Walleye Anglers Trail – Fishing Up A Good Time

Bill Brosnahan, president and tournament director of the Walleye Anglers Trail, stopped by the Runde PreDriven Store near Dubuque today to talk fishing and to allow me to gain a better understanding of what’s W.A.T.

Hello Bill, so I hear you have a big fishing event coming up, care to explain it a bit?

Oh sure, the tournament circuit has been in existence since 1999. Now, there are four annual Walleye tournaments held on the Mississippi river … usually stretching from Genoa, WI to Albany, IL.

How many people participate in the event?

There are 35 teams as of today, it will probably get up to 40 teams before the Genoa tournament which takes place April 5th. Teams consist of two people, usually partners, friends, or father and son. The competitors can fish in three different pools in each area we go to.  

When are the rest 0f the tournaments?

The second tournament is in Dubuque down by Massey Station on May 3rd. The third tournament is in Albany, IL on May 31st.  The last tournament is in La Crosse, WI September 20th.

You have the first three tournaments very close in date, yet, the fourth tournament is about four months later, why’s that?

The Spring and Fall are the best time to fish. We don’t fish in the summer months, the water is too warm for the walleye. Right now it’s coming up on the spawn, which is a great time to fish.

Oh, I recently went out to a local fish spot and didn’t catch anything, I must be unlucky!

Well, sometimes fish can be finicky.

I guess so. You have any big names come to these tournaments?

Some of the best fisherman from the world participate in the event. Winners of the Cabella’s world fishing championship and Masters Walleye Circuit are regular participants.

Do they keep the fish?

No, they release them all. When they catch the fish, they keep them alive in the well.  Then they bring them to the tournament ramp where they are weighed and finally they are released.

Prizes?

They get money.

Awesome!!  Show me the money!

Yep.

How many sponsors you have this year?

Fourteen, including Runde’s. Runde Auto Group is our main sponsor. We are very appreciative of them.

So are the participants fishing for any particular fish?

Yea, we fish for either Walleye or Sauger.

Get any big ones in the past?

Yea, we got one that was 10 pounds 8 ounces.

Sounds like a pretty fun event for everyone!

Oh yea, one thing nice about the circuit is that (((although the contestants won’t tell you about their hotspot)))  if you have a question about anything, they are more than willing to show you how to do it and explain it to you. They are great sportsmen and women.

Sounds great, I wish all the fisherman good luck! Thank you very much for your time.

No problem, thank you.

Want to know how to start fishing professionally? Below is a tutorial video that might help you catch Walleye, maybe someday you can win a fishing tournament!