Join the Midwest Walleye Challenge!
The spring/summer results are in! The largest Walleye caught in the Illinois Walleye Challenge was 28.5 inches. Congratulations to all the winners! Plans for the 2025 Illinois Walleye Challenge are in the works, but anglers don't have to wait until 2025 to participate. There is another opportunity to participate in a second competition in the Fall 2025 that will last from September 28 – October 31.
Walleye, sauger and saugeye, also known by their scientific genus Sander, are a popular sportfish among many anglers in Illinois. The IDNR Division of Fisheries invests a great deal of time and resources into the culture, stocking, and management of Sander species. From the graphic below, you can see the sites stocked in Illinois. The Division of Fisheries Hatchery System cultured and stocked 149 million fry or fingerlings of Sander species (71 percent sauger, 24 percent walleye and 5 percent saugeye) in more than 90 Illinois lakes and rivers for anglers to pursue over the last decade (2014–2023).
See our stocking page for more detailed information on specific waterbodies, dates, and species stocked by the Division of Fisheries Hatchery System. For more information about what the Division of Fisheries can learn from anglers who participate in this Challenge, please read this informative article.
Get ready for some fun competition with the Midwest Walleye Challenge!
Illinois anglers who chase walleye, sauger or saugeye are invited to participate in the virtual Midwest Walleye Challenge in 2024!
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has teamed up with other states, provinces, and developers and researchers at Anglers Atlas to launch this year's competition this past spring with an upcoming fall oppotunity September 28, 2024 and continuing through October 31, 2024.
The Midwest Walleye Challenge uses the mobile app MyCatch to record the length of each fish caught. Anglers take a picture of the fish on a measuring device using the app, and once the fish is reviewed by the catch team and meets the rules, it appears on a live leaderboard where anglers can see who is in the lead.
It's a win-win: Anglers get to have a fun competition and the information gathered through the competition will assist Illinois in providing anglers with important data and add to biologists' knowledge of various waterbodies.
All ages are invited to participate. Review the rules and event information here! You can also scan the QR code below to be taken to the event site. Download the app and get ready for that March 30th start date!
