How many "Average Joe" bass anglers do you think are out there who could dominate the pros?

[jbsoonerfan]

2 minutes ago, ironbjorn said:

I, my dad, and a few friends play league 8 and 9 ball. I'm good but not great and I don't take it seriously because I prefer to fish. My dad and one of my friends regularly go to state, and from there to Nationals in Vegas. My dad and friend have both been top 8 at nationals. Both have regular jobs and, of course, families. I think we're missing out on many talented people in many different sports due to lack of funds and obligations.

It really doesn't cost a lot to fish the Open's if one truly wants to be a Pro. You don't have to have a $90K boat and  $70K truck if you have the talent. There are a lot of "average Joe's" that try, you have never heard of them for a reason.

1 minute ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I've won a tournament fishing against a local pro on his home lake and placed higher than a another pro fishing a tournament on LOZ, but I don't think I could do it regularly.

Same. I beat Zack Birge on a tournament at a local lake. Do I think I could beat him in 12 events across the country? NO WAY!!!!

[PressuredFishing]

2 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I've won a tournament fishing against a local pro on his home lake and placed higher than a another pro fishing a tournament on LOZ, but I don't think I could do it regularly.

To be completely fair I think alot of the "pros" can't either lol, to be in the status of producing fish constantly is insanity, and only a few of the pros I know can do it, but even some other pros like randy blauket talk about how they have no idea how guys like kvd and ike keep consistently. 

4 minutes ago, jbsoonerfan said:

It really doesn't cost a lot to fish the Open's if one truly wants to be a Pro. You don't have to have a $90K boat and  $70K truck if you have the talent. There are a lot of "average Joe's" that try, you have never heard of them for a reason.

Same. I beat Zack Birge on a tournament at a local lake. Do I think I could beat him in 12 events across the country? NO WAY!!!!

Yeah that also brings up a interesting point, these pros are great across the country but moreover, if you are anywhere in the age of 40+ and been fishing your home lake for 20+ years, maybe you could beat a pro in that condition because experience is strong, but is it strong enough?

[813basstard]

1. 
There’s always 1. 
 

Problem is, ‘average Joe’s’ thinks it’s just fishing. It ain’t. 

 

[Jaderose]

8 hours ago, Catt said:

Y'all sure putting the Pros on an awfully high pedal!

 

 

This.  At the end of the day, they're just bass.  Obviously I realize that Bass Pro's face many many things the average Joe does not but if you dropped me and Dean Rojas and Ish Monroe on the same lake with the same frog set ups and told us we had 8 hours....no tv cameras in our faces...no drones flying around.....I'd like my chances.  Are they better than I am?  Yes.  Are they THAT MUCH better than I am?  Maybe, but as I said...I'd give it a go.

[Deleted account]

5 hours ago, 813basstard said:

1. 
There’s always 1. 
 

Problem is, ‘average Joe’s’ thinks it’s just fishing. It ain’t. 

1. 
There’s always 1. 
 

Problem is, ‘average Joe’s’ thinks it’s just fishing. It ain’t. 

1. 
There’s always 1. 
 

Problem is, ‘average Joe’s’ thinks it’s just fishing. It ain’t. 

I've seen many average Joe's take on the pros and end up with this dazed look on their face sitting in a corner and muttering something or other about fishing over and over...

[Tennessee Boy]

To make it in the pros you need

 

1) To be able to catch fish

2) You need to be be able to make ends meet which for most means finding and keeping sponsors.

3) You and your family need to be able and willing to handle the grind.

 

I’m convinced there are many that can cut it with number 1 but can’t handle 2 or 3.

 

[Captain Phil]

11 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

To make it in the pros you need

 

1) To be able to catch fish

2) You need to be be able to make ends meet which for most means finding and keeping sponsors.

3) You and your family need to be able and willing to handle the grind.

 

I’m convinced there are many that can cut it with number 1 but can’t handle 2 or 3.

 

 

Spot on.  If you plan to fish tournaments for a living, you should not need the money to live on.  

