Arbes and Tomasek Sweep the Soo! 

Presented By: Lowrance

 Sault Ste Marie, MI – July 27, 2026 – The Masters Walleye Circuit finished its 4^th qualifier of the year in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan on the St. Mary’s River. This was a unique event this season, with the 79 anglers in the MWC being in a dual event run alongside the National Team Championship with 157 boats. With many square miles of beautiful Canadian-American border waters, anglers certainly had their work cut out for them when it came to locating fish. July in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula brought much cooler weather than expected, and it gave teams one clear thing to focus on. Water temp was the name of the game over the course of the event. If you found the warm water, you found the fish, but it was certainly no guarantee they would eat.

Day 1 take-off came with some brisk 50° while hearing the United States National Anthem followed by the Canadian Anthem, as anglers from all over prepared to make their run through the river, past 1000’ freighters and an international ferry. Some anglers stayed in the rivers, while others made some runs down to the lakes and islands. Brad Arbes Jr and Austin Tomasek made the 50-mile boat ride down to the Drummond Island complex. They were targeting rock piles shallow enough to hold some of the heat from the sun in 8 to 15 feet of water. The fish in the area had been heavily pressured all week, with Brad saying nearly 75% of daylight hours there were boats on those rock piles. Long casts with a jig and a crawler and forward-facing sonar brought them back to the scales with the biggest bag of the event at 31 pounds and 12 ounces.

Slightly warmer weather rolled in on day 2, and anglers were bringing decent bags to the scale. Arbes and Tomasek had over a two-pound lead, and were the last to weigh in. The 2^nd place spot going into day two’s weigh-in lead was held by Lincoln and Karl Martin, who sat on top nearly the entire weigh in at 55 pounds and 14 ounces. When that finally bag came to the scale with Arbes and Tomasek, they reclaimed their two pound lead and added to it, to win by 3 pounds and 6 ounces with a two day total of 59 pounds and 4 ounces.

Winning the 4^th qualifier of the 2026 Masters Walleye Circuit on the St. Mary’s River with a total of 59lbs and 4oz, Brad Arbes Jr and Austin Tomasek earned a champions trophy and a paid berth into the 2027 National Team Championship. Brad Arbes and Austin Tomasek took home $10,900 in Cash, $5,000 in Option Pot Cash, a Lowrance Recon Trolling Motor valued at $3,299.99, the NTC prize package valued at $1000 consisting of custom NTC jerseys, custom NTC plaques, and a cash travel stipend, the Big Fish Award on day 1 consisting of $1,860 in Cash, as well as the potential to receive the $8,000 Ranger Cup bonus if properly qualified, for a total of $30,059.99.

In the top 5 with impressive bags and their awards and prizes were:

2^nd: Lincoln Martin & Karl Martin, 55-14,  $5,800 Cash, $2,750 Option Pot Cash

3^rd: John Fallaw & Gerard Urbanozo, 53-07,  $3,900 Cash

4^th: Jacob Nemeth & Zachary Nemeth, 51-00,  $2,800 Cash, $2,000 Option Pot Cash

5^th: Robert Nitti & Hunter Nitti, 50-14,  $2,250 Cash, $1,600 Option Pot Cash

Overall, 79 two-man teams consisting of 158 anglers competed in this event representing 11 different states which span as far east as New York and all the west to Wyoming, alongside 7 teams with anglers having traveled from Ontario, Canada to catch 534 fish for a total of 2148 pounds and 4 ounces of border water walleye.

In total, the top 15 teams went home with cash and prizes. Before this MWC event on the St. Mary’s River began, on registration night the Premier Team drawing of a duffle bag package was awarded to Gary and Ryan Slagle out of Burlington, WI. Lowrance included a Recon Trolling Motor valued at $3,299.99, as well as the Lowrance Exclusive Bonus of $750 and the Lowrance Trolling Motor Bonus for running a Ghost or Recon on your boat.

The Big Fish Award on Day 1 was won by Brad Arbes and Austin Tomasek with their 8lb 9oz giant walleye that anchored their 31lb 12oz bag and set them up with a hefty early. Big Fish Award for day 2 was a split payout, with teams battling it out to get to the top. Two teams, consisting of Alex Poliquin & Joel Drolet and Lincoln and Karl Martin, weighed walleyes at 7lb 12oz and tied for first place big fish day 2. The cash pot for big fish was $3,720, meaning each day the big fish winners took home $1,860.

Current World Walleye Championship qualifying points are now live on the website here and will be updated after each event for teams to keep track of the goal of reaching Devil’s Lake, North Dakota this coming October. Crossing into the second half of the 2026 season with this 4^th qualifier in Sault Ste Marie, MI, Team of the Year points have now been calculated and are live on the website as well. The Premier Team of Scott Geitgey and David Kolb remain at the top of the list for the WWC, just 3 points ahead of Team of the Year leaders, James Campbell JR and Randy Vike. The Premier Team of Campbell and Vike have an impressive 24-point lead in the Team of the Year race and will be trying to hold on through the last 2 events of the year that are coming up quickly.

As part of the 2026 MWC season, anglers can compete for a coveted spot in the 2026 World Walleye Championship held in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota. The 2026 WWC will be a one-time Dual Event with qualifying teams from 2025 and 2026, with a combined pot and, new to 2026 – a Brand-New Nitro ZV20 Powered By Mercury as the top prize. Teams can participate in as many events as they wish, with points earned in at least three qualifiers necessary for an invitation to the World Walleye Championship. MWC’s “Living the Dream” team, using points from four qualifiers throughout the regular season, will earn a sponsorship package valued up to $10,000 which includes a spot to compete in the National Team Championship and up to four, paid-in-full, MWC events.

Each MWC event has a lucrative payout which is based on the number of teams entered into that event. Overall payout is awarded to 20% of the field, providing more inspiration to sign up and join the fun. In addition to a hefty check, the first-place team also earns a $1,000 Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s National Team Championship (NTC) prize package including: paid entry, a travel stipend, team jerseys, and plaques. Additionally, the big-fish pot, option-pot and sponsor bonuses will add thousands more for distribution among the field.

Under the umbrella of The Walleye Federation (TWF), the Masters Walleye Circuit (MWC) is North America’s longest running and undisputed leader in team walleye tournaments since 1984 and as an inductee into the freshwater fishing hall of fame. MWC has set the standard for competitive walleye fishing for 42 years. The 2026 schedule includes six qualifiers in five states, plus berths into the 2026 MWC World Walleye Championship presented by Nitro boats in Devils Lake, North Dakota.  Stay tuned for more 2026 announcements at:

www.MastersWalleyeCircuit.com.

Masters Walleye Circuit Official Level Sponsors: Mercury Marine, Lowrance Electronics, and Nitro Boats. Associate Sponsors: TH Marine, Airsafe Hitch Products, National Professional Anglers Association, and The Walleye Federation.

For more information, contact support@masterswalleyecircuit.com or call (580) 765-9031.