TENNESSEE, USA — This is no fish tale, anglers on South Holston Lake have the chance to hook $100,000 this weekend. That's if they can reel in a fish known as Ol Walter 2.0.
"It's amazing to have the opportunity to go out there and catch the fish of a lifetime," says Chad Ball, a fisherman from Damascus.
Ol Walter 2.0 is a small mouth bass, but the smally is worth a big prize.
Steve Applegate a fisherman from Bristol said, "I could use the $100,000."
You saw that right, 100 grand, and yes there's a catch to this story, it's Ol Walter 2.0.
The contest is designed to get more people to drop a line and give fishing a try.
"Just anything that you can do to get people interested in the outdoors, and away from all the technology, it's a win, win," says Rex Pendergrass, Manager at Watson's Marine & Tackle.
Watson's Marine is the business putting the prize up for grabs. Ol Walter 2.0 is named after the first prize fish from a similar contest held back during the 1980s.
Pendergrass says, "Ol Walter 2.0 is not part of any scheme. He's a live fish that will be released in South Holston Lake."
The question many have, how do you know if you've got Walter on the line? Pendergrass says that Walter will have something very distinguished on him.
"Ol Walter will have a tag, and that tag will actually say Walter on it and it will have a series of coded numbers," said Pendergrass
Saturday is expected to be a very busy day on South Holston Lake, with thousands of anglers trying to catch Ol Walter 2.0, plus people out just enjoying their day on the lake.
Matt Cameron with the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) says, "it's going to be really congested out there."
Saturday is a free fishing day in Tennessee, which means anyone can fish without a license.
Cameron says, "We just want people to go home safe at the end of the day, that's our number one priority."
With safety as the number one priority, number two is catching Walter.
"You could just be fishing from the side, anybody could win it," says Applegate.
Contest Rules
- You must catch Ol Walter 2.0 with a rod and reel.
- He must be kept alive after being caught.
- You only have Saturday and Sunday to catch Walter, to win the money.
- If you catch Walter call 423-430-2194
- Observe all fishing laws for both Tennessee and Virginia
