As the first of the boats start gliding up to the landing at 8:54 p.m. Tuesday, a small crowd, mostly those strolling out from Westwood Marina Bar and Grill, begins to gather on shore.

Then comes Tim Hobbs, president of the Southern Minnesota Walleye Association, who pulls in with his truck, pops down the tailgate and situates the digital scale.

One of the first boats, the team of Dan Griep of Cleveland and Bill Holland of Le Sueur, settles into the boat launch, and Griep hops out to fetch the truck and trailer.

“Did you get anything,” Hobbs asks as he pulls out a notebook.

Griep smiles and holds up his spread hand: “Five,” he says. “Biggest one is 21 inches.”

Griep quickly moves off to retrieve the truck. There are 21 boats out fishing the second Tuesday Nite Walleye Tourney, a series of eight regular-season tournaments and one season-ending tournament.

The boat launch is busy, and another team has found a spot to put their trailer in. This team is fielded by Roger Kramer of Le Sueuer and Stu McKee of Cleveland. They tell Hobbs they have four to weigh, and Hobbs diligently pencils them in.

A late onlooker stumbles up and asks who’s caught what. Someone points out Griep’s team has five, and McKee’s team has four.

“It don’t matter,” he says to another onlooker. “I want to see Stu’s weight.”

Tuesday Nite Walleye Tourneys have been taking place for 11 years, but McKee and Kramer have only fished the last four.

They have, however, won the last three, missing their first year by a point.

McKee says he and Kramer work well because they share the same philosophy when it comes to fishing walleye.

“I think we work extremely well together,” McKee says. “We don’t throw the same plugs.”

McKee and Kramer worked for their four in shallow water, a pattern of fishing McKee learned on Lake Tetonka after years of chasing walleye fresh from the Department of Natural Resources Waterville hatchery.

“A lot of people,” McKee says with a chuckle, “think they shouldn’t be in two feet of water.”