Steve Weisman
Gander Mountain GNWC Publicity Director
Pulse, Handel Take Final South Dakota Tournament at Lake Thompson
By Steve Weisman
Gander Mountain GNWC Publicity Director
How would you like to catch a 30″ walleye and have to release it
because
you already had two others in the live well just as large? That’s what Lee
Pulse from Kimball, SD and Scott Handel from Chamberlain, SD had to do at
Sunday’s Lake Thompson Tournament on the South Dakota Region of the Gander
Mountain Grand National Walleye Cup (GNWC).
However, it didn’t matter as Pulse and Handel ran away from the rest of
the competition with a six-fish weight of 21.44 pounds and a check for
$1400. Their 9.10-pound walleye also earned them the Berkley Trilene Big
Fish Award of $400 in Berkley products.
Second place and a check for $700 went to the team of Shane Christenson
from Bruce, SD and James Molengraaf from White, SD with six fish weighing
17.60 pounds.
Shane Spooner from Watertown, SD and Aaron Bjerke from Bradley, SD
collected the third place check of $540 for bringing four fish to the scales
weighing 16.70 pounds.
According to Gander Mountain GNWC Tournament Director Greg Liebel, the
bite was early and short-lived. “Most of the teams caught their fish in
the
first hour when we had some wind and during the rain. When the wind died
down, the fish, for the most part, just shut off.”
Pulse and Handel worked 18-20′ using lead core line to pull Reef
Runners’ Little Rippers, while Christenson and Molengraaf also used Reef
Runners, but also tried jointed Shad Raps.
“I’d say at least half of the teams pulled plugs in the deeper
water,”
noted Liebel. “These teams showed how important it is to be on top of the
fish when the bite is going.”
Special awards were also presented. The “Yo So Close” award of a
Yo Net
folding net valued at $80 went to the teams that placed just out of the
money. They include Mike Kayser from Mitchell, SD and Jeremy Kayser from
Alexandria, MN in 11th place; Brand Leonard from Estherville, IA and Mel
Reilching from Watertown, SD in 12th place; and Darold and Flo Swank from
Pierre, SD in 13th place.
The winner of the Gander Mountain “Need More Stuff” drawing of
$200 for
a Gander Mountain Shopping Spree was the team of Clint Schroedermeier from
Davis, SD and Colin Beitelspacher from Sioux Falls, SD.
For complete results, check out the Gander Mountain GNWC wwebsite at
http://www.walleyecup.com.
The team of Christenson and Molengraaf won the South Dakota Region Team
of the Year with 30 points, 18 points ahead of their nearest competitor.
Next up for the South Dakota teams will be the South Dakota Regional
Championships at Lake Kampeska August 21-22.
Anglers interested wanting more information on the GNWC circuit can call
1-800-890-FISH (3474), or they can email the GNWC at [email protected].
Title Sponsor for the GNWC is Gander Mountain. Other major national
sponsors include Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards, the Sportsman Channel,
Berkley, Aqua Innovations, YoNet Folding Nets by AMFYOYO, VIB”E”
Lure
Company, TowTector Shield and UpNorthOutdoors.com.