Anglers ready to compete in 23rd annual Governor’s Cup Walleye Tournament this weekend on Lake Roosevelt
The Governor’s Cup Walleye Tournament on Lake Roosevelt was held in July when it debuted 23 years ago. “It was moved it to June to avoid the hot weather,” laughed George Allen, noting the forecast of temperatures above 100 degrees for this weekend’s event.
“I’ll have ice in the cooler, the live well and in my underwear,” he said, the veteran of all but one of the annual tournaments.
The Governor’s Cup, based out of Kettle Falls, is one of six events in regional walleye tournament circuit in which anglers qualify for the season-ending championship Aug. 8-9 in the Columbia River near the Tri-Cities.
“The heat we face this weekend is just a warm up for the Tri-Cities in August,” Allen said.
But the Governor’s Cup is Washington’s oldest walleye tournament. No actual governor has taken up the offer to fish for free in the tournament over the years, but the welcome mat is always out, organizers say.
“I can’t say enough about the Lake Roosevelt Walleye Club that puts it on,” said Ron Charlton, a local angler who won the tournament in 2007. “Any money they make goes right back into fish habitat or getting kids out fishing.”
The tournament has had its ups and downs depending on weather and water levels of the long lake behind Grand Coulee Dam. “A few years ago the water was still drawn down so low we had to move the fish weigh-in off way down on the sand along the water,” Allen said.
The tournament goal is to release all of the fish alive. Teams are allowed to weigh up to six fish each day in the two-day event.
“Even in the worst years, we’ve never been close to 10 percent mortality,” Allen said.
Some years have been blistering hot while others were brutally cold and windy, yet the event has reeled in 60-100 or so two-angler teams year after year for cash prizes and bragging rights.
Charlton, who has entered 18 Governor’s Cup events, was on the water fishing when contacted for an interview Wednesday morning.
“I think right now the fish have come off the spawn and are actively feeding,” he said. “They’re in the transition to summer areas and they’re kind of moving around. We have a saying for the Governor’s Cup: Just keep the boat full of gas. You can’t be married to a fishing hole.”
Water managers are gradually raising the level of Lake Roosevelt this week, which causes more feed to keep washing into the water. “That’s good for fishing,” Charlton said. “It makes the fish more aggressive and more likely to be on a shallow bite.”
With a 6 a.m. blast off, the anglers will have a morning of decent weather before the heat bears down. “It could be miserable from 1 to 3 on Saturday, especially if there’s no breeze,” he said.
Most competitors will troll spinner worm-harness rigs to find fish this weekend, but all sorts of techniques will be applied, he said. “They’ll troll or cast crankbaits and jig, too,” he said, noting that good anglers are always open to changing techniques depending on conditions.
“The year we won the tournament was rough weather and a really tough bite,” Charlton said. “My partner and I ended up with a total of 24 pounds of fish in two days. Most years that might just barely place in the top 10. But that year a front moved in and the fish turned off.”
He said their winning technique was to find fish and then stay in one spot working them for virtually all of both days waiting until the fish decided to bite.
“I’m not a patient fisherman, but patience is what won that tournament,” he said.
Local anglers have an advantage in knowing the water for the tournament, but the Kettle Falls area of Lake Roosevelt is no secret.
“A lot of out-of-area anglers come up here regularly because so many techniques catch fish,” Charlton said. “And the Spokane fishermen consider this their home water.”
If Wednesday was any indication, fishing should be good this weekend.
“We’ve caught seven so far this morning even though we’re trying to key on big ones,” he said on his mobile phone.
“Oops, there’s one!”
Interview over.