Competition
There are several major bass fishing competitions in the United States with the two most dominant circuit being Bassmasters and the FLW series.
The Bassmaster Tournament Trail is organized by the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.). It was started by Ray Scott, the "father" of competitive bass fishing. First held in 1969, today, professionals like Michael Iaconelli, Kevin VanDam, Aaron Martens, Rick Clunn, and Luke Clausen are household names to many American sports fans. There are 12 events in which the top 50 anglers compete. The top prize in the Bassmaster Classic is $500,000.
The Wal-Mart FLW Tour was named after Forrest L. Wood of Ranger Boats fame. The top prize of the Forrest Wood Cup is $1 Million. Both tours are nationally televised on networks like ESPN and Fox Sports Net (ESPN actually owns and operates B.A.S.S.), and covered extensively by news media.
On the West Coast, WON BASS has been the main regional circuit in operation since the 1980s Annually, WON BASS conducts the U.S. Open of Bass Fishing at Lake Mead, Nevada which annually pays back nearly $500,000 per event. This is a test of both angling skill and endurance as the anglers compete for 3 days in the scorching hot sun and windy conditions of the Mohave desert. Renowned anglers Ricky Clunn, Byron Velvick, Aaron Martens, and Gary Klein have all been crowned champions during the Open's 25 year history
In modern bass fishing competitions, caught bass are placed in a live well, and released as soon as caught and weighed by officials. Competitors are penalized heavily for dead fish and in some cases dead fish are not weighed. Fish turned in for weighing are immediately released or placed in tanks and treated for stress and glyco-protein (slime coat) injury, then released back into the water.
Competitive bass fishing has also spread to anglers in other countries such as Japan, Korea, Australia and South Africa. Takahiro Omori, a Japanese angler living in Texas, won the 2004 Bassmaster Classic title. Australian tournaments are based on a native freshwater fish called Australian bass that is unrelated to largemouth bass.
Read more about this topic: Bass Fishing
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