For Immediate Release –

Ponca City, Okla.—April 17, 2014—Midwestern walleye warriors have a chance to test their skills against the world’s finest competitive walleye anglers when the Cabela’s Masters Walleye Circuit returns to the mighty Mississippi River May 2-4. 

Headquartered at Hastings, Minnesota, the event offers two-person teams the chance to battle for thousands of dollars in cash and prizes in a professionally run setting. And in an exciting twist on traditional walleye tournament formats, the event is “artificial-only”—with extra winnings at stake as anglers ply their favorite crankbaits, spinners, Berkley Gulp!-type softbaits and other man-made presentations, while live bait such as minnows and nightcrawlers are off limits.

The artificial-only concept emerged thanks to a partnership between Berkley Gulp! and the Cabela’s MWC, with Berkley kicking in an additional $2,500 in prize money for the anglers. This will mark the Circuit’s second such event this season and the third since 2013. Both previous artificial-only formats yielded improved catches compared to past Cabela’s MWC tournaments on the same waters. At the 2014 Spring Valley artificial-only qualifier, for example, the winning weight was nearly 8 pounds heavier than the top catch at the same venue in 2013, when competitors were allowed to use live bait. 

Two-person teams will be allowed to weigh five walleyes, saugers or saugeyes per day, and the team with the heaviest two-day total weight will be crowned the tournament champions. The event is scheduled for May 2-3, with May 4 reserved in case bad weather forces the cancellation of one of the first two days.

Cabela’s MWC payouts are based on the number of teams entered in each event. Plus, the MWC Big Fish Pot, along with sponsor bonuses including Ranger Cup, Berkley Baits, Lowrance Electronics, Optima True Blue and the Zippo Hot Hands Big Fish Award add thousands more to the total. As an added bonus, co-presenting sponsor Lowe Equipment Attachments will present a $200 gift card to the winners of this tournament. 

The public is invited to the weigh-ins, which begin at 3 p.m. daily at the Hastings Public Launch at Jaycees’ Park. The Cabela’s MWC, National Professional Anglers Association, Pure Fishing and Zippo Outdoor Brands will present a Youth & Family Fishing Clinic immediately after the first day’s weigh-in. The first 50 youths will receive rods and reel combos courtesy of the NPAA.

Under the umbrella of The Walleye Federation (TWF), the Cabela’s MWC is open to avid walleye anglers from all walks of life. The 2014 trail includes 10 stops spread across seven states in the Walleye Belt. Teams showcase their skills—and sponsor products—at world-class venues such as the Illinois, Detroit and Mississippi rivers, Green Bay, Big Stone Lake, Kinzua Reservoir, Cass Lake and Lake Erie.

Along with great payouts at each event, teams fishing three or more tournaments battle for coveted berths in the 2015 Cabela’s MWC Championship, set for October 2015 on Lake Erie out of Huron, Ohio. Teams fishing at least three qualifiers also compete for Team of the Year awards, including a $25,000 “Living the Dream” sponsorship package, which includes fully paid entries to the Cabela’s National Walleye Trail as a pro and co-angler, use of a 600 series Ranger boat, travel stipends and more.

Cabela’s, the World’s Foremost Outfitter for hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is in its 12th season as title sponsor of the MWC. Official sponsors include: Berkley Gulp!, Lowe Equipment Attachments, Lowrance Electronics, Mercury Marine, MotorGuide, Ranger Boats, The Walleye Federation and Zippo Outdoor Brands. Associate sponsors include: Berkley Trilene, Church Tackle, Lindy Legendary Fishing Tackle, Optima Batteries, Rockstar Hitch Mounted Mud Flaps, T-H Marine and Sea Grant.

Entry fees are $650 per tournament, of which more than 100 percent is returned to anglers at the qualifiers, World Championship and Team of the Year races. Registration closes at 10 a.m. on Monday prior to each tournament. For more information, visit masterswalleyecircuit.com, email info@masterswalleyecircuit.com, or call (580) 765-9031.

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Presented by Cabela’s

For Immediate Release –

Trenton, Mich.—April 19, 2014—Wisconsin’s Tony Kobriger and Dan Zwick charged from a three-way tie for 28th place on Day One all the way to the winner’s circle at the Cabela’s Masters Walleye Circuit’s Detroit River and Western Lake Erie tournament April 18-19.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling,” said Zwick, of Wrightstown, adding that the chance to catch trophy-class walleyes made the experience even sweeter. “These are the biggest walleyes I’ve ever caught jigging,” he said. “There’s nothing like getting bit by fish so huge they don’t even budge when you set the hook.”

“This is awesome,” added Kobriger, of Chilton. He explained that they focused on the Detroit River, where their go-to tactic was fishing ½-ounce jigs tipped with 3-inch Berkley Gulp! Alive! Ripple Shads on both sides of a rocky point in 14 to 17 feet of water.

After bringing a five-walleye limit weighing 39 pounds, 1 ounce to the Cabela’s MWC stage at scenic Elizabeth Park in Trenton on Day One, they added a 48-pound, 2-ounce limit on Day Two for an 87-pound, 3-ounce total that not only won the event, it shattered the Circuit’s longstanding two-day basket record of 86.38 pounds. It also marked Kobriger and Zwick’s fourth MWC Circuit victory. They won the Green Bay qualifier out of Oconto in 2013, the Cabela’s MWC World Walleye Championship on the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, in 2011 and the Cabela’s MWC World Walleye Championship a second time in 2013 at Escanaba, MI.

