Mike Gofron of Antioch, Ill., is one of the top PWT (Professional Walleye Trail) pros with victories during the regular season and a Championship under his belt. He is one of the top guns in pro walleye fishing and is no slouch when it comes to being a bass assassin.

When the ESPN Great Outdoor Games kick-off this July on the Madison Chain of Lakes, look for Gofron to add his skills to the mix with legendary bass pro Denny Brauer.

	Mike Gofron

"I found out about this event in early spring this year when Jim Kalkofen from the PWT was scouting the Chain of Lakes near my home in Illinois," said Gofron. "I think this event is a huge deal being highlighted on ESPN. I am looking forward to showing my bass fishing skills as well as catching some walleyes."

Gofron has a reputation for being very analytical and sweating the small stuff.

"I feel that my ability to pay attention to small details and the ability to keep focused during a tough bite has really helped me achieve so many top-10 finishes," said Gofron. "With that said, if the bass bite is in the shallow and it is a power fishing bite, Oh Yeah! You better believe I am capable of fishing those conditions."

A team format takes a different approach than a pro-am format.

"I will have an advantage over some of the other walleye anglers when it comes to the team format," said Gofron. "When I was coming up in the walleye fishing ranks I fished the MWC (Masters Walleye Circuit) tournaments. They are a team series that most of the pros fish before they make the leap to the pro-am format. I am very comfortable working with another angler in the boat to decide what approach we will take for a victory."

Rippin' for bass

"When the PWT held its Championship on the Madison Chain a few years ago I found that the bass and walleyes often used the same areas," said Gofron. "I was using a technique called rip jigging. You basically are either casting or vertically jigging with a Berkley Power Minnow on a jighead. The difference here is that you pop it or rip it hard with quick snaps with the rod tip. This method really caught the walleyes and it also caught some big bass. I hooked a few bass that weighed up to five pounds with the rip jigging technique."

The consensus of many of the walleye pros fishing this event is that if the teams can find areas where both bass and walleyes co-exist they will be able to get their fish in the boat and have an easier time than the other teams.

According to Gofron, the average weight per fish for the winning limits is about the same whether they are bass or walleye.

"This is a great system with lots of fishing opportunities," said Gofron. "I feel that the team I am fishing with will need to average 3 1/2 to 4 pounds per fish, bass and walleye, to win. There are quality fish here and the weights will need to be pretty good to win."