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Leech Lake has provided some spectacular fishing for walleye anglers this season and Gaylord native Dan Stier recently got more than a taste of the good bite.

A 1981 graduate of Gaylord High School, Stier won the four day Walmart FLW Walleye Tour Tournament held on Leech in mid-June. Stier piled up more than 56 pounds of walleyes enroute to collecting a first prize check of $62,000.

Stier and fishing partner Gerud Hetland of Maple Grove won the tournament while weighing 17 out of a possible 20 fish. The duo caught only two fish on the opening day but they totalled more than eleven pounds. They were in 16th place after day one.

After day two, Stier found himself in third place after catching a five-fish limit weighing 18 pounds, 8 ounces. It was the heaviest catch of the day.

Three anglers were then ahead of Stier heading into the final day. Those three failed to catch a fish over 26 inches, and all weigh fewer than ten pounds. Stier meanwhile catches two fish over 26 inches and comes to the scales with nearly 16 pounds. That catch put him on top by two pounds and three ounces.

Stier, who touted using minnows and only minnows, said it was his philosophy heading into the tournament to catch big fish first.

Along with collecting a big paycheck, Stier reportedly saved money on boat gas as he used only a half talk. He fished Walker Bay most of the tournament and said he caught most of his fish within site of the launch. The fish caught ranged in depths of 13 to 38 feet, Stier reported.

This was the second time in less than a year that Stier has landed a big paycheck on a pro walleye fishing tour. He won a Professional Walleye Trail (PWT) tournament last season on the St. Mary’s river near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. That victory vaulted Stier into the top spot in the Walleye Central Rankings.

Stier, a standout athlete at Gaylord High School, has been fishing professionally for approximately 20 years. He makes his home in Clearwater, Minnesota.

Gary Sommers, another GHS graduate, was also part of the FLW Walleye tournament on Leech last month. Sommers is a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Conservation Officer in the Walker area. He made sure all fish brought to the weigh-in met measurement requirements for the tournament.