Are big pros really using budget gear?

[Bandersnatch]

I'm sure this has been covered before but Imnjusy wondering again. Are pros like kvd really fun fishing and tournament fishing for 100k with $99 rods and $139 reels. I'm not saying in anyway there's something wrong with it, I'd just be surprised. Thoughts? 

[garroyo130]

I wouldn't doubt it.

 

I imagine advertisement income > tournament winning income

[Gary_Snyder]

I don't know, but I would think you could fish the Bassmaster's Classic with a $60 spinning reel and a Bionic Blade rod? 

 

I would not go with the cheapest hooks and line, however.

[ironbjorn]

I read awhile ago that a great many do not use expensive gear. That's all relative to the person though. $200 rods and reels are normal to many of us, expensive for others, and yet cheap for others. I really don't think it's common to find $1500 setups on pro decks. They use and beat up their name/sponsored gear and get it replaced for free.

[Dens228]

The reality is...................who knows except the person on the boat. 

[Bankc]

I'm sure they use what they endorse, for the most part.  Endorsements are not only big income, but they're a lot more consistent than tournament winnings.  Plus, they're usually under a contract that requires them too.  Sometimes, you can lose an endorsement if you get caught using a competitor's product.  Besides, if you're good enough to be pro, then you're probably good enough to get by with most any gear.  And if some piece of gear is bad enough that you think it'll cost you some wins, you're likely not going to endorse it.  Usually, if it's that bad, you can talk the company into making a better product that you have faith in that you can endorse.  That's usually a win-win for both parties.  

 

It's like this in most sports and other industries where endorsements are common.  I've got a lot of friends in the music business.  They'll play whatever they want in the studio and at home, but on the road, out in public eye, they play what they're paid to play.  Privately they'll admit it's not the best product in the world, but if they didn't think it was good enough to get the job done, they wouldn't have signed that contract to begin with.  Also, pros tend to worry less about gear and more about practice than most amateurs.  

 

[DitchPanda]

Watch live during tournaments and you will see what guys are throwing. John Cox won a tournament last year on a veritas crank bait rod...that's a $99 rod. Jacob Wheeler won several things last year in his signature series duckett rods..$139. Of course the difference...especially in Jacobs case...is the implementation on $30000 worth of electronics. That's not a knock because he has an incredible skill level with it but that skill makes up for alot. I've always said that with gear there is s significant point of diminishing returns. A $200 rod is twice as nice as a $100 rod...but 400 is not 2 times nicer than 200...800 not 2 times nicer than 400. Often times that extra money is paying only for minimal weight loss.

Also it is agreed upon by many that the $100 range today is much nicer than that range from 10 or even 5 years ago. Alot of companies competing for that range because that's what most people can or will afford so that competition leads to companies offering incredible gear at a modest investment.

[Team9nine]

Just depends. Some are and some aren't. I don't think anyone is using any real low end gear, more like standard $100-$300 pieces of equipment like the typical serious bass angler might buy, but a few guys run higher end or JDM type stuff.

[Ctjoe]

Just remember that they have a supply so if 1 breaks, you will never know about it.they just put it down and grab another. 
 

[jimmyjoe]

28 minutes ago, Ctjoe said:

Just remember that they have a supply so if 1 breaks, you will never know about it.they just put it down and grab another. 
 

 

   Correct. Ten or fifteen years ago I listened to a pro giving a little demonstration. Can't remember his name, but I remember he said he used a $100 reel. Someone asked how he got by with that. He said that every time he went out, he had at least 5 new reels in the boat, each spooled up, and at the least sign of trouble or degradation of performance from the one that he was using, he immediately installed a new one.

   I would have liked to have gotten his rejects!            jj

[jbsoonerfan]

Pretty sure Jeff Gustafson has a boat full of NRX's, but he's the only one I can think of off the top of my head that I know fishes a lot of high end rods, I'm sure there are more though.

[Jigfishn10]

I think the guys who are "seasoned veteran" anglers probably have the best gear possible.

If you were doing something professionally that you're banking on for a living as your sole source of income, would you go out an perform your job with less than the best equipment available. 

 

[GReb]

Seems like it varies depending on the sponsors. Some guys are sponsored by G Loomis, Megabass, Shimano, etc and have high end gear on their decks. Pretty much all of the major manufacturers have high end gear including Abu, Lews, etc.  Even the Bass Pro guys have the Johnny Morris gear which is no slouch. 
 

You also have David Dudley throwing $70 Proficiency rods too though. At the end of the day I don’t think those guys put as much emphasis on high end rods and reels as weekend fisherman who have to pay for gear and expect it to last years. 

[MAN]

What we call budget gear now, the guys fishing the Classics in the 80's and 90's called top of the line.I don't think we catch anymore fish now then they did.  But most pro's are sponsored and will more than likely have high end stuff in their boat at all times.  

[FishTank]

They may not be fishing the highest end gear (because of sponsors) but they are fishing in the highest end boats with the world's best electronics. 

[BigAngus752]

A pro would have to be a fool to fish on TV with something other than a rod he has put his name on.  But of course he has the world's best "in" with that rod manufacturer, right?  Every time you see Jacob Wheeler on his boat he has HIS rods lined up on deck.  Could they be higher-end rods made by his sponsor to look exactly like his retail rods?  Could aliens be living among us?  How far down the rabbit hole could we go with this?

3 minutes ago, FishTank said:

highest end boats

Electronics yes...but Nitro Z18s in MLF?  

