| The 32nd Annual Fall Muskie Tournament was held on October 6th, 7th and 8th on Pomme de Terre Lake in southwestern Missouri. Sixty (60) boats total participated in the three day event with 44 fishing the Friday event and 52 fishing the Saturday/Sunday event. Fishing had been really good on the lake for the previous 2-3 weeks beforehand and hopes were high for the tournament weekend. A change in weather on Thursday brought warmer temperatures and bluebird skies but no change in the fish’s aggressive behavior.
Fifty-nine (59) muskies over 30 inches in length were caught and released during the event with several short fish also released. This is the second best tournament result that anyone can remember, bettered by only one fish in one other year. Thanks to the stocking program of the Missouri Department of Conservation and the continuing habitat creation programs of the Pomme de Terre Chapter of Muskies, Inc, the lake is healthy and continuing to improve as an outstanding muskie, bass and crappie lake in Missouri.
Thirty-three (33) muskies were caught on Friday by 44 boats. Action started immediately after the 7 am start time and continued on through the day. If all the fish that were hooked and lost were added into the number, the total would probably have been in the 50’s. The 33 fish averaged 36 ½ inches in length with the big fish of the day being 42 inches. You always have to be careful with statistics and it should be mentioned that one boat skewed the numbers by reporting 6 fish in the boat, 2 boats reporting 3 fish and 7 boats reporting two fish. When everything was sorted out, the results for the day were:
Gary Pearson, TJ Sawyer- 33, 35 ½, 33, 38 ¾, 35, 38 ½, 1st Place
Mark Boone, Marv Boyer- 39, 40, 33 ½, 2nd Place
Bill Gordon, Bill Hughes- 41, 42 (Big Fish), 3rd Place
Jim Wilson, Matt Ginnings- 36 ¼, 37 ½, 30 ½, 4th Place
Kevin Richards, Rick Weber- 41 ½, 36 ½, 5th Place
Billy Pitts, Robert Sawyer- 35 ½, 38
Earle Hammond, Mary Hammond- 38, 35 ¼
Luke Miller, Tyson Miller- 38, 34 ½
Ralph Bigham, Kirk Harlow- 37, 35
Carl Marks, Bryan Marks- 35, 36
Wayne Humphrey, Dave Brandt- 40 ½
Charley Rhinehart, Rick Rhinehart- 40
Franky Roberts, Darrell Roberts- 36
Eddie Stephens, Debbie Stephens- 35
Brooks May, Charles May- 35
Darren Zesch, Scott Taucher- 34 ½
Gary Meyer, Jeff Thompson- 34
With Saturday/Sunday being a separate event, everyone started with a clean slate and renewed enthusiasm and sure enough, things were different. With 52 boats fishing there were only 18 fish caught. The father-son team of Carl and Bryan Marks turned in 4 fish for the day while Friday’s winners, Gary Pearson and TJ Sawyer managed only one fish.
Saturday’s results were:
William Bruno, Will Bruno- 33, 36
Andy Robinson, Brian Boxx- 33, 35
Rob Willoughby, Marc Blachly- 40 ¼ (Big Fish)
Earle Hammond, Steve Brigman- 40
Jeff Drigens, John Wollschlager- 39
Doug Hutchison, Nathan Hutchison- 33
Gary Pearson, TJ Sawyer- 33 ½
Bill Hill, Brenda Nunn- 34 ½, 35
Jim Wilson, Matt Ginnings- 40
Carl Marks, Bryan Marks- 35, 36 1/8, 32 ¼, 39 ½
John Hanley, Jeff Daniels- 35
Kevin Duffey, John Duffey- 33
Fishing only a half day on Sunday always reduces the number of fish caught and there were only 9 fish reported Sunday morning but it included the biggest fish of the event, a 43 inch muskie. The leaders from Saturday were not able to connect with any fish Sunday morning and consistency paid off with Rob Willoughby and Marc Blachly catching two more fish on Sunday to barely win the event by ½ point.
Sunday’s results were:
Rob Willoughby, Marc Blachly- 34, 43 (Big Fish)
Jeff Drigens, John Wollschlager- 41
Gary Pearson, TJ Sawyer- 34 ½
Shawn Dujakovich, Marty Dujakovich- 40 ½
Jon Kirby, Andrea Kirby- 42, 37
Mark Boone, Kevin Richards- 35
Sat/Sun Final Results
1st Place- Rob Willoughby, Marc Blachly
2nd Place- Carl Marks, Bryan Marks
3rd Place- Jeff Drigens, John Wollschlager
4th Place- Jon Kirby, Andrea Kirby
5th Place- Bill Hill, Brenda Nunn
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