06-02-2009, 11:10 AM
Sandusky, Ohio - A record two-day basket was set by the winning team of Dennis Lantzy of Warren, Michigan and Steve Vande Mark of Linwood, Michigan on the phenomenal fishery of Lake Erie, weighing in 86.38 pounds. This was their first Cabela's MWC victory cashing in $13,300 in total with sponsor bonuses from Ranger Boats and the Oxygenator. The previous two-day basket record was set in 2007 on Lake Ontario at 85.07 pounds.
"Breaking the record feels great," shared Lantzy, a retired cop from the Detroit area. "Long after I'm not fishing anymore, that record will still be in the books. It is a way to live on in the MWC." Lantzy fished his first walleye tournament, the MWC on Lake Winnebago in 1996 and got just as hooked as the walleyes they caught this weekend. He's been fishing as many competitive tournaments during these last 13 years as he could"¦.and was thrilled to get his first victory. "I took home a lot of checks in the past but I never finished on top before. This is great." His circuit partner Steve Vande Mark won an FLW on Bay de Noc in 2007 as a pro-angler. Both have fished numerous local tournaments in the past, winning some along the way. But this victory is more sweet as the competition in the MWC is the toughest these guys have come up against. "You look at a dozen teams bringing in 40-plus pounds on day one of this tournament and you know that any one of them could have walked across the stage with this win," said Lantzy. The team attributes their success to just a little bit of serendipity.
"We weren't happy with the fish we were pulling on our #1 spot on Friday, so we moved to our #2 spot," shared Vande Mark. "But a funny thing happened," added Lantzy. "The bolt on my trolling motor came out and I was worried that if we used it we'd lose it." Their strategy? Don't panic. They improvised by lifting the cover of their Cabela's wrapped Ranger 620 rod locker and turned it into a sail. They were forced into a slower troll than they would have picked - but it really seemed to be the trick for the bite they needed. "I think the stealthy quiet and going so slow that we could hang up on the bottom was the key," added Vande Mark. "We probably looked a little funny with our rod locker open like a sail, but it worked perfect for just the right speed - about .5 to .9 mph. We just let the wind take us - it worked great."
The #2 spot that ended up producing the 8.6 pound average fish weight for a circuit record was on the Northeast side of Pelee Island in Canadian waters. They found the perfect stain that they wanted and went right to the shallow 13'-18' depth. "Fish come out of the sunlight and move into the stain," added Lantzy. "Most of the other teams were much deeper - we zeroed in on the shallows." Aside from the uncommon sailing maneuver, the rest of the techniques were fairly typical for Lake Erie trolling. Perch pattern and glow-in-the-dark No. 5 blades with Cabela's iridescent beads on their spinner crawler harnesses. They used their in-line planer boards -- but more like bobbers as they were only out 5 to 10 feet. That provided a very quick response to moving lines or bringing them in quickly, keeping baits in the water more of the time. Hanging up on the bottom was critical to the large fish.
On Saturday the wind and water clarity changed and they needed to make some adjustments. All the moves were right. As the cloud cover and sun would change they would move from 13' water to 25' water and switching depth.
Lantzy and Vande Mark cashed in $12,100 for the first place finish in a field of 58 teams. They also cashed in $1,000 from Ranger Boats for the top finishing team in Ranger Cup and $200 from the Oxygenator for being the top team with an Oxygenator in their livewell.
Second place was awarded to the father and son team of Robert and Michael Gooding, also of Michigan, Lincoln Park and Monroe, respectively. The Goodings brought in 81.62 pounds and cashed in $5,650, plus $350 for 2nd place in big fish on day two with a 10.77 pounder totaling $6,000.
Third place went to Rick LaCourse of Port Clinton, Ohio and John Ware of Mainville, Ohio. They brought in 80.37 pounds and cashed in $3,550 plus $100 from the National Professional Anglers Association (NPAA) for a total of $3,650.
Fourth place went to Dave Truett of Valparaiso, Indiana and Daniel Stier of Clearwater, Minnesota with 77.18 pounds. They cashed in $2,940 plus $500 from Mercury Motors for being the top finishing team in the Ranger Cup program with a Mercury motor, and another $500 from Lowrance Electronics for running the new Lowrance HDS (High Definition System) sonar/chartplotter displays for a total of $3,940.
Rounding out the top five was the Pennsylvania team of Ryan Rieger (Elizabeth) and Rich Fike (Farmington) with 76.98 pounds cashing in $2,640 plus $100 from Farm and City Insurance Services for being on Team FCIS for a total of $2,740.
