Monster Cat Roundup

July 20, 2024 by Montana Cats Staff

7/20/24 Sidney, MT - For 16 years Steve and Ashley Harris have brought mid-summer fun to Sidney, MT. in the form of a Catfish Tournament on the Yellowstone River.  The annual Monster Cat Roundup is practically a religion for those that carve out the same weekend every single year to spend it in the Eastern Montana wilderness chasing BIG fish.  The Montana Catfish Association is one big family and this event and the greater Sidney area make up a large part of our organization.  This year's weather would cooperate and bring a clear sunny day to Richland County.  In return, the field of 48 would have the best day of fishing in tournament history. 

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.    

August 22, 2018 by Montana Cats Staff

Congratulations goes out to KaCee McPherson and Nicole Peterson both of Savage, MT on winning the 10th Annual NE Montana Monster Cat Round-up today in Sidney with 33.28 lbs! It’s a truly historic victory. McPherson and Peterson are the first “all female” team champions in Montana Cats Circuit history. They are also the first shore team to ever win a MT Cats event outside of the Milk River Catfish Classic! Until today, there had never been a shore champ at the Yellowstone Challenge, the Missouri River Catfish Clash, or the Monster Cat Roundup. Very impressive! The ladies stayed in one spot all day and it produced early and often as they had over 30 lbs.

June 19, 2017 by Montana Cats Staff

Summer heat can make for difficult days on the water. For tournament fishing it adds a level of difficulty that is tough to quantify. This year’s 9th Annual Monster Cat Roundup in Sidney was a fine example of what you can expect when you hit the Yellowstone River in mid-July

July 16, 2016 by Montana Cats Staff

Early on Saturday, Sidney Catfish anglers, Matt Reynolds and Carrie Niblock, didn’t know what the day of fishing would hold. Carrie remarked to Matt early on during the tournament, “how cool would it be to win this thing?”, Matt quipped in return, “I don’t care, I just want my name on one of them t-shirts”.

July 18, 2015 by Montana Cats Staff

Every year the Monster Cat Roundup gets better and better. Steve and Ashley Harris brought this Montana Cats event back to the “Oil Patch” of Montana for the 7th consecutive year. The 60-team field filled months in advance of the 2015 date and there was anticipation in the air for weeks. Anglers from all over Montana and North Dakota littered this year’s powerful field.

July 19, 2014 by Montana Cats Staff

Dreams do come true. One of Sidney’s hometown catfish specialists, Brady Mueller, is now just a prime example. After fighting and clawing his way up the leader board at all of the Montana Cats Circuit events over the years, Brady finally stood on top of the mountain this past weekend. Teaming up with another local, Joe Carpenter, the anglers put together an impressive limit of fish.

July 13, 2013 by Montana Cats Staff

The 5th Annual Monster Cat Roundup was quite the show this past weekend in Sidney, MT. The event had a little bit of everything. New records in both total weight and big fish, a record number of boats, a circuit veteran crew winning their first ever tournament championship, and a hailstorm. Yes this was a memorable event for all involved.

July 17, 2012 by Montana Cats Staff

The 4th Annual Monster Cat Roundup was held over the weekend on the beautiful Yellowstone River. Continuing with this year’s tournament theme, every record was smashed at the event. 2012 has truly been an unforgettable year for the Montana Cats Circuit and the Roundup would not be outdone. The highlight of the weekend was seeing tournament participation rise to 49 teams just before the Friday night calcutta at the Ranger Lounge, with 42 of those teams fishing from boat. The previous record had been 35 teams, competing at the 2nd Annual event in 2010. With increased team numbers, comes increased competition.

July 09, 2011 by Montana Cats Staff

The 3rd Annual Monster Cat Roundup took place in Sidney, Montana over the weekend. The festivities were once again kicked off on Friday night with the social and calcutta of the fishing teams at the Ranger Lounge. A record number of people showed up to bid on their favorite anglers and enjoy some good fishing conversation. Jerry Andreason and Jessie Williams with Good Ol’ Boys Auctioneering put on a show with the calcutta and provided some good entertainment for the crowd. Tournament director, Steve Harris, of the Montana Catfish Association, presented the rules and regulations. As the opening night came to a close there was some nervous anticipation in the air and plenty of excitement to get it all started.

July 17, 2010 by Montana Cats Staff

All eyes were on Eastern Montana once again this past weekend as the Montana Cats Circuit rolled into Sidney for the 2nd Annual Monster Cat Roundup. The Roundup, the 4th leg on the annual tour, burst onto the scene last summer and debuted with 23 teams. This years event ballooned to 35 teams, while continuing to grow into one of the finest catfish tournaments in the state. The weekend kicked off on Friday night with the Social and Calcutta of the fishing teams at the Ranger Lounge in downtown Sidney. The social was once again well attended and provided the perfect leadup to a long day on the water.

July 11, 2009 by Montana Cats Staff

The Inaugural Monster Catfish Roundup is officially in the books! The weekend kicked off much like the other MT Cats Tour events, with a Friday night Calcutta held at the Ranger Bar in downtown Sidney. This year’s event was an instant success, as 23 teams set out on the river at 7:00 a.m. Saturday morning.