Day One of the 2026 South Dakota Governor’s Cup is in the books, and after one day of fishing it’s once again Beau Schilling and Ben Beadle sitting on top the leaderboard with 33.27 pounds, which sets a new single day record for a six-fish bag in the Governor’s Cup.
Day One Offers Ideal Lake Oahe Fishing Conditions
Day One offered ideal conditions on Lake Oahe, and overcast and wind kept forecasted hot temperatures at bay for the anglers. This combination of overcast and breeze also set up for ideal fishing conditions, and in turn some excellent weights came in across the scale!
Take off began at 7 a.m. into partly cloudy skies with a steady east breeze. The wind went up and down throughout the day, which both turned on and turned off bite windows. Fortunately, while the wind was enough to turn fish on, it wasn’t too much to prevent anglers from running to their ideal spots and fishing how they wish.
For many of these anglers, that resulted in a big run north. Following take-off, there was a steady stream of boats heading north toward the Cheyenne River, all the way to the Bushes Landing boundary for some.
This northern trend was anticipated, with the best bite being reported in the Cheyenne River to Bushes Landing area. However, anglers scattered out across the massive reservoir and many of them were able to produce excellent bags!
Livescoping was the most common option for many teams, and the conditions set up well for anglers to implement this technique. Trolling crankbaits and bottom bouncing also produced fish as well.
Schilling and Beadle Bring Yet Another Historic Performance
Last year’s champions, Beau Schilling and Ben Beadle, once again brought a massive bag across the scales. With a big fish of 12.28, and a second big fish with it, they brought a total of 33.27 pounds. This surpassed their massive 31 pound bag on Day One in 2025, surpassing an all-time six fish bag.
“I got pretty lucky today, usually you got to cast at 500 to get one bite and we stumbled into an area with three of them and two of them bit real well,” said Beau Schilling.
The second place team from the historic 2025 event, Samantha and Chad Schilling, brought in 17.69 pounds.
Four-time champions, Tyson Keller and Duane Hjelm, brought 22.77 pounds. While they were content with their day, they gave credit to the impressive streak Schilling and Beadle are on.
“It’s gonna be tough to catch Beau,” said Keller. “That young man is putting on a clinic.”
What Schilling and Beadle have brought to the scales serves as extra motivation, even for a National Walleye Tour champion.
“Honestly we’re pretty happy with how the day went, it’s been tough all week, and you see a lot of 15 pound bags,” said Hjelm. “Seeing what Beau did today gives you extra motivation that there are a lot of 10 and 12 pounders swimming around out there.”
Nebraska anglers Brett Vinzant and Bill Kunze brought a 27.81 pound bag, with two high quality walleyes.
Overall, there was a strong number of bags between 14-17 pounds. This is both an indicator of the quality of fish in the system, and also highlights a number of anglers in the pack within striking distance to make big jumps aboard the leaderboard.
To put the number of bags within this range into context, the first 17-pound bag of 17.99 sits in 22nd place. The last 15-pound bag, which is 15.02 sits in 93rd place.
Day One Top 7:
- 1st Place: Beau Schilling and Ben Beadle – 33.21 pounds
- 2nd Place: Brett Vinzant and Bill Kunze – 27.81 pounds
- 3rd Place: Tyson Keller and Duane Hjelm – 22.77 pounds
- 4th Place: Lucas Vogel and Amber Vogel – 21.94 pounds
- 5th Place: Olivier and Olivier – 21.62 pounds
- 6th Place: Simonsen and Simonsen – 21.55 pounds
- 7th Place: Ringling and Muilenberg – 21.36 pounds
Good Fishing Throughout the Reservoir
In addition to the excellent weights that came across the scales, there was good fishing to be found throughout the reservoir as well.
Trolling crankbaits on wind blown shorelines proved to be effective this morning, using a #5 purple #5 Flicker Shad to emulate schools of shad. Walleye were actively feeding on these shad in less than 10 feet of water, and the bite turned on and off with the wind.
Lieutenant Governor’s Cup Sees 150 Youth Anglers
The Lieutenant Governor’s Cup saw 150 youth anglers, age 5-16, fish the Spring Creek bay throughout the morning of Day One. Anglers fished from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and were awarded prizes and a hot dog lunch.
Day Two Launches July 19
Day Two of the South Dakota Governor’s Cup will once again launch at 7 a.m. out of Spring Creek Recreation Area onto Lake Oahe. Weigh-ins will once again begin at 3 p.m., and champions will be crowned following the conclusion of weigh-ins.
Will Beau and Ben be able to replicate their pattern, and make it back to back in the South Dakota Governor’s Cup or will one of the teams chasing them steal away the victory from the young anglers?
Stay tuned to Lip Ripper Fishing for the final results of the South Dakota Governor’s Cup!
