Tobin Lake (Ben Tompkins/northeastNOW)

By Ben Tompkins

Saskatchewan Premier's Walleye Cup

Changes made to Walleye Cup to encourage novice anglers

Jun 19, 2024 | 12:15 PM

The Saskatchewan Premier’s Walleye Cup (SPWC) will be a little different this year, as changes have been made to the tournament’s format to encourage novice anglers.

The longest-running walleye fishing tournament in Saskatchewan will now have a separate tournament with its own separate prize payout to make it more enticing for youth and families.

According to a release from the tournament’s committee, “over the last decade, it has become increasingly intimidating for novice anglers to compete in fishing tournaments, as serious tournament anglers have glitzy boats and sophisticated electronics that can cost more than $100,000.”

It also stated that “these competitive tournament teams expect large prize payouts which has caused entry fees to skyrocket. As a result, tournaments are seeing fewer entries from novice, youth, family and local teams, which is putting the future of tournament fishing in jeopardy.”

Now, the tournament will have a major league category which has a $1,200 entry fee with a total prize package of $92,000, based on a minimum of 100 teams entered.

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There will also be a minor league category, with an entry fee of $500 and a total prize package valued at $20,000, based on a minimum of 60 teams entered.

The SPWC, which takes place on August 9 and 10 at the Nipawin Regional Park, is hoping to reverse the trend and encourage a new generation of anglers and weekend warriors to compete, by creating a fun affordable tournament option with its own separate prize payout.

“In recent years, we’ve seen a noticeable drop off in entries from novice, youth, family and local teams. We want to encourage previous teams to come back and reach a new field of anglers to try tournament fishing, so we’ve created a new dual tournament format that allows everyone to have fun and compete for great prizes,” said Landon Larsen, chair of the SPWC’s planning committee.

“We’re really excited about the new format. We want to make sure that our tournament returns to its roots and encourages locals and families to participate again while continuing to offer the top-notch tournament experience our competitive anglers have come to expect over the past 36 years.”

The SPWC started in 1988, as a ‘family-friendly community fishing tournament focused on raising money for local projects and encouraging tourism to Nipawin and Tobin Lake area.’

All teams will consist of two anglers, with additional prizes awarded for a youth and mixed team category.

Prior to the new format this year, SPWC offered a lower entry fee option, however, it still meant that you competed against all the teams in the tournament, with just your potential winning prize payout being reduced.

“It’s gotten really expensive for someone who doesn’t live and breathe fishing. We just wanted to see parents and kids fishing together again because it is a lot of fun to fish in a competitive environment, so we’re just trying to reaccess that… take a kid fishing because it’s a great sport and a great pastime,” Larsen told northeastNOW.

“I fished in it for about 15 years and when I came back as part of the board, I realized there were a lot of familiar names that weren’t on there anymore. When you talked to people, they didn’t want to fish against people who were going to 10 tournaments a year. If we can get the kids involved, we’re going to be able to enjoy tournaments like this for years to come.”

In the new format, you only compete against those in your category and each category has a distinct separate prize package.

For bragging rights, the overall tournament champion and Big Fish prizes are shared between both categories, with the team with the most weight in the overall tournament being crowned as the 2024 Saskatchewan Premier’s Walleye Cup Champion.

An invitation has been sent to the premier’s office, however, there has yet to be any confirmation letter sent back.

According to Larsen, it’s always nice to have the premier there, as it’s cool to see somebody out participating who is in a higher position in the province.

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