For their latest win, the team collected the $14,400 first-place cash payout, plus the $1,000 Ranger Cup contingency, $500 Berkley Baits bonus, $500 Lowrance HDS Gen2 Touch and Elite 7 contingency, and a $1,000 Cabela’s National Team Championship Prize Package including paid NTC entry, travel stipend, team jerseys and plaques. In second place, the Gibraltar, Michigan, team of Charlie and Nicholas Borg pocketed $6,600 for their 86-pound, 2-ounce total. Grosse Ile, Michigan’s Michael and Gary Rahn claimed the $200 Optima True Blue award in third place. In all, the top 20 percent of the field shared $68,560 in cash and prizes, with last place in the money receiving $1,000 as will be the case for the final place in the money for all 2014 MWC events.

The Detroit River and western Lake Erie produced 1,050 fish weighing a total of 6,970 pounds, 6 ounces during the catch-and-release event. Big fish was a 13-pound, 4-ounce behemoth caught by Jerry Fox, Jr. and Kenneth Fox, both of Algonac, Michigan.

Besides earning them the $250 Zippo Hot Hands Big Fish Award and $1,375 from the Big Fish Pot, the giant fish tied the Circuit’s all-time walleye record held by the father-and-son team of John and John Murphy of Imlay, Michigan.

The Cabela’s MWC, National Professional Anglers Association, Pure Fishing and Zippo Outdoor Brands presented a Youth & Family Fishing Clinic immediately after Friday’s weigh-in. Participating youths received rod and reel combos courtesy of the NPAA.

Under the umbrella of The Walleye Federation (TWF), the Cabela’s MWC is open to avid walleye anglers from all walks of life. The 2014 trail includes 10 stops spread across seven states in the Walleye Belt. Teams showcase their skills—and sponsor products—at world-class venues such as the Illinois, Detroit and Mississippi rivers, Green Bay, Big Stone Lake, Kinzua Reservoir, Cass Lake and Lake Erie.

Along with great payouts at each event, teams fishing three or more tournaments battle for coveted berths in the 2015 Cabela’s MWC Championship, set for October 2015 on Lake Erie out of Huron, Ohio. Teams fishing at least three qualifiers also compete for Team of the Year awards, including a $25,000 “Living the Dream” sponsorship package, which includes fully paid entries to the Cabela’s National Walleye Trail as a pro and co-angler, use of a 600 series Ranger boat, travel stipends and more.

Cabela’s, the World’s Foremost Outfitter for hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, is in its 12th season as title sponsor of the MWC. Official sponsors include: Berkley Gulp!, Lowe Equipment Attachments, Lowrance Electronics, Mercury Marine, MotorGuide, Ranger Boats, The Walleye Federation and Zippo Outdoor Brands. Associate sponsors include: Berkley Trilene, Church Tackle, Lindy Legendary Fishing Tackle, Optima Batteries, Rockstar Hitch Mounted Mud Flaps, T-H Marine and Sea Grant.

Entry fees are $650 per tournament, of which more than 100 percent is returned to anglers at the qualifiers, World Championship and Team of the Year races. Registration closes at 10 a.m. on Monday prior to each tournament. For more information, visit masterswalleyecircuit.com, email info@masterswalleyecircuit.com, or call (580) 765-9031.

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Rhodes, Koester Win Cabela’s Masters Walleye Circuit
Season Opener On The Illinois River
Presented by Berkley Baits

For Immediate Release –
Spring Valley, Ill.—March 30, 2014—Scott Rhodes and Jeff Koester racked up an impressive 26 pounds, 4 ounces to win the Cabela’s Masters Walleye Circuit’s 2014 season opener on the Illinois River at Spring Valley, Illinois.

“The feeling is surreal, it’s going to take awhile to sink in,” Koester, of Brookville, Indiana, beamed moments after claiming victory in front of a raucous riverside crowd gathered to watch the festivities at historic Barto Landing.

He and Rhodes collected the $11,100 first-place cash payout, plus $500 in Berkley Artificial-Only Bonus Cash, the $500 Berkley Baits contingency, $200 Optima True Blue award, and $950 from the MWC Big Fish Pot for their Day 1 big fish. They also claimed a $1,000 Cabela’s National Team Championship Prize Package including paid NTC entry, travel stipend, team jerseys and plaques.

Held March 29-30, the tournament marked the circuit’s 28^th-consecutive season opener on the Illinois, and the beginning of its 30^th season of team walleye tournament competition. Two-person teams were allowed to weigh five walleyes, saugers or saugeyes per day. In an exciting twist for 2014, this year’s tournament was an “artificial-only” event—with extra winnings at stake as anglers put their favorite crankbaits, spinners, Berkley Gulp!-type softbaits and other man-made presentations to the test, while live bait such as minnows and nightcrawlers were off limits.

As it turned out, artificial presentations were hardly a setback. Koester and Rhode’s total trumped the Circuit’s 2013 Spring Valley winning weight by nearly eight pounds. Last March, Iowans Clayton Freiburger and Mike Bisdorf weighed in 18.15 pounds to win the MWC season opener. The artificial-only format emerged this season thanks to a partnership between Berkley Gulp! and the Cabela’s MWC, with Berkley kicking in an additional $2,500 in prize money for the anglers.

Rhodes and Koester came out swinging on Day 1, weighing a hefty 14-pound, 6-ounce limit that would prove to be big basket of the tournament. They also weighed big fish of the day, a 4-pound, 15-ounce walleye. They closed the deal on Day 2 with an 11-pound, 14-ounce limit. Their go-to tactic was hand-lining crankbaits laced with walleye-formula Berkley PowerBait Attractant. Koester noted that their hand-line leads were 25-pound-test Berkley Big Game line.

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