Presented by Yamaha Motor Corp USA and Warrior Boats Inc.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  May 22, 2024

Contact: Denny Fox, 920-505-0122

Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™)

Weeding Out Big Stone: Trolling Over The Top With Crawlers Wins Minnesota Qualifier For Gilkey, Flemming

When you’re confronted with a lot of weeds, and on Minnesota’s Big Stone Lake weeds are in spades, it often pays to troll believe it or not, and that’s exactly what won the AIM Weekend Walleye Series’ Warrior Boats/Boomerang Marine & Sports Open on Big Stone Lake in Minnesota Sunday (May 19) for Nate Gilkey and Shawn Flemming.

“This has never happened before, Fan Nation, but this was the second score this weekend for a Warrior boat team,” said Denny Fox, AIM national tournament director. “The team that won in Wisconsin didn’t register their boat so they missed out on Warrior Cash, but Gilkey and Flemming who also run a 2090 Tiller, the same boat the Wisconsin team did, are registered, so they got a triple payday: $4,500 from AIM, another $4,500 from Warrior for first place, and $1,100 in AIM Side Pot Challenge cash, for a total of $10,100, and a gaggle of Yamaha Outboards Team Of The Year points for 28.89 pounds. Not bad, guys.

Gilkey said they had plenty of pre-fish time on the water between both of them and settled on some spots. Flemming also competed in a local tournament on the lake. Their Warrior boat had Garmin LiveScope in the electronics tool bag.

“What we were looking for was fishable weeds and finding spots where they were less dense,” Gilkey said.

“It seemed that’s where the fish were hanging out versus the stuff that was really solid. We divided and conquered (they both had their own boats), and Shawn did old school and I tried LiveScopeing and came up with a game plan for him, but Sunday was a little different and it worked out in our favor.

“Sunday we were mid-lake, 10 or 12 miles up fishing in the weeds in the middle and working some spots where Shawn was catching them in pre-fishing and got on the right pod of fish. We caught our first in 10 minutes, a 25-inch fish, and a half-hour later got another one. They were pulling crawler-tipped spinners with 1/4 – to ½-ounce bottom bouncers.

“We trolled back and forth over them, picking off one here and there. Then the wind started to blow, and the bite shut off. We had our five by 11:30 and we figured we needed one more big upgrade. We lost probably a 25 or 26-incher. The spinner bite on Big Stone has always been pretty consistent, and with the weeds as tall and thick as they are, if you’re going to troll in my opinion, spinners are easier to keep clean, and that was our plan,” he explained. “We set up using LiveScope so we could see to get the spinners down, tickling the canopy, not in them. We stayed in the same half-mile stretch.

They were actually surprised they’d won. “I thought maybe we’d scratch out a top five. Seeing weights from a prior tournament, we thought we’ve got to be in the 30-pound range to get a chance at winning,” he said.

In second place with 26.5 pounds and $2,000 to the good are Matt Tienter of Walker, and Sean Obrien of South Haven, MN. They took a different route to get there, using mostly jigs and shiner minnows in their boat equipped with a Garmin Kraken bow mount and with Garmin electronics in the mix. Their fish ranged from 20 to 23 inches.

“We bounced around pre-fishing and found our first spot a couple years ago. We checked it Saturday and there were some fish on it. Sunday, we fished about a 100-yard-by-100 yard area around a deep rock pile, deep by Big Stone standards, 13 or 14 feet,” Tienter said. “We were just moving around the edge of the rock pile. We’d throw it on top and bring it down, using mostly jigs, pitching, casting, snap-jigging and hopping.” They put eight or nine on their card of the dozen or so they caught.

“We picked up our first in the first 15 minutes, then got one about every 45 minutes. It was so full of weeds you were basically fishing blind, so using electronics didn’t do a whole lot. We were fishing old school. The weed growth in that lake is incredible. It’s fun because it’s hard. If you find’em, you can get some, and if you don’t, you’re in trouble,” he said.

“I knew we had 20-something pounds and knowing that lake I definitely figured we’d be in the top 10 and hoping for a top five. The potential is in that lake for over 30 pounds. We were happy with a top 10 and really happy with a top five, and we snuck into second,” he said.

They’re also ready for what’s next in Minnesota, Mille Lacs June 9, then Leech on July 14.

“I used to have a place on Mille Lacs and now I have one on Leech, so I know both well,” Tienter warned. So watch out for these two.

Just behind them in third with 25.69 pounds were Pete McGinty, and Cody Enger of Madison, MN. They earned $1,500 and second place in the Side Pot Challenge for another $660. Fourth place went to Kyle Manteuffel of Coon Rapids and Sean Nelson of Columbus. They boated 24.77 pounds and $1,300. In fifth, Caleb Buenger of Dover and Scott Moger of Rochester went home with $1,100 from AIM and $440 in third-place Side Pot Challenge cash for netting 23.54 pounds.

Fan Nation, AIM is taking a briefer-than-brief holiday break, but starting Memorial Day Monday, May 27, it’s all hands on deck for pre-fishing North Dakota’s Lake Sakakawea, the start of events culminating in the two-day AIM Warrior Boats National Championship Shootout. The contest runs May 31- June 1, with 80 anglers in 40 boats from across the Midwest vying for who will go home with that fully equipped Warrior boat, with Yamaha SHO outboard, Garmin electronics and Kraken bow-mount, and filled with Rosemore rods, valued at $100,000. Follow all the fun at AIM’s Facebook page. Go to aimfishing.com to join in the most affordable, lucrative walleye tournament there is.

You know you want to. You know you can.

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 Presenting Sponsors: Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. and Warrior Boats inc. 

AIM Supporting Sponsors: Mercury Marine, Garmin, Power Pole, Worldwide Marine Insurance, Off Shore Tackle, Gemini Sport Marketing, JT Outdoors Products, McQuoids Inn, Rosemore Outdoor Gear, Outdoor Authority fish house rentals, Adventure Recreational Finance, Oconto County WI., Forever Barnwood