2001 PWT St. Mary's River Day 3 Press Release
July 18 - 20

Michigan Walleye Pro Takes PWT Honors in New York Tournament

Dunkirk, New York....Winning his first major walleye tournament and $50,000 was pro George Barach, Barryton, MI. He scored the Storm Heavyweight catch of the Aug. 8-10 Pinnacle/RealTree Eastern Pro-Am on the final day to cap the victory.

Weighing a 5-fish In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail (PWT) limit every day, the only pro to accomplish this task, Barach had 38.75 pounds Friday, and a total of 89.26 pounds. He won a 20-foot Lund boat, 200-horsepower Mercury and Eagle trailer plus $19,000. The Storm award paid $475 and for presenting the most releasable fish to the scales, he won $500 from T-H Marine.

Barach also finished in first place in the three Dee Zee Eastern Division tournaments, and won a Yamaha ATV. He also qualified for the exclusive PWT Championship next month. His tactics centered around black Dipsey Divers to take lines to the side and hand-tied double spinner rigs. The spinners were copper with prism tape and purple and pink beads, made delicious with a night crawler on a set of number two hooks. He concentrated on the 45 to 60 foot depths about 13 miles from Dunkirk.

Day one and two leader Bill Ortiz, Dodgeville, WI, placed second with 83.49 pounds to win $14,500. Gary Gray, Oshkosh, WI won $9,500 for third with 75.04 pounds. Gray was also awarded his first In-Fisherman Angler of the Year honors, one of the toughest achievements in the world of competitive walleye fishing. The award was worth $10,000 cash plus a Mercury OptiMax V-6 outboard. Like 85 percent of the pros, he has run a Mercury outboard all year (in fact, all his life).

Barach’s final day amateur partner (the PWT is a pro-am format, with both anglers receiving the boat-weight) Greg Seese, Bryceton Mills, West Virginia, won a Lund/Mercury 17-foot boat package valued at $12,500. He also won the Storm Heavyweight amateur award of $300.

The special Coleman Cool Under Pressure award for advancing the most places during the course of the event went to pros Tony Puccio, Madison, WI, and James McGowan, Niles, Ohio, for advancing 60 places each. They each won $475. Alain Belanger, Ft. Erie, Ontario, won the $600 Coleman amateur award for advancing 91 places.

Third day Bass Pro Big Fish awards went to pro Rick Olson, for a 10.71 pound walleye. He won $1,700. Second went to pro Larry Smith, Berlin, WI. He weighed a 10.10-pounder and won $1,050. He also was the highest placing rookie, winning the RayMarine Rookie of the Year $3,000 award. The third place walleye paid $900 to amateur Scott Herbolsheimer, Tekmah, NE for a 9.91 pound fish. A 9.81 pound walleye was worth $750 to pro Tom Slawatycki, Senaka, NY.

Special awards were presented to Dunkirk Mayor Robert Kesicki for hosting the PWT and all the kindness shown the contestants by area walleye fans and businesses. PWT “Key Awards” were bestowed on Don Ryan, owner of Chadwick Bay Marina, and Craig Robbins, Chautauqua County Convention and Visitors Bureau, for their dedication and service with the local organizing committee.

The Lake Erie tournament was the easternmost of any PWT event, and set the stage for the Sept. 13-15 Championship. The number one boat will be that of Gray, followed by one of the most elite corps of walleye anglers. They will fish the Missouri River near Bismarck, North Dakota, with daily weigh-in festivities inside the Civic Center. The winner will collect $100,000. The field includes seven Championship winners, seven fishing their first Championship and three rookies who qualified their first season on tour. They will be joined by Mercury Top Amateur Rich Sidor, Clarendon Hills, IL. He scored the best of all amateurs fishing the Dee Zee divisions, to win $4,000 and a chance to compete with the pros. He has fished seven years as an amateur.

The PWT is part of PRIMEDIA, Inc., America’s leading producer of targeted media headquartered in New York City. PWT sponsors include: Aqua Vu, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley PowerBait, Berkley Trilene, Blue Fox Tackle, Carhartt, Coleman, Cotton Cordell, Daiichi hooks, Dee Zee, Dodge truck, Eagle Claw, Eagle Trailers, Evercel, Flambeau, Guest chargers, IMCO Boat Buckles Lindy Little Joe, Lowrance Electronics, Lund Boats, Mack’s Lure, Marinco, Mercury Outboards, MinnKota, Rapala Lures, Northland Tackle, Oceanwave sunglasses, Pinnacle rods and reels, Plano, RAM, Raytheon Marine, Real Tree, Shimano rods, Storm Lures, T-H Marine, Yamaha all terrain vehicles, Chautauqua County Convention and Visitors Bureau, 716-357-4569 and the City of Dunkirk, 716-366-9858, with support from the Southtowns Walleye Association and the Northern Chautauqua County Conservation Club.