The Mercury National Walleye Tournament (a.k.a. Walleye Weekend) concluded on Sunday with Brian Arneson and Christopher Pickhardt of Fond du Lac walking away with first prize in 2015, $13,000.
The winning weight of 36.08 eclipsed the second place weight of 35.76 brought to the scales by Shawn Kahut and Brett Walser of Fond du Lac.
Overall weights were down compared to most recent years, mainly due to restricted water clarity from the recent rains. In addition, many areas of the lake had inconsistent bites, where the walleyes moods were very fickle.
A total of 852 fish were caught Saturday, and 958 on Sunday. No statistics were available on the live release rates, but they are anticipated to be very good given the cooler temperatures.
The biggest fish caught Saturday’s biggest fish was 7.02 pounds, caught by Michael Venet and Austin Butler from Cary, Illinois. Sunday was also 7.02 pounds by Larry A. Erke Sr. and Larry A. Erke Jr. from North Fond du Lac.
Final standings can be found here: http://www.fishtfm.com/tournaments/mercury-results.shtml
