Defending champ John Hoyer leads NWT Championship on Devils Lake
Sep. 7—DEVILS LAKE — And then there were 10. ...
Walleye pro John Hoyer won the last Bass Pro Shops/Cabela's National Walleye Tour Championship on Devils Lake in 2019, and he's back in the lead after Thursday, Sept. 7, the second day of this year's championship.
Hoyer, of Wayzata, Minnesota, weighed in five walleyes for 39 pounds, 12 ounces — nearly an 8-pound average — to take the lead in the 2023 NWT Championship on Devils Lake. Coupled with his first-day weight of 30 pounds, 6 ounces, Hoyer enters the third and final day of the championship with 70 pounds, 2 ounces and a lead of nearly 4 pounds.
Isaac Lakich of Richfield, Wisconsin, is in second place with a two-day weight of 66 pounds, 10 ounces.
A total of 41 pros and 41 amateur co-anglers qualified for the NWT championship. The field is now winnowed down to the top 10 in each category for Friday's third and final day of the tournament.
Grahams Island State Park is tournament headquarters.
As of 5 p.m. Thursday, the remaining eight pros in the Top 10 and their two-day weights were as follows:
* Third: Dustin Minke, Walker, Minnesota, 61-09 pounds.
* Fourth: Matt Schiefelbein, Sobieski, Wisconsin, 56 pounds.
* Fifth: Josh Wiesner, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, 51-15.
* Sixth: Will Pappenfuss, Shevlin, Minnesota, 50-15.
* Seventh: Max Wilson, Campbellsport, Wisconsin, 49-06.
* Eighth: Mike Defibaugh, Bellefontaine, Ohio, 47-05.
* Ninth: Eric McQuoid, Kewaunee, Wisconsin, 46-09.
* 10th: Korey Sprengel, Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, 45-11.
Top 10 in the co-angler division as of 5 p.m. Thursday and their two-day weights were the following anglers:
* First: Trinity Schaff, Fargo, 54-15.
* Second: Rich Weiss, North Platte, Nebraska, 53-06.
* Third: Paul Stokes, Stockbridge, Michigan, 52-11.
* Fourth: Jonathan Cieslak, Hartland, Wisconsin, 51-06.
* Fifth: Dillon Gorman, Baraboo, Wisconsin, 51-05.
* Sixth: Paul Selle, Lexington, South Carolina, 49-07.
* Seventh: Jeremy Bengtson, River Falls, Wisconsin, 47-07.
* Eighth: Kolton Krawiecki, Pillager, Minnesota, 46-04.
* Ninth: Thomas Blanchard, Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, 45-11.
* 10th: Eric Wesolowski, Pulaski, Wisconsin, 45-03.
Weigh-ins for Friday's final day will begin at 3 p.m. at Grahams Island State Park. The winning pro will pocket $30,000 and receive a $70,000 Nitro walleye boat with a 225-horse Mercury outboard on the back.
* On the web:
For more information and updates, check out the NWT website at
