FLW Outdoors announced Tuesday that the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour
will feature nine pros running sponsor-wrapped boats for the upcoming
2011 season. The most lucrative tournament trail in professional walleye
fishing commences competition May 12 on Lake Erie in Port Clinton,
Ohio. The nine boats are just one of the many exciting facets of the
revamped FLW Walleye Tour, which features international television
coverage on VERSUS, a $10,000 National Guard Angler of the Year purse
and live streaming weigh-ins via FLW Live.
Chris Gilman, the reigning FLW Walleye Tour Championship winner,
will compete this season from an OFF!-branded Ranger 620. A longtime
member of the Rapala and Evinrude pro staffs, Gilman’s 2011 jersey will
continue to incorporate his faithful sponsors. The Chisago City, Minn.,
pro is known as “Mr. Consistency” on Tour, having won the 2009 Angler of
the Year award. More impressively, Gilman has finished in the top five
in the AOY race each of the last four seasons.
“It’s going to be a fantastic year,” he said. “The television
exposure and prize money have been increased thanks to these sponsors.
And the schedule looks just phenomenal; people are chomping at the bit.”
Dean Arnoldussen, the all-time money winner on the FLW Walleye
Tour, will fish for Team Walmart, joining the likes of George Cochran
and Wesley Strader on the bass side. Arnoldussen has three wins and over
$600,000 in career earnings.
Bill Shimota, the winner of the 2010 qualifier on Pool 3 of the
Mississippi River, will fish for Team National Guard. The Lonsdale,
Minn., pro was the points champion in the Western Division last season.
In addition, Shimota claimed the 2007 FLW Walleye League Finals on the
Mississippi River near the Quad Cities.
Other new wraps for 2011 include Amp Energy and Diet Mountain
Dew pro John Balla, Castrol pro John Campbell, Eggo pro Brian Brosdahl
and EverStart pro Dan Stier. Holdovers from last season include National
Guard pro Mark Courts and Chevy pro Jason Przekurat, the only two-time
AOY winner in FLW Walleye Tour history.
