all day. We had our first two keepers about 8:15 and by 9 we had our limit. About noon the wind changed and the bite died, but by then we were in good shape.
“I am really looking forward to fishing with Feldner tomorrow; I couldn’t have picked a better partner.”
Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Richard Ness, Blunt, S.D., 10 walleyes, 29-10
4th: Victor Wood, Rapid City, S.D., 10 walleyes, 28-15
5th: Clarence Heckert, Winnipeg, MB, 10 walleyes, 27-15
6th: Bryan Bayerkohler, Eagan, Minn., 10 walleyes, 27-9
7th: Greg Oppegard, West St. Paul, Minn., 10 walleyes, 26-14
8th: Lowell Joy, Bemidji, Minn., seven walleyes, 26-9
9th: William Drake, Horace, N.D., 10 walleyes, 26-5
10th: Lance Bainville, Mounds View, Minn., 10 walleyes, 26-4
Overall there were 222 walleyes weighing 535 pounds, 11 ounces caught by 62 boats Friday. The catch included 35-five-walleye limits.
In FLW Walleye Tour competition, pros and cos are also competing for valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the FLW Walleye Tour Championship held on Leech Lake in Walker, Minn., Sept. 23-25.
Top-10 anglers and co-anglers will take off from Woodland Resort located at 1012 Woodland Drive in Devils Lake at 7 a.m. on Saturday for the final day of competition. The final weigh-in will be held at Lake Chevrolet located at 123 5th Street NE in Devils Lake beginning at 4 p.m. A family fishing clinic will be held from 2:30 – 4 p.m. at Lake Chevrolet prior to the final weigh-in.
About FLW Outdoors
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports. FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, browse FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.