The 72-year-old fished as a young boy with his dad and now loves to share the sport with his sons and others who share the passion.

“When I’m fishing my mind goes blank,” he said. “The only thing I’m thinking about is the rod going off and the fish on the end of that pole. It’s amazing out there.”

Richards, a member of the AMA Sportsmen Association is chair of the 33rd annual AMA walleye tournament which kicked off on June 24 and wrapped up Sunday. The annual tournament is one of the biggest in Southwestern Ontario and this year attracted close to 600 fishermen. This year the tournament sold 1,000 tickets for a $10,000 prize. There are also cash prizes for the catch and release winners.

Rodney Ferriss, president of the association said walleye fishing is huge in this area because they are very plentiful and they are a good eating game fish. He believes fishing is still popular because it’s an inexpensive sport since all you really need is a fishing rod and some tackle.