March 28, 2024

Union County fishing tournaments reel in regional Midwest clubs

Union County has 88 fishing tournaments slated for May until November, said Green Valley State Park ranger Jason Hyde.

“Every single weekend we have one tournament, except for one weekend off a month from fishing tournaments, and those are typically holiday weekends,” Hyde said.

Green Valley State Park has already had two fishing tournaments in April — a catfish tournament with 90 participants and a largemouth bass tournament with 20 participants. Hyde added that there is a free fishing weekend on Jun. 5 and 6 where Iowa residents can fish without a license.

These fishing tournaments attract fishermen from Iowa’s neighboring states, not just Creston locals or competitors from surrounding counties.

“Some come from Nebraska, some come from Missouri, so the majority of them do come from Iowa, but they come from all over the Midwest.” Hyde said, “We have a Midwest Bass Masters club that come here and they’re from all over.”

Hyde said Green Valley State Park is scheduled to have 32 fishing tournaments and Three Mile and Twelve Mile Lakes have 28 fishing tournaments scheduled, which could increase. The final fishing tournament will be Nov. 21.

The fishing clubs from Nebraska and Missouri that compete in Union County are anything but amateurs.

“These are serious fishermen,” Hyde said. “A lot of them do get sponsorships, they have very nice boats, very nice equipment to fish and they’re very successful when they come here to these lakes.”

The Weekend Warriors Bass Tournament, hosted by Nick Sipker, is one competition that attracts regional talent. Nebraska fishing club Sarpy County Bass Masters are among frequent competitors in Union County tournaments. The Three Mile Lake attracts the Central States Kayak Series, which typically has 40 kayaks fishing.

The majority of the tournaments focus primarily on fishermen catching largemouth bass at 2 p.m. when the fish are less active. There are other competitions, like the Barney Memorial Catfish Tournament on May 8 and 9 and two other catfish tournaments. Barney Memorial attracts 60 participants annually.

Hyde said the competitions not only vary in game but also in genre.

“Some of the tournaments will have paper tournaments, which means they catch the fish, write it down with the weight and they don’t put the fish in the live well and the other ones bring in typically three to fish depending on their tournament rules for their bag,” he said.

Hyde stressed how much these fishing tournaments juice the economy of Union County.

“The amount of boats that come in do make an impact on the community,” he said. “They stay in the hotels, they eat out here, they fuel up here as well.”