Big fish awards for the two days were as follows:
Day 1 (Friday)
Tim Joseph of Utica, OH & Walter Price of Lowell, MI - 11.51 pounds ($650)<br />
Bill Murray of Howell, MI & Bob Murray of Fenton, MI - 10.44 pounds ($350)<br />
Nate Capton of Niagara Falls, NY & Dave Waldeck of Sanborn, NY - 10.18 pounds ($250)
Day 2 (Saturday)<br />
Jeff Koester of Brookville, IN & Scott Rhodes of Traverse City, MI - 10.81 pounds ($650)<br />
Bob Gooding of Lincoln Park, MI & Michael Gooding of Monroe, MI - 10.77 pounds ($350)<br />
Greg Bliznik of Brownstown, MI & Keith Greear of Brownstown, MI - 10.54 pounds ($250)
The City of Sandusky hosted the Cabela's MWC into their community with great enthusiasm. The local volunteer group helped with set up, early morning boat inspection and weighing the fish in the afternoons. A walleye conservation fund of $15 per boat, $870 in total, has been given to the local community in appreciation to aid with area fisheries related projects and conservation efforts.
Four qualifying tournaments are open to the general public are available for entry for the rest of the season plus the invitation-only Championship at the end of the year as follows:
MWC 2009 Tournaments<br />
July 11/12 - Marinette, Wisconsin/Menominee, Michigan (Bay of Green Bay)<br />
July 25/26 - *Devils Lake, North Dakota (Devils Lake)<br />
August 21/22/23 - Dunkirk, New York (Eastern Lake Erie)<br />
September 12/13 - Webster, South Dakota (Waubay Lake)
World Walleye Championship - by invitation only<br />
October 8/9/10 - Dundee, Michigan (Lake Erie & Detroit River)
*The Devils Lake tournament will be run in conjunction with the Cabela's NTC.
Cabela's, the world's foremost outfitter for hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is entering their eighth season as title sponsor of the MWC. Official sponsors include: Ranger Boats, Mercury, MotorGuide, Lowrance Electronics, Versus (Vs.) Television Network and North American Fishing Club. Associate Sponsors include: Farm & City Insurance Services, O2 Marine Technologies, 3-IN-ONE No Rust Shield, Fin-tech, Ryjus and Reflections.
The Cabela's Masters Walleye Circuit is the longest running professional walleye tournament circuit in the United States and is celebrating their 25th anniversary in 2009. For more information on the Cabela's MWC or to view the 2009 schedule, visit: www.masterswalleyecircuit.com.
Questions - email: events@masterswalleyecircuit.com or call: 877-893-7947.
Media Contact<br />
Jeff Ahlstand (952) 988-7417 or jahlstrand@namginc.com
"Breaking the record feels great," shared Lantzy, a retired cop from the Detroit area. "Long after I'm not fishing anymore, that record will still be in the books. It is a way to live on in the MWC." Lantzy fished his first walleye tournament, the MWC on Lake Winnebago in 1996 and got just as hooked as the walleyes they caught this weekend. He's been fishing as many competitive tournaments during these last 13 years as he could"¦.and was thrilled to get his first victory. "I took home a lot of checks in the past but I never finished on top before. This is great." His circuit partner Steve Vande Mark won an FLW on Bay de Noc in 2007 as a pro-angler. Both have fished numerous local tournaments in the past, winning some along the way. But this victory is more sweet as the competition in the MWC is the toughest these guys have come up against. "You look at a dozen teams bringing in 40-plus pounds on day one of this tournament and you know that any one of them could have walked across the stage with this win," said Lantzy. The team attributes their success to just a little bit of serendipity.
"We weren't happy with the fish we were pulling on our #1 spot on Friday, so we moved to our #2 spot," shared Vande Mark. "But a funny thing happened," added Lantzy. "The bolt on my trolling motor came out and I was worried that if we used it we'd lose it." Their strategy? Don't panic. They improvised by lifting the cover of their Cabela's wrapped Ranger 620 rod locker and turned it into a sail. They were forced into a slower troll than they would have picked - but it really seemed to be the trick for the bite they needed. "I think the stealthy quiet and going so slow that we could hang up on the bottom was the key," added Vande Mark. "We probably looked a little funny with our rod locker open like a sail, but it worked perfect for just the right speed - about .5 to .9 mph. We just let the wind take us - it worked great."
The #2 spot that ended up producing the 8.6 pound average fish weight for a circuit record was on the Northeast side of Pelee Island in Canadian waters. They found the perfect stain that they wanted and went right to the shallow 13'-18' depth. "Fish come out of the sunlight and move into the stain," added Lantzy. "Most of the other teams were much deeper - we zeroed in on the shallows." Aside from the uncommon sailing maneuver, the rest of the techniques were fairly typical for Lake Erie trolling. Perch pattern and glow-in-the-dark No. 5 blades with Cabela's iridescent beads on their spinner crawler harnesses. They used their in-line planer boards -- but more like bobbers as they were only out 5 to 10 feet. That provided a very quick response to moving lines or bringing them in quickly, keeping baits in the water more of the time. Hanging up on the bottom was critical to the large fish.
