Two Montana Anglers Haul in Thousands at Gov Cup Walleye Tourney

The biggest show on Montana waters produced awesome results. And two small-town Montanans reeled in the top cash prize.

The annual Montana Walleye Governor's Cup fishing tournament was held this past Friday and Saturday, July 14-15, on Fort Peck Reservoir. And, as was the case during two previous walleye tourneys on Fort Peck this summer, the big body of water produced some big fish. And it took every ounce to finish in first place, as only a few pounds separated first from fourth. It also required triple-digit weights to come out on top.

In a brilliant show of consistency, the two-person team of Brem Phipps and Clyde Phipps from Jordan, Montana, captured the 2023 Governor's Cup, with a two-day weight of 104.32 pounds. That's an average weight of 10.43 pounds per walleye. The Phipps' 5-fish weight total on Day One was 52.22 pounds, and 52.10 pounds on Day Two.

To add to the excitement of finishing first, Brem and Clyde narrowly defeated the second place finishers, Joshua Johnson and Cody Roland, both from North Dakota, who brought in 103.78 pounds.

One other team in the 200-team field broke 100 pounds in the hotly contested race. Cody Martinex of Winnett, Montana, and his partner Max Wilson from Wisconsin, brought in 101.5 pounds.

First place cash for the Phipps team will exceed $18,000! Montana's Governor Greg Gianforte, an avid hunter and angler, is a major ambassador for this tournament and also competes. The governor did not have too bad of a tourney. He and his teammate Matt Smith of Shepherd, Montana, finished in 58th place with a two-day weight of 34.35 pounds.

Congratulations to all the top finishers. You can see the complete list of results here.