Mr. Pike Tournament winners Robert Hopp and Tristan Persico from Missoula hold up their three fish weighing 29.23 pounds on Sunday. They were in fourth place with 15.5 pounds on Saturday, June 9. Adding their Sunday weigh of nearly 30 pounds put them in the lead by more than 11 pounds.
Tyler Butler with the largest fish caught during the tournament, a 13.6 pound northern pike caught on Seeley Lake.
Seeley Lake's Mark Larkin with his 12.9 pound pike caught on Sunday. While his fish was the largest caught, because he wasn't present when they presented the awards, the Biggest Fish prize money went to Jake Gustafson and Tom Skoog whose fish was 0.04 pounds lighter.
SEELEY LAKE – Fishermen and women took to Seeley Lake and Salmon Lake to land the biggest and most pike for this year's Mr. Pike Tournament June 9 and 10. This year's entrants drew 40 fishermen from around western Montana. Rookie fishermen Robert Hopp and Tristan Persico from Missoula, Mont. swept the tournament by more than 11 pounds with their six fish over the two-day tournament weighing in at nearly 45 pounds.
Many fishermen reported that it was tough fishing on the first day. The only fish that were aggressive were the small ones. Many said you had to hit the big ones in the head to get them to take anything.
However, Colby Robinson and his fishing partner Benna Kamps from Darby, Mont. had two fish over the 22-inch minimum by 6:30 a.m. fishing Seeley Lake. He said they easily caught more than 20 fish. Their biggest, a 10.9-pound northern pike, was landed just after 9:30 a.m.
Tyler Butler from Missoula, Mont. aced Robinson's 10.9 pounder out for the $200 biggest fish prize for the first day. Tyler who has been fishing in the tournament for the past nine years landed a13.6 pound pike just after 9:30 a.m. on Seeley Lake. He and his father Steven were second on Saturday with 19.7 pounds total.
"It's anybody's tournament," said Tyler's partner Steven Butler looking at the results of the thirteen teams that weighed in Day One, eight of which had more than 10 pounds.
On Sunday, Steven's words were prophetic. The leaderboard flipped as Robinson and Kamps came up empty handed.
Rookies to the tournament Hopp and Persico moved up from fourth to first after bringing in 29.23 pounds on day two. They claimed the first place $465 cash prize.
They both started fishing last summer after Persico wanted to teach his three-year-old son how to catch a fish. They started fishing together, learning as they went and acquiring all the gear to do it.
"It just kind of spiraled," said Hopp.
With their self-proclaimed "crappiest boat in the tournament" they entered the Mr. Pike Tournament, their first tournament ever. When told they pulled in more than a few teams that have traded the top spot in the tournament for several years in a row, Hopp replied with a big smile, "Those days are over."
Tom Skoog and Jake Gustafson from Simms, Mont. came in second with 33.28 pounds, moving up from seventh on day one. They went home with the $325 second place earnings and the Big Fish $195 prize for their 12.86 pounder.
The Butlers tried to stay in second, but were knocked down to third by two pounds still earning them $135 for the tournament.
Organizers DJ Harris and LeeRoy Walz said it was a great tournament and they look forward to seeing everyone next year.
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