[moguy1973]

Skeet Reese uses the same yellow Wright & McGill rods you can buy off the shelf down at Walmart.  He designed them to be affordable for all anglers.

[Columbia Craw]

It’s a conspiracy.

[Bankc]

22 hours ago, BigAngus752 said:

A pro would have to be a fool to fish on TV with something other than a rod he has put his name on.  But of course he has the world's best "in" with that rod manufacturer, right?  Every time you see Jacob Wheeler on his boat he has HIS rods lined up on deck.  Could they be higher-end rods made by his sponsor to look exactly like his retail rods?  Could aliens be living among us?  How far down the rabbit hole could we go with this?

Electronics yes...but Nitro Z18s in MLF?  

Ah, the old "prototype" loop hole.  "I'm helping the company design a new rod.  We're trying to figure out a way to make a rod that fishes like this one, but doesn't require a loan".  

 

On 1/11/2021 at 2:28 PM, Jigfishn10 said:

I think the guys who are "seasoned veteran" anglers probably have the best gear possible.

If you were doing something professionally that you're banking on for a living as your sole source of income, would you go out an perform your job with less than the best equipment available. 

 

Most of the top tier "professional anglers" are probably more "professional spokesperson" than angler.  And that's not a slight against their skills or performance.  I'm just saying that I'm betting a good number of the top names in fishing probably make more money in endorsements than through their tournament winnings on any given year.  

 

I'd be willing to bet that the guys on the fringe, just barely making the cut, are probably the guys who are fishing the best gear.  They're the ones who are relying more heavily on tournament winnings as a share of income.  

[EzyEric]

Yes, they do.

 

I had trouble believing this a few years ago but someone (probably on here) pointed this out:

 

They are the best in the world at what they do.  They can do it just as well with a $100 rod or reel as they can with a $300 one.  We, on the other hand (the average angler), actually benefit (or think we do) from more expensive gear.  It helps to make up for the lack of experience or expertise.

 

[WRB]

Pro bass anglers have the opportunity to field test state of the art sponsors rods and reels. The reels are usually tuned by the angler or the reel mfr, not exactly OTC product.

When the pro test something they like they use it.

Some pros have some tackle they use that’s over 20 years old.you can’t put a price on confidence.

Tom

[Sam]

I spoke with a pro about your exact question and here is what he told me:

Baits - Pros use new models that have not been placed in the market and they also modify their baits and do not tell us what they did.

 

Rods and Reels - They use what they are comfortable with and have confidence. Price is not a factor. Pros get their rods and reels free or at a discount.

 

Line - Most are now using braid, fluorocarbon or copoly lines.  They will avoid the question about their lines unless they need to say they used "such and such brand" line to keep sponsors happy.

 

Not Really - If you listen to the pros very carefully when they are on the stage at the Bassmaster Classic, the pros will hawk their sponsors products but they do not say they caught any fish with their sponsors products. Ike is a master at this and you go away thinking he used a specific rod, reel, line and bait. He may have thrown this combo a few times but in reality, he did not catch his fish with the setup.

 

Rod Colors - Check out the pros' rod colors to get an idea if they are using what they say they are using. Starting with orange and white rods you can note the rod's markings to try to determine what rod they are using.

 

Remember, the advertising and testimonials are designed to catch us, not the fish. Right now the hot item is the Lowrance Active Target and the Garmin LiveScope.  Only problem I have with this is that about 6 years ago at a Classic I saw the Raymarine technology that also showed the fish very clearly and in bright colors. But since Lowrance sponsors most of the pros in one way or the other, the Lowrance Active Target sonar units are getting the love.

 

Always remember what my economics professor at LSU told us: Follow the Money!!!!

38 minutes ago, WRB said:

Pro bass anglers have the opportunity to field test state of the art sponsors rods and reels. The reels are usually tuned by the angler or the reel mfr, not exactly OTC product.

When the pro test something they like they use it.

Some pros have some tackle they use that’s over 20 years old.you can’t put a price on confidence.

Tom

X2

[LCG]

I am confident that kvd could outfish me with the lowest quality gear. 

 

It amazes me though how fishing started as a Sunday morning thing on TV to nowdays anglers dressed as Nascar drivers with boats to match. People take to a pro for whatever reason and want what they use, same marketing they use to kids and toys. Funny even as adults they get you

[Msl819]

33 minutes ago, LCG said:

I am confident that kvd could outfish me with the lowest quality gear. 

 

It amazes me though how fishing started as a Sunday morning thing on TV to nowdays anglers dressed as Nascar drivers with boats to match. People take to a pro for whatever reason and want what they use, same marketing they use to kids and toys. Funny even as adults they get you

At one point NASCAR was the most brand loyal sport.  I would imagine, bass fishing isn’t far behind. 
 

I have started watching MLF cup events with my son on TV and it isn’t long before you start to develop favorites.  From there it’s a hop, skip, and a jump until you(& I) are looking to their product sponsorships option to toss into your cart.  
 

just the other day my son asked my if I could fish with any of the MLF guys who would it be?  Lots of great choices and I would be glad to sit back and watch - and ask a ton of questions.  

[Mbirdsley]

I would imagine it comes down to what technique they are using at any given time, and what they feel comfortable with.  
 

There might be 1 or 2 individual rods in a same stack of $100 rods that feels better than $250 rod ( not saying every rod in $100 stack feels better than the expensive rods” Sometimes you find the one rod and your like “ yeah this is it” The pros know how to find that “ one” good  rod.  Pros have a bottom line too.  If company X is giving the pro free $100 rods why waist personal money on a more expensive rod