News for February 2010
Church Tackle & Tackle Haven 2nd Annual Quad Challenge Tournament (SERIES OF 4)
Quad challenge will be four individual tournaments. $50 per Boat Entry Fee. The captain and crew that has the highest combined score from all four tournaments will receive an additional $400 cash and prizes and will be deemed tournament Champion. This Event is intended to be a FUN tournament that anyone can win. It is expected that all captains and crew conduct themselves like true sportsmen (and sportswomen)!!
Rules: Weigh in 5 fish (no more than 3 of any 1 species
of salmon or trout). 9 ROD LIMIT. Weigh in at Tackle Haven & must be in line by 2:15pm. 1 place paid for every 5 boats. Entry fee deadline is Friday Evening 7pm day before tournament. 100% payback plus additional prizes.
All boats must leave St. Joseph pier heads to begin fishing at 6:30am. All boats will be contacted by radio on channel 19. Start and end of tournament to be announced on channel 19.
2010 Tournament dates:
May 29th
July 3rd
August 14th
September 4th
For additional information contact : Tackle Haven (269)925-0341 or Bob Lausman (269)470-0720
Fundraiser Monies and Donations from Quad Challenge go to : PROJECT F.I.S.H. in Memory of Carl Starner
Tournament Sponsors:
Church Tackle, Tackle Haven, MI Stinger Group, Great Lakes Angler, Okuma, Bert’s Custom Tackle, Shimano, Rapture Fly’s
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News for October
2009
Davis and Gies
Cabela’s MWC World Walleye Champions 2009
The New 2009 World Walleye Champions! With 85.26
pounds from Lake Erie over three days, Ohio anglers Matt Davis
(Marion) and Dan Gies (Huron) jumped to the top of the elite
Championship field to be crowned the Cabela’s MWC World Walleye
Champions, earning a cash prize of $25,000. This impressive
victory comes just four weeks on the heels of winning the coveted
MWC Team of the Year title which carried a $13,000 bonus. Davis
and Gies are on a roll to have achieved both in such short
succession, a testimony to their fishing acumen and versatility.
“So many great anglers have been a part of the rich history of the
MWC,” shared Matt Davis after the majestic walleye trophies and
big check had been presented. “It’s amazing to think that we’ve
now accomplished something of this stature and are amongst their
ranks. It’s awesome.” Partner Dan Gies knows it took awhile coming
together, but agrees that the moment is sweet. “We’ve been a part
of the MWC since the inception of the East division, for five
years now,” shared Gies, addressing his peers at the Champions
dinner. “We had to learn the hard way and take our knocks at some
of the tournaments that stretched us and our skill set. This is
just such a great feeling, hard to believe it’s real.” This was
their first Circuit victory.
In addition to just being great fishermen, practice, discipline,
thorough planning and meticulous organization are the skills that
Davis and Gies’ teammates attributed to their friends’ success.
“You’ll never see two more dedicated and disciplined fishermen
than Matt and Dan,” shared Greg Yarbrough, friend, teammate, and
2008 Champion himself. “They work hard, are always researching and
well-prepared for every day on the water,” continued Yarbrough.
Davis and Gies also received sponsor contingency bonuses including
$100 from the National Professional Anglers Association (NPAA) and
$200 from the Oxygenator for using an Oxygenator system in their
livewell. Their Championship purse, bonuses and Team of the Year
awards makes for a $38,300 paycheck for the month of October for
these MWCers.
Congratulations Matt and Dan. Thank you for
using Church Tackle products!
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News for October
2008
Manz and Yarbrough Cabela’s MWC World
Walleye Champions 2008
Dundee, MI – Jeff Manz of Vanderbilt, MI and Greg
Yarbrough of Port Clinton, OH have added another Cabela’s MWC
feather to their cap. The duo, a former team of the year in the most
prestigious team-format walleye circuit in the world, the Cabela’s
MWC, can now boast the title of World Walleye Champions as well. The
World Walleye Championship tournament field contained 41 of the best
walleye fishing teams from around the country. Manz and Yarbrough
cashed in the first place prize money of $25,000 for the
winners….and over $1,150 in sponsor bonus awards totaling $26,150.
In all, over $105,000 was paid out in purse and sponsor bonuses. The
final day basket of 21.90 pounds was the ticket to move from 4th
place where they started in the morning to the win in the afternoon.
But it evolved over three unique days.
Due to small craft advisories on Lake Erie,
the first day of the tournament was restricted to the Detroit River
only. That changed up the majority of the anglers’ plans – as they
had done most (if not all) of their pre-fishing on the big water.
Getting a few fish to go in the river was the new challenge, along
with the worry that day two may also be restricted waters. Smaller
fish and fewer numbers reside in the river during the fall, but the
tournament anglers made a valiant effort. Jeff Zawicki of Muskego,
WI and Tom Sowinski of Hartford, WI lead the pack with 12.02 pounds
for four fish. Manz and Yarbrough brought in 3 fish for 7.52 pounds
putting them in 10th place.
The wind settled down and the second day was
opened up to the full boundary. More anticipation of the unknown
crept in again – as worry was running rampant on the condition of
the lake after several days of blow. Would the fish still be on the
spots they found during prefishing? Would it be too churned up to
get a bite going? Robert Lampman of DeSoto, WI and Harry Miller of
Bellevue, IA put the biggest basket of the second day together of
26.85 pounds. Couple that with their 5.48 pounds they pulled on the
river on the first day – and they were sitting in the coveted lead
spot as the event moved on to the final day. They also had the
biggest fish of the Championship field on Day 2 at 10.3 pounds. Manz
and Yarbrough brought in 20.33 pounds on the second day and were
sitting in 4th.
