Midwest Walleye Challenge

A new fishing tournament will help support walleye management across Nebraska. Anglers who participate in the challenge will be providing data to Nebraska fisheries biologists who will use the information to learn more about the status of walleye fisheries. In the process, Nebraska anglers can see how Husker walleye fisheries compare to others in the Midwest.

How it works

The contest will run March 30 to June 30. Anglers record their walleye catches — or lack thereof — in the mobile app MyCatch to record the length of each walleye caught.

• Anglers will have to photograph fish on a measuring device using the app. 
• Once the fish is reviewed by the catch team and meets rule requirements, it will appear on a live leaderboard.
• Weekly and grand prizes will be drawn.

Win prizes

More than $12,000 in prizes will be awarded throughout the competition. Anglers can be part of the free prize pool for noncash prizes or pay $25 to compete for cash and noncash prizes. The prize structure is designed to encourage reporting any walleye catch (or lack thereof) so fisheries data collected is representative.

Prizes will be for:

• anglers who do not catch any walleyes. This “tough luck” prize is important for data collection because it allows biologists to know the “zeroes” or times when no fish are caught.
• the longest walleye caught.
• most waterbodies fished.
• random draws (anyone who catches a walleye will be eligible).

About the tournament

The Midwest Walleye Challenge was piloted in other states, with efforts scaling up across the Midwest in 2024.

Data privacy and protection is an important part of the event. Secret spots will stay secret, and all data provided to biologists will remain anonymous.

For further details, contact Sean Simmons at sean@anglersatlas.com or visit Angler’s Atlas.