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WALKER - The FLW Walleye Tour will visit Leech Lake in Walker, Minn., Sept. 22-25 for the 2010 championship event. Hosted by the Northern Lights Casino top-20 anglers from each of the Eastern and Western Divisions will be sporting their talents for a prize worth as much as $40,000 in the Pro Division and $12,000 in the Co-angler Division.

"This tournament is going to be wide open," said Paul Meleen of Isle, Minn., 2010 FLW Walleye Tour Angler of the Year. "I am really excited about this championship because it will give the classic walleye angler an opportunity to really showcase his talents. There will be a lot of strategy to winning this event. Kudos to FLW Outdoors and Sonny Reynolds for choosing this lake for this event.

"Anglers are going to need a combination of presentations to do well; what works in the morning may not work in the afternoon; what works on day one may not work on day two or day three; this is the type of lake where whoever figures that out will separate himself from the pack and be a true champion.

"The fish are going to be in transition, some will be deep, some will be shallow; their forage base is changing and figuring out what phase it is in is just one of the challenges to the tournament. The slot limit is another challenge. Anything between 18 to 26 inches needs to be thrown back and you can only keep two walleyes over 26 inches, so if you get a 26 ¼ incher at 8:15 a.m., do you keep it or throw it back? Leech Lake is the kind of place where you just never know if your next fish is going to be 15 inches or 28 inches."

Anglers will take off from Walker City Park located at the lighthouse on Minnesota Avenue in Walker at 7:30 a.m. each day. Wednesday and Thursday's weigh-ins will also be held at the Walker City Park beginning at 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday's final weigh-ins will be held at the Northern Lights Casino parking lot located south of Walker on State Hwy., 371 beginning at 4 p.m.

Fans will be treated to the FLW Outdoors Family Fun Zone at the Northern Lights Casino on Friday and Saturday from 1 - 4 p.m. prior to the final weigh-ins. Rod and reel combos will be given to the first 100 kids under 14 in attendance on Saturday, which can be redeemed following the final weigh-in. The Family Fun Zone will include the National Guard obstacle course and rock climbing walls, a Ranger boat simulator, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games and giveaways provided by sponsors, and learn more about the sport of fishing. All activities are free and open to the public. For a full schedule of events and additional information, visit FLWOutdoors.com[[In-content Ad]]

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