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| Fishing a few hours from the house, Steve Lopez got it done with his whole family on hand. Photo by Rob Matsuura |
By Jody White
Initiations Press Release
LA CROSSE, Wis. – Heading into the event, Steve Lopez was a firm tournament favorite in the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Championship Presented by Phoenix Boats on the Mississippi River. Sunday, with his third bag over 16 pounds of the event, the Wisconsin pro delivered, winning his first event with MLF and earning $100,000 and REDCREST qualification in the process.
Lopez tallied 16-2 on Day 1, 16-3 on Day 2 and then 16-10 on the final day for a 48-15 total. It was enough to move him up from fourth place, as leaders Banks Shaw and Alex Davis both faltered on the final day. Lopez finished 1-5 clear of Shaw, who finished his stupendous season with yet another top five.
Pool 7 pays out again for Lopez
Back in 2023, Lopez finished runner-up in the Invitationals event on the Mississippi River. He ran a remarkably similar game plan then, mostly plying a wacky rig on eelgrass holes and edges (which was also how Matt Stefan won the event). So, what MLFNOW! viewers saw on Day 3 looked pretty familiar, but it was not the original plan.
“In practice, they were really eating the frog. I found some fish that were really special,” said Lopez. “I was looking at the weather, and I prepared for the tournament and the weather. The water was supposed to drop, and I had a feeling with the wind and the weather I had to figure out something other than that.
“I felt 50 pounds would have a shot to win this tournament,” he added. “I had a plan Day 1 to go out and blast 20 pounds, but after that happened, I thought if I could go out and catch all 3-pounders or 3 1/4-pounders, I could have a shot to win this thing. I know how the river gets on Day 2 – the weights tend to compress – and if you’re consistent on this river, you usually win the tournament.”
While Lopez weighed three frog fish on Day 1, he rapidly and successfully transitioned to eelgrass edges.
“I was fishing eelgrass lines and little pockets in them as my second, third, fifth stuff, and that turned into my primary pattern,” he explained. “I had a good six or seven spots I thought I could rotate through and catch a 3-pounder, or a few of them. It’s just an edge where it drops off, and they can ambush. There’s probably thousands of fish inside that you don’t even touch.”
On Day 3, Lopez waylaid bass on topwater and a wacky rig, with some fish schooling on the grass lines as well. It was the kind of final day beatdown every angler dreams about.
“The wind was crazy on Day 1, and partially on Day 2 as well,” he said. “But it gave me a little letdown on Day 2 – for about 45 minutes it slicked off, and I caught a bunch of fish. Today, when I got through the lock and saw it was flat calm, I had a good feeling.”
On the week, Lopez caught his fish on a wacky-rigged Gambler Ace, a Strike King Sexy Dawg and a Gambler Walking Frog. For the wacky rig, he used a 6-foot, 10-inch, medium-heavy Duckett Black Ice spinning stick. For his walking bait, he stuck with a 7-3, medium-heavy Duckett Jacob Wheeler Series model, and he used a 7-7, heavy Duckett Jacob Wheeler Series stick for the frog.
Finally not a near-miss
In 51 tournaments with MLF, Lopez has banked eight Top-10 finishes, with two of them being runner-up showings, both in big-time events. This winter, he finished second at Okeechobee in a Toyota Series, and then in ’23 he finished second in the Invitationals event here.
So, the Wisconsin pro has had some very close calls. This week, he finally put a bow on a win.
“It’s really special to win it in Wisconsin, to win it here on my favorite body of water to fish,” he said. “I’ve fished this place like 10 times in my life. I’ve got good fishing back home, but I just jive with it. I really enjoy this place, and it’s special to win. I don’t really think it’s sunk in yet at all.”
Top 10 pros
1. Steve Lopez – 48 – 15 (15) – $100,000
2. Banks Shaw – 47 – 10 (15) – $50,000
3. Colby Miller – 46 – 13 (15) – $26,000
4. Jimmy Washam – 45 – 15 (15) – $20,000
5. Chad Mrazek – 44 – 00 (15) – $15,000
6. Andrew Nordbye – 43 – 04 (15) – $14,000
7. Chris Lane – 42 – 10 (15) – $13,000
8. Alex Davis – 41 – 14 (13) – $13,000
9. Jacob Walker – 41 – 06 (15) – $11,750
10. Matt Reed – 31 – 01 (11) – $10,000
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