With another Champions Tour season upon us, as of now, we have a total of 15 rookies that will be making their first casts on the Champions Tour in 2022.
Here is a look at our next group of Champions Tour rookies.
Ron Mehr
Paynesville, MN
Ron has seen his fair share of success via the Minnesota Bass Nation and Minnesota TBF circuits. In 2020, Ron was runner-up at the Minnesota Bass Nation State Tournament and was the TBF State Champion. Following those events, Ron was the TBF National Semi-Finals Champion in 2020 and then was runner-up at the TBF National Championship in 2021.
“I’m excited to fish this format for the first time! The guys running the Champions Tour are top-notch and put together a great tournament. I have loved watching the Champions Tour events over the past years, but my schedule had not allowed me to compete previously. I was happy when this year did and look forward to giving it a go! It’s the only tournament series in the state that you can win a boat, so that’s pretty cool!”
Jason Merschdorf
Baldwin, WI
“Growing up, I loved bass fishing. I went every chance I had and was fortunate enough to have a family cabin on a pretty good bass lake. My grandpa got me a paddleboat with a Minn Kota on the back, so I could go fishing when he was too busy to go. From the age of 6-12, I put many hours on that paddleboat and caught a ton of fish! My dad and my grandfather kept me glued to fishing my whole childhood, and it’s stuck with me. I eventually fell into the walleye fishing and guided on Upper Red Lake for walleyes for three seasons. As time flew by, I realized I missed bass fishing, ran out and bought a bass boat and started tournament fishing, and here we are chasing the dream.”
Tim Olsby
Oak Grove, MN
Tim an accomplished angler from Minnesota has competed across the Midwest and had numerous top-five and ten finishes is ready for the 2022 Champions Tour.
“I love to compete and am looking forward to the challenge of competing against all of the amazing anglers on the Champions Tour,” said Tim. “This coupled with the great comradery that the anglers and staff have with each other, this year is going to be a blast!”
Ted Stardig
Baxter, MN
Stardig has enjoyed competing across the various team and individual circuits over the years, including the Silverado Pro-Am, BFL’s, and the UMBCS Tour.
“I’m looking forward to being an “old” rookie on Tour this season and being able to reunite with old friends, along with competing against the highest level of anglers in the Midwest.”
