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NPAA Members Show Strong Finishes on the Illinois and Detroit Rivers

Category: npaa

 Apr 14th, 2010 by OutdoorsFIRST 

Modified Apr 14th, 2010 at 12:00 AM

April 13, 2010- Forestville, WI

Dean Arnoldussen, of Appleton, WI -NPAA # 408 took home the FLW Walleye Tour win from Detroit this past weekend when his three day limit of fish weighed in at 101.13 pounds.  Arnoldussen was trolling crawler harnesses in the Michigan waters of Lake Erie, and after two days of fishing, Dean, along with his Co Anglers, caught enough fish to qualify for the top ten on day three.

On the third morning he traveled back to the “Luna Pier” area, hoping to duplicate the previous two days results. “We got there and the water was crystal clear, and it was about 4 degrees colder, so we just kept on going until we got into some dirty water. We set up, and not even on any coordinates I had fished before, and started catching them all day. Then we kind of went through a dry spell, and we hit a spot where I had hit a big fish during prefish, and pulled spinners in there. We had two triples right away. One of those fish was a 29 incher, and that did it for us”, said Dean.
Arnoldussen’s winnings totaled: $34,924.00
Base Payout with a field of 55 competitors: $12,232.00
Ranger Cup Contingency: $10,000.00
Evinrude Contingency: $8,000.00
Optional Pot Winnings (24 entered the OP): $4,692.00

NPAA Members who also finished in the top 15 included:
4th Place: Tom Keenan of Hatley, WI NPAA #907
7th Place: Davis Kolb of Rockford, MI NPAA #607
9th Place: John Campbell of Marco Island NPAA #08
12th Place: John Gillman of Freeland, MI NPAA#871
15th Place Co: Chet Babcock of Marne, MI NPAA#534
                          
                        
Masters Walleye Circuit Season Opener on the Illinois River Has Successful
Results for NPAA Members

For 24 years the MWC has started its season on the Illinois River in Spring Valley, IL.
Like many years in the past, this year was a phenomenal bite, and many limits of fish were brought to the scales. That stretch of the Illinois River is known as one of the best Sauger fisheries in the country, and the fishing can be simply incredible.  This was one of those years.

Some years, there have been some unfortunate flooding water levels, which makes the fishing a little tougher and a little more dangerous, but this was not one of those years. The water levels were at their normal range for the end of March, and the fish were right on schedule. Most teams were able to bring in a full limit each day, and those that didn’t said they went through a lot of smaller fish trying to find a keeper fish. 60-70 fish a day was the report repeated most often over the two days of competition. 1,047 fish were caught in the two days totaling 1762.25 pounds.

Several NPAA members were successful and finished in the money at this event.

NPAA members who finished in the top fifteen included:
3rd Place: Robert Apple of Chadwick, IL NPAA #171
4th Place: Steve Skupien of Frankfort, IL NPAA #984
9th Place: Danny Plautz of Muskego, WI NPAA #315
11th Place: Ron Levin of Beach-Park, IL NPAA #179
14th Place: Guy Lopez of Chicago, IL NPAA # 630

In all, $66,600 was paid out to the top 25 places of the 128 boat field; $6,260 was paid out in big fish cash for the top three fish each day; and $3,200 was paid out in sponsor contingency bonuses for a grand total of $75,060.
 
The NPAA is a non-profit organization focused on growing the sport of fishing and increasing the professionalism of its members.  Its supporting partners include Northland Fishing Tackle, Navionics, Mercury Marine, Evinrude Outboards, Lund Boats, Ranger Boats, Off-Shore Tackle, Fin-Tech Tackle, Berkley, AIM Walleye Series, Masters Walleye Circuit, FLW Outdoors, Frabill, U.S. Forest Service, Liddle Marketing, FPS Financial Planning Services, Do-it Corp., Optima Batteries, John Butts Outdoors, Pasha Lake Cabins, Oahe Wings and Walleyes Guide Service, Outdoor First Media, Advanced Tex Screen Printing and Worldwide Marine Underwriters.  More NPAA member and association news can be viewed at www.npaa.net.

(For more information, contact Pat Neu, NPAA executive director, 920-559-6901)