Monster Cat Roundup

July 24, 2023 by Montana Cats Staff

7/15/23 - Sidney, MT. - It was another great day on the Yellowstone River for the Annual Monster Cat Roundup!  This year provided more unique challenges for the 37 teams in attendance.  It happened to be the 3rd highest river levels in the 15-year history of the event as the streamflow hovered at 30,000 cubic feet per second.  Only the inaugural year and the flood year of 2011, provided higher water.  Our recent cooler summer temps also kept the water temperature nearly 8 degrees cooler than the tournament average.  Despite those obvious differences, fishing still proved to be quite difficult for much of the field.   
One team stood above all others, however, as the father-son duo of Todd Lindsay, Laurel, MT., and JJ Lindsay, Billings, MT., absolutely obliterated the field with a heaping basket of cats that tipped the scales at 37.03 lbs.  It proved to be nearly 11 lbs. clear of the runner-up team and marks the 2nd largest margin of victory in tournament history.  Todd turned an incredible trick on tournament day as he landed the TWO largest Cats of the day. An 11.08 lb. whopper and a 9.14 pounder to go with it.  Todd remarked, "It was 10:00 AM and we had 37 pounds.  After that, we did continue to catch 5 pound fish and we could have had a 2nd basket of nearly 25 lbs."  This marks the first Montana Cats Circuit win for the Lindsay family and one this is extremely well deserved!  Todd, JJ, and Kellie have been cutting their teeth on the circuit for 5+ years and they are not afraid to put in the time.  Congratulations to the whole family.

July 22, 2022 by Montana Cats Staff

7/16/22 - Sidney, MT. - There always seems to be two mainstays at the Monster Cat Roundup.  The anglers should always expect a challenging bite and they should never forget the sunscreen.  This year provided more of the same.  The summer heat peaked in the mid 90's this time around, but despite those difficult conditions it is safe to say the 50-boat field won this version of the battle!  Twenty teams weighed in over 20 lbs. breaking the previous record of seventeen teams with 20+ pounds in 2020.  Teams reported solid weights, but limited numbers.  In what has become customary at this post-spawn event, a five fish limit presented it's own unique challenges.     
No one "cracked the code" quite like Glendive anglers, Cole Plouffe and Brett Burman.  The veteran Catfishermen deployed a mobile strategy that helped them land over 40 catfish throughout the duration of the event.  Those are numbers unheard of in this Sidney section for this time of year.  Cole stated, "We caught over 20 Cats in one spot and had 35+ pounds by 10:00 AM".  It is the first Monster Cat Roundup title for either angler, but it is a 6th tournament championship for Plouffe during his Montana Cats Career.  Moving himself into a tie with Chad Dawson and the Wise Guys (Bobby and Robert) for 3rd All-Time in career circuit victories.  Congratulations gentleman on a great day on the water!    

July 17, 2021 by Montana Cats Staff

7/17/21 - Sidney, MT. - The Yellowstone River is very low and recent temperature's have been unseasonably scorching.  With those conditions unlikely to change over the weekend, the Montana Catfish Association Board of Directors held discussion early this week and took unprecedented action to protect the health of the fish during the event.  For the first time in the 13-year history of the event, the 5-fish limit was reduced to just 4 for this year's event.  The change would allow anglers a better chance to keep their fish healthy and return them safely to the river after weigh-ins.  Mission accomplished!  It was a highly successful event once again.  Despite 96 degree heat, the Montana Cats anglers passed the test with flying colors and proved yet again that they are committed to keeping the fish in great shape.    

July 18, 2020 by Montana Cats Staff

7/18/20 - Sidney, MT. - They've done it again!  Back in 2018, KaCee McPherson and Nicole Peterson both of Savage, MT., became the 1st All-Female Champions in Montana Cats history when they took down a field of 60 teams at the 10th Annual Monster Cat Roundup.  Last weekend, at the 12th Annual Monster Cat Roundup in Sidney, the ladies put an even more dominant performance together.  On the back of the largest Channel Cat ever weighed in during the 21-year history of MT Cats Circuit events; KaCeee and Nicole weighed in a whopping 31.75 lbs., besting a field of 57 teams by just under 2 lbs.  Making it even more unbelievable, the anglers only weighed in 4 fish after accidentally culling out a 5th fish near 6 lbs. The mistake occurred during a hectic last 20 minutes of the event.  

July 20, 2019 by Montana Cats Staff

7/20/2019 (Sidney, MT) – With near perfect weather and stable to slightly dropping water in the forecast, anglers could only hope that the fish would cooperate for the 11th Annual Monster Cat Roundup in Sidney this past Saturday.  Fisherman knew it would still prove to be difficult, however.  As is customary at the Roundup, Channel Catfish were in the middle to nearing the end of their spawn and water temperatures were hovering in the upper 70's.  This traditionally causes fish to become a bit tight-lipped and makes the anglers take extra precaution with each of their individual catches.  A good working live-well aerator on the boat or in a large cooler becomes essential to every team.  Anglers also introduce fresh water at every stop and can be seen introducing ice and frozen water bottles to their water storage system throughout the day.  All of this with the intent of weighing in five healthy fish at the end of the day and returning them all safely to the water at the conclusion of weigh-ins.