On Saturday the wind and water clarity changed and they needed to make some adjustments. All the moves were right. As the cloud cover and sun would change they would move from 13' water to 25' water and switching depth.
Lantzy and Vande Mark cashed in $12,100 for the first place finish in a field of 58 teams. They also cashed in $1,000 from Ranger Boats for the top finishing team in Ranger Cup and $200 from the Oxygenator for being the top team with an Oxygenator in their livewell.
Second place was awarded to the father and son team of Robert and Michael Gooding, also of Michigan, Lincoln Park and Monroe, respectively. The Goodings brought in 81.62 pounds and cashed in $5,650, plus $350 for 2nd place in big fish on day two with a 10.77 pounder totaling $6,000.
Third place went to Rick LaCourse of Port Clinton, Ohio and John Ware of Mainville, Ohio. They brought in 80.37 pounds and cashed in $3,550 plus $100 from the National Professional Anglers Association (NPAA) for a total of $3,650.
Fourth place went to Dave Truett of Valparaiso, Indiana and Daniel Stier of Clearwater, Minnesota with 77.18 pounds. They cashed in $2,940 plus $500 from Mercury Motors for being the top finishing team in the Ranger Cup program with a Mercury motor, and another $500 from Lowrance Electronics for running the new Lowrance HDS (High Definition System) sonar/chartplotter displays for a total of $3,940.
Rounding out the top five was the Pennsylvania team of Ryan Rieger (Elizabeth) and Rich Fike (Farmington) with 76.98 pounds cashing in $2,640 plus $100 from Farm and City Insurance Services for being on Team FCIS for a total of $2,740.
Big fish awards for the two days were as follows:
Day 1 (Friday)
Tim Joseph of Utica, OH & Walter Price of Lowell, MI - 11.51 pounds ($650)<br />
Bill Murray of Howell, MI & Bob Murray of Fenton, MI - 10.44 pounds ($350)<br />
Nate Capton of Niagara Falls, NY & Dave Waldeck of Sanborn, NY - 10.18 pounds ($250)
Day 2 (Saturday)<br />
Jeff Koester of Brookville, IN & Scott Rhodes of Traverse City, MI - 10.81 pounds ($650)<br />
Bob Gooding of Lincoln Park, MI & Michael Gooding of Monroe, MI - 10.77 pounds ($350)<br />
Greg Bliznik of Brownstown, MI & Keith Greear of Brownstown, MI - 10.54 pounds ($250)
The City of Sandusky hosted the Cabela's MWC into their community with great enthusiasm. The local volunteer group helped with set up, early morning boat inspection and weighing the fish in the afternoons. A walleye conservation fund of $15 per boat, $870 in total, has been given to the local community in appreciation to aid with area fisheries related projects and conservation efforts.
Four qualifying tournaments are open to the general public are available for entry for the rest of the season plus the invitation-only Championship at the end of the year as follows:
MWC 2009 Tournaments<br />
July 11/12 - Marinette, Wisconsin/Menominee, Michigan (Bay of Green Bay)<br />
July 25/26 - *Devils Lake, North Dakota (Devils Lake)<br />
August 21/22/23 - Dunkirk, New York (Eastern Lake Erie)<br />
September 12/13 - Webster, South Dakota (Waubay Lake)
World Walleye Championship - by invitation only<br />
October 8/9/10 - Dundee, Michigan (Lake Erie & Detroit River)
*The Devils Lake tournament will be run in conjunction with the Cabela's NTC.
Cabela's, the world's foremost outfitter for hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is entering their eighth season as title sponsor of the MWC. Official sponsors include: Ranger Boats, Mercury, MotorGuide, Lowrance Electronics, Versus (Vs.) Television Network and North American Fishing Club. Associate Sponsors include: Farm & City Insurance Services, O2 Marine Technologies, 3-IN-ONE No Rust Shield, Fin-tech, Ryjus and Reflections.
The Cabela's Masters Walleye Circuit is the longest running professional walleye tournament circuit in the United States and is celebrating their 25th anniversary in 2009. For more information on the Cabela's MWC or to view the 2009 schedule, visit: www.masterswalleyecircuit.com.
Questions - email: events@masterswalleyecircuit.com or call: 877-893-7947.
Media Contact<br />
Jeff Ahlstand (952) 988-7417 or jahlstrand@namginc.com