Loper, Carruth win Washington walleye title

When Ken Loper and John Carruth found a sweet spot on Lake Roosevelt, they cruised to victory at the Washington State Walleye Championship last weekend.

Loper, of Post Falls, and Carruth, of Davenport, Wash., teamed up to win the event near Kettle Falls, Wash., with a two-day total of 34 pounds.

The duo traveled about 40 miles south of Kettle Falls in the Seven Bays area of the lake during the tourney and it was worth the gas money.

The team had 19.72 pounds on Saturday and 14.28 pounds on Sunday.

Second place went to Seth Gerber and Branden Burgess of Moses Lake who had a two-day total of 27.7 pounds.

There were 43 teams.

Loper and Carruth cast jigs to catch their limits of fish. While the state limit is 16 walleyes per day on the lake, tournament rules only allow six fish per team per day.

"Quit pulling spinners and plugs and throw jigs," said Carruth when asked about the key to his success.

Carruth is known on the Washington walleye circuit for being a jig fisherman who normally doesn't try other methods. He now has won all five tournaments on the circuit at least once.

The event was hosted by the Spokane Walleye Club.

New to the tournament this year was the Corporate Challenge in which businesses can sponsor a team.

The winning sponsor receives a traveling Corporate Challenge trophy. This year's winner was Duns N Roses LLC from Post Falls, which sponsored Carruth and Loper.

Mark's Marine in Hayden was a major sponsor of the tournament.