Day 3 dawned cold, but calm enough to keep
the full boundary in play for the last round. Lampman and Miller
fought through the grass and the disappointment that their bigger
fish had moved. They put together 12.44 pounds which landed them in
11th place. Zawicki and Sowinski occurred equipment challenges and
couldn’t travel the distance they wanted to. They re-grouped to
troll close-in where they could limp back to Bolles Harbor at the
end of the day…and were glad to put two fish in the box. They ended
up in 19th place.
Manz and Yarbrough traveled to their spots
on the Canadian side near Pelee Island. They worked the traditional
in-line spinner presentation with perch color patterns and ran 1 to
1.2 mph. It was a simple approach – they didn’t feel there was
anything particularly fancy. One adjustment they made was to feed
line back when the fish were checking out the bait. “That gave the
fish a chance to feed on it so we could get a good hook set,” shared
Yarbrough.
After the final weigh-in was over the competitors
and their families adjourned for a Champions Awards Dinner. The
anglers had a chance to share in the camaraderie and congratulate
the new winners on their victory. “The level of competition is
really impressive in this circuit,” added Yarbrough. “These guys can
compete at the highest level and to win against them is an honor and
a privilege.” Manz agreed. “Some of us have known each other for a
long time and are really good friends,” added Manz. “We appreciated
all the kind words from the anglers at the dinner. It was a
wonderful ending to a great event.”
Manz and Yarbrough received a $500 bonus for being
the winning team in a Mercury. They are both NPAA members and
received $100 each. Their Oxygenator system in their live-well
netted them healthy fish without any deductions plus a $200 bonus.
Their membership in Farm & City Insurance Services Team FCIS gave
another $250 in bonus.
Congratulations Jeff and Greg! Thank you for
using Church Tackle products!
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News for October
2007
Koester & Rhodes
Win Cabela’s MWC World Walleye Champions 2007
Dundee, MI – Jeff Koester of Brookville, Indiana and Scott Rhodes
of Traverse City, Michigan were crowned Cabela’s Masters Walleye
Circuit World Walleye Champions on Saturday, October 6th in
Dundee, Michigan, cashing $25,000 for the honor. The duo bested a
field of 59 teams on a very cooperative Lake Erie that provided
three days of calm conditions.
Koester and Rhodes trolled the Canadian waters near Pelee Island
with spinners. Their three-day fifteen fish winning weight topped
the roster at 88.68 pounds, a 5.9 pound average. This was the
team’s second circuit victory as they won the Walleye Madness
Championship bracketed tournament in May of 2007, held in Port
Clinton, Ohio.
“Good thing we had that first day basket over 37 pounds,” shared
Rhodes after the honor was bestowed on the stage, just outside the
Cabela’s store in Dundee, Michigan. “We ended up needing that
extra room.” The new Champs managed to retain the lead each day of
the tournament, bringing in 22.43 pounds on day two and 28.60
pounds on day three. Their day one weight 37.65 pounds was the
largest basket of the tournament, although fifteen other 30-plus
pound baskets were brought in over the three days. Their lead on
day one was 7.83 pounds. After the second day, however, the race
tightened up and it was still open for anyone to pull ahead,
especially with the quality and proliferation of the walleyes on
Lake Erie.
The biggest fish of the tournament was a tie between the leaders
and Tim Waltz of Williamsport, Pennsylvania and George Barach of
Barryton, Michigan. Each brought in 10.39 pound walleyes to earn
big fish of the day with Koester and Rhodes big fish coming on
Thursday and Waltz and Barach besting the field on Saturday.
Friday’s big fish award went to Burt Willes and Troy Saunders of
Menasha, Wisconsin for their 9.60 pound walleye. Each team
received a $500 gift card from Cabela’s for the honor.
David Kolb of Ada, Michigan and Dan Byers of Cedar Springs,
Michigan both bought new Toyota Tundra trucks this year – and it
paid off. They split the $5,000 bonus from Toyota for being the
highest finishing team in the tournament in a Toyota Tundra. Kolb
and Byers finished in 10th place with 75.29 pounds and cashed
$1,500 for the 10th place spot plus $5,000 from Toyota for $6,500.
Adam Rasmussen of Stevens Point, Wisconsin won the Ranger Cup
bonus of $1,000 for finishing highest in the Ranger Cup program.
Rasmussen and partner Brad Jakusz from Amherst, Wisconsin finished
in 5th place with 83.63 pounds.
Over $100,000 was paid out to the entire field. The Cabela’s MWC
World Walleye Championship has no entry fee. Teams earn their way
by invitation only into the event through fishing the Cabela’s MWC
season or the Cabela’s National Team Championship.
The anglers gathered on Saturday evening for a Champions banquet
and the sentiment flowed that this was an excellent site for the
tournament. The staff at the Dundee Cabela’s did a wonderful job
with the logistics, and many expressed their sincere appreciation
for their warm hospitality.
“I can’t tell you how much this means to Scott and I,” shared Jeff
Koester at the Champions banquet later that evening. All the teams
had taken their turn at congratulating Jeff and Scott, with the
Championship trophies poised and custom MWC rings nearby. “We
couldn’t have done it without the hard work of our entire team –
the guys we fish with like Manz, Yarbrough, Davis, Gies, Robinson,
Seyka, Seiferlein, Johnson and Defibaugh,” continued Koester. “And
I give huge kudos to the MWC field, because on the final day there
were only the teams on our spot that were there on Thursday.
Everyone gave all of us in the lead a chance to fish our own fish,
and that speaks to the quality of professionalism of the anglers
in the MWC.”
Congratulations Jeff and Scott! Thank you for
using Church Tackle products!
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