2nd Goes to Sprengel, Hjelm in 3rd
Day-1 Story Presented by Garmin
Garrison, ND (August 1, 2024)- The final stop of the 2024 Bass Pro Shops & Cabela’s National Walleye Tour presented by Progressive season started out on Day 1 on Lake Sakakawea in Garrison, ND with hot summertime conditions, blue bird skies, and little wind for the 126 Pro- and Co-Anglers competing. Pro-Anglers are fishing for a top prize of a 2024 Nitro ZV20 powered by a 225 Mercury Pro XS and $15,000 cash, while the Co-Anglers are fishing for a first-place payout of $7,500 in cash.
Early reports through-out the first morning of competition on Lake Sakakawea showed that anglers were scrambling to find the right quality of fish to put into the livewell. This week, anglers are faced with the ‘no cull’ rule, meaning every walleye they decide to keep, they must bring to weigh-in. This causes tricky decision making on the water for the anglers.
After Day-1 of competition, local Ranger/ Mercury NWT Pro-Angler Justin Skipper brought in a 5-fish limit worth 30-04, giving him the lead going into championship Friday on Lake Sakakawea.
“I knew they were there in practice. I found one little sweet-spot area and felt confident I could have the bag I did”, said the South Dakota Pro-Angler. Justin reported catching about ten walleyes during his day and came to Fort Stevenson State Park early for weigh-in. “It feels good to drop a bag like that in a big tournament like this on a lake I know really well and have a lot of history with”.
Justin has fished NWT tournaments before, but reported this is first time he has been in contention to win one.
“I really want to fish the full tour someday, but with work and family it is just hard to pull off the entire year. These anglers are the best in the business and the NWT really puts on a great platform for anglers to chase their dreams.”
Ranger/ Mercury Pro-Angler Korey Sprengel Takes Second
Korey Sprengel, a former NWT tournament winner, needs a good finish on Lake Sakakawea to give him a boost in points to make the 2024 NWT Championship next month on Lake Huron. After Day 1, he finds himself in second place with a limit of North Dakota walleye worth 27-15. Korey was also an NWT Pro-Angler that elected to come to weigh-in a few minutes early after filling out his limit.
“Yeah….today was what I needed, but I honestly feel a little guilty about it because I lost a few quality fish today, and not fishing clean is just not my style”, said the Wisconsin Pro-Angler.
“Tomorrow, I have to get this done if I want a chance to make that championship. So I am, going back to catch the fish I lost today and hopefully it all falls into place.”
Korey reported a slow start to his day, but staying targeted to key areas he found in practice was critical to finally finding the active fish that he could catch. He ended his Day-1 interview stating that he believes he will need slightly a better bag tomorrow in order to pull off the win.
Former NWT Progressive Angler of the Year Duane Hjelm Lands in Third
Another angler who is not a stranger to wins and top finishes on the NWT is Garmin Pro-Angler Duane Hjelm. Duane, another angler depending on a good event on Lake Sakakawea to secure his spot into the 2024 NWT Championship, is in great contention to do so after ending Day-1 in third.
“We started off on a spot I thought I could pick up a couple quality fish to start the day. But that didn’t work, spot two didn’t work, spot three didn’t work, but the fourth spot I went to finally panned out and I was able to piece it together”, said the South Dakota native.
“I kept the Garmin Force trolling motor on 10 and just went to work. My Garmin LiveScope is a huge piece of the puzzle and just staying focused”.
Duane said he hopes to repeat the same day tomorrow and keep himself in the Top-10. With the wind picking up tomorrow, it could change a lot of things for the anglers, however he feels that his pattern and fish will stay strong.
Progressive Angler of the Year leader Hunter Nitti brought a limit worth 22-06 to the scales, finishing the day in 22nd place.
Rest of the Top-10:
4.) JAKE CAUGHEY FARGO, ND 27-06
5.) DYLAN NUSSBAUM ST. MARYS, PA 27-05
6.) MAX WILSON CAMPBELLSPORT, WI 26-12
7.) DYLAN MAKI COHASSET, MN 25-13
8.) KENT ANDERSEN AMERY, WI 25-08
9.) JAKE LAPINE OSHKOSH, WI 25-02
10.) BRANDON WALD MINOT, ND 24-15
Full Pro-Anglers can be found here.
Top-10 Co-Angler Results:
1.) SCOTT PETERSON RAMSEY, MN 30-04
2.) MARK JANUS SPRINGDALE, AR 27-15
3.) JOE ARTIM DULUTH, MN 27-12
4.) ZACH JACKSON GARRISON, ND 27-06
5.) STEVEN ROSEMORE CLOQUET, MN 27-05
6.) FELIX BERTHELETTE ST ANDREWS, AB 26-12
7.) CHAD RENNER BISMARCK, ND 25-13
8.) ERIC NESIUS WEST FARGO, ND 25-08
9.) CASEY MCGILL ALBERT LEA, MN 25-02
10.) SAM BENGTSON RIVER FALLS, WI 24-15
Full Co-Anglers can be found here.
Immediately following the final day weigh-in on Friday, kids are invited to participate in the Kid’s Fishing Clinic hosted by the NPAA. The event is free, will take place at the Fort Stevenson State Park and the first 200 first will receive a free shirt or fishing combo.
The National Walleye Tour consists of four regular-season events and a no-entry-fee championship. Each regular season event is a two-day tournament and delivers over a 100 percent payback. Pro-Anglers compete against other Pro-Anglers, and Co-Anglers compete against other co-anglers. The 2024 season kicks off with a record number of Co-Anglers signed up for all events!
For more information on rules and tournament payouts, visit https://www.nationalwalleyetour.com/
For more information on the National Walleye Tour, including the 2024 tournament schedule, fact sheets, photos, and official tournament results from past events, visit nationalwalleyetour.com. Subscribing to the NWT e-newsletter is the best way to receive up-to-date information, registration announcements, sponsor incentives, and Outdoor TeamWorks news.
About National Walleye Tour
National Walleye Tour (NWT) is part of the Outdoor Team Works family of fishing tournaments. The OTW brand offers a wide range of fishing events from professional tournaments to grassroots fishing derbies. All events are supported by some of the top companies in the nation and include on-site activation and activities, as well as extensive media support. For live updates and information, follow NWT on Facebook and Instagram or visit www.nationalwalleyetour.com to catch up on all the action.