In true H2H fashion, every moment this week was unpredictable!

From cold weather and muddy water to fast and furious hooksets, the 2022 H2H Walleye Opener II, presented by The Reel Shot, gave it all to us! Today, Championship Friday, opened up with some optimism as Thursday’s muddy waters seemed to clear out a little bit.

Our first sign that today was exciting happened shortly after lines-in when the Nuechterlein & Miller team connected with an absolute giant 8lb-10oz fish! This crucial fish put the pressure on early for Nuechterlein & Miller’s competitors, the Mans and Hobbs team. As the morning went on, Mans and Hobbs caught a legal fish weighing 2lbs-15oz. After that catch, Mans and Hobbs had no problem catching walleye after walleye, unfortunately, they were all under 2lbs and did not count toward their weight.

Because of how the Fox River sets up this time of year, Nuechterlein & Miller fished within an earshot of Mans and Hobbs. Team Nuechterlein & Miller watched fish after fish get netted by their opponents. Staying calm, the Nuechterlein & Miller Team connected for the second time with a legal fish to put their weight at 15lbs-7oz. That was enough to keep Mans and Hobbs in the rearview mirror the rest of the day and solidify themselves as our first-ever Team Champions, Nuechterlein & Miller! No stranger to H2H, Nuechterlein is now a two-time champion in H2H events, both won on the Fox River!

The strategy of Nuechterlein & Miller unfolded in front of everyone’s eyes. We got to see how these pros located fish and worked them. With tough conditions, the tenacity of Nuechterlein & Miller was evident where they often fished a group of fish for a long time as to where other teams may have moved on. Nuechterlein & Miller fished the majority of their week with blade baits, which featured strong vibrations and bright colors. Congratulations Nuechterlein & Miller on your 2022 H2H Championship!

The rest of our very talented field was fishing in our Battle for 3rd- Pool Play bracket. Our Pool Play consisted of 6 teams with accumulating weights from Wednesday-Friday. Team Westphal and Casey took home the 3rd place victory with a total of 57lbs-3oz of fish caught, which is a number that includes a day where they zeroed! Westphal and Casey also had the best day of any team on the water this week with over 40 lbs of legal walleyes being caught! Our other Pool Play finishes can be viewed on the WEIGHLIVE portion of the H2H Website. For more H2H info find us on Youtube and Facebook!