With welcoming arms from the local community, the Wisconsin Division of the AIM Weekend Walleye Series wrapped up qualifying events with the Lake Winnebago “Alumacraft Open” held out of Menasha, WI. Taking off at the north end of the lake made the gamble to fish the waters located upriver from Lake Winnebago great due to the distance required to make the run. The top three teams decided to roll the dice and were rewarded with a bounty of money fish.
Within minutes of putting their lines out on Sunday, the father and son team of Bill and Matt Bobber immediately lost a big one. They quickly recovered from the loss and by 10am had 30lbs on the scorecard. At 12:30pm they caught a 26.75 inch fish, which was their last upgrade. In the end, they put together a weight of 35.76lbs by trolling in eight feet of water. With a full field of 100 boats, they took home a check for $8,000.
Brothers Jason and Matt Miller cashed in for $2400 with 32.46lbs of walleyes caught trolling #7 Berkley Flicker Shads. They saw the most action when the cloud cover was the thickest and it looked like it was going to storm. With their smallest fish measuring 22.75 inches, they knew they had a really good weight and decided to make their way back to the check-in point early, instead of trying to upgrade. Their largest fish was 27 inches.
Concerned with the small size of the fish coming from their first stop of the day, Dale Howard and John Geiger made a mid-morning move upriver. They found the fish they were looking for and took third place honors by vertical jigging with leeches in 8-16 feet of water. With 23.91lbs for five fish, they took home a check for $1800.
The qualifying field is now set for the AWWS Wisconsin State Championship which will be held September 6-7 on the Bay of Green Bay. The 2014 AWWS Wisconsin State Champs will be awarded a brand new Alumacraft 165 Escape Tiller powered by a Yamaha Motor.
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™) is a unique tournament organization created and owned by many of the most accomplished and recognizable professional walleye anglers, along with others who share the mission of advancing competitive walleye fishing and making it sustainable into the future. AIM is committed to marketing excellence on behalf of its tournament competitors, the tournament host communities, and the brands that partner with it. AIM is also committed to maintaining healthy fisheries across the nation by the development of the exclusive AIM Catch-Record-Release™ format which is integral to its dynamic events and unparalleled consumer engagement. For more information about AIM™, AIM Pro Walleye Series™, AIM Weekend Walleye Series, AIM sponsors and AIM anglers, visit www.aimfishing.com.
AIM Marketing Partners: Yamaha Marine, Warrior Boats, Alumacraft Boats, Nitro Boats, Mercury Marine, Navionics, Amsoil, Power Pole, Worldwide Marine Insurance, Team Lodge, Gemini Sport Marketing, National Fleet Graphics, and The City of Oconto.