John Dalzot Jr. and Gary Dalzot  of Spring Valley, IL., topped a field of 225 teams, winning the Wildlife Forever - Masters Walleye Circuit (MWC) 2000 opener.

Beginning the MWC's 16th year, the MotorGuide/Abu Garcia Team Walleye Tournament took place March 25-26 on the Illinois River in Spring Valley, IL. hosted by over 200 volunteers from the Spring Valley Walleye Club. The tournament is the state's largest pro-fishing event.

John and Gary Dolzat collected $16,000 for the win, plus a Panther Marine Products gift certificate valued at $530 for the duo's overall tournament total 2-day basket of 33.90 lbs. The winning MWC team weighed an allowable 10 fish limit averaging 3.39 total pounds per fish.

The winners fished at the narrows, right above the clam bed in the main channel. They used Berkley Fireline 2 16-pound test both days of the tournament. The first day the duo used three-ways with a one-ounce jig on the bottom and a floater on the back of the three-way.

"We started the second day the same way we started the first morning of fishing, but we switched in the afternoon to vertical jigging" said Dalzot Jr.

"We began using 5/16-ounce jigs using minnows," added Gary Dalzot. "We tried to use the biggest minnows we could find in the bucket."

Second place honors went to the team of Scott Carlson of Hastings, MN. and Ralph Diercks of Red Wing, MN. Both will share a check of $7,500 and have qualified for the 2000 Wal*Mart World Walleye Championship in May. In addition to the prize money, the pair also took home $1,465 in cash and a pair of Abu Garcia Center Drag CD6 reels for placing second in the Big Fish Pot on Saturday with a weight of 4.45 lbs. 

The top 35 teams shared a $58,500 cash purse. A total of $67,100 in cash payoffs were awarded, as well as $4,000 in retail prizes. Despite high winds, 693 fish were weighed on Saturday and 675 on Sunday for an overall weight of 3,349.15 total fish weight, a 2.44 lb. average for the tournament.

The Illinois DNR was again on site to assist at the Spring Valley weigh-in. The fish were collected at the weigh in site in aerated tanks, and then transported to the LaSalle hatchery to strip the eggs and milt to use for restocking purposes. Wildlife Forever-MWC anglers contributed $2,250 to the Spring Valley Walleye Club for conservation work with the stocking project.

The second stop on the 2000 Wildlife Forever - Masters Walleye Circuit is the World Walleye Championship, May 3-6, on the Mississippi River at the Treasure Island Resort & Casino in Red Wing, MN. For information about attending this event which features the top 100 anglers who competed in the 1999 Masters Walleye Circuit, contact Carol Nelson the MWC Coordinator for Wildlife Forever.

The MWC is a nonprofit corporation that conducts a series of professionally run fishing tournaments stressing family participation and conservation of fishery resources. All MWC tournaments are catch and release. MWC sponsors are Abu Garcia, Berkley Trilene, Lindy Little Joe, Mercury, MotorGuide, North American Fishing Club/North American Fisherman, and Ranger Boats.

Supporting sponsors are Big Jon, Inc., Panther Marine Products and Walleye Central (the official website of the Masters Walleye Circuit: www.walleyecentral.com).