[scaleface]

1 hour ago, Jaderose said:

Are they better than I am?  Yes.  Are they THAT MUCH better than I am?  Maybe, but as I said...I'd give it a go.

Yeah , its fishing not boxing against Floyd Mayweather . 

[Captain Phil]

I know some anglers who could catch more fish off the bank than many of the tournament pros.  There is much more than fish to fishing tournaments for a living.  

[J Francho]

Not too many can put there money their money where their mouth is, even at a club level.

[king fisher]

I have a friend who I have fished with for 45 years.  I can't remember a day either his older brother, or I have out fished him.  He has always had lousy equipment, that he never maintains, never wants to get up early or stay late, doesn't even care if he catches more than he wants to clean, ( which is zero, unless I volunteer to clean the fish while he drinks beer), is basically lazy when it comes to fishing, has never read an article, about fishing, doesn't even know the basics like what water temperature, structure, type of cover  any game fish prefer, but is the luckiest fisherman on the planet.  I even saw him catch a brown trout out of a lake that never had brown trout, and to this day has never had another one.  He wasn't catching fish on one of his only lures a Jitterbug, so he decided the bass were not on the top.  I told him I would loan him one of my diving crankbaits.  He refused my offer and instead put three rubber core sinkers on his line ahead of his Jitterbug to get it down.  The lure had absolutely zero action.  I'm not saying he slayed the bass, but he did catch a bigger one than me with that crazy idea.

      He is so lucky not only would he dominate as a tournament angler, they would have to ban him. The officials at BASS would rather bring the Alabama rig back, and allow explosives rather than let him enter a tournament.

[scaleface]

5 minutes ago, king fisher said:

put three rubber core sinkers on his line ahead of his Jitterbug to get it down.

LOL . When I was young I actually did that . Unlike your friend I did not catch a fish .

[gim]

11 hours ago, Catt said:

I know quite a few anglers who have the knowledge required to complete on the Pro circuit successfully. To some the sacrifices of home & family is just not acceptable. Others simply don't have the desire to fish Professionally.

The part about home and family I can relate to.  I think quite a few people can.  But then again, that is the path we have chosen in life.  Whether or not we regret it, we're now stuck with it too.

[scaleface]

I dont have the skills to be a pro and not going to pretend I do . But , if the cards fell right for a week   , I could cash a check .

[TnRiver46]

No way in heck I could even win a small local tournament, which I why I usually don’t enter haha

[gim]

5 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

No way in heck I could even win a small local tournament, which I why I usually don’t enter haha

Plus they wouldn't let you just beach your boat on the rocks either.  You would have to actually tie it up at a dock like everyone else.

[the reel ess]

When I grew up there was a local hero that won a lot of the tournaments on our lake. He lived on the lake and knew it intimately. Rumor was that he put out structure at night in the form of gutted appliances. The washing machine was rumored to be his favorite. I dare say a good bit of what I learned early about bass fishing, I learned second hand from people that learned from him. One of my fishing mentors went along with him one day to get an education. He said the man didn't speak a word all day. Even when he ate his sandwich he kept a rod in his hand. He rarely used a trolling motor. He anchored near the shore and cast to deeper water. We had a house on that lake, I was a teen and I saw him a good bit making his rounds, hitting his spots. You can bet I paid attention to what he was doing when I saw him.

 

All that said, he wouldn't dominate today. I see good anglers doing all the right things and still not catch a fish in tourneys. 

[TnRiver46]

29 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Plus they wouldn't let you just beach your boat on the rocks either.  You would have to actually tie it up at a dock like everyone else.

Clearly you’ve never been to TN haha. There’s 100 Bass boats beached on the rocks every Saturday. It looks about like this on rip rap . Usually they will have a weigh in tent right near the rocks and everyone beaches to off load their catch. They usually just stick the trolling motor on the bank or power pole down to hold in place 

[J Francho]

That isn't a Tennessee thing.  We do that up here too.  I think this is one year I actually won this.

 

[TnRiver46]

3 minutes ago, J Francho said:

That isn't a Tennessee thing.  We do that up here too.  I think this is one year I actually won this.

 

If you can’t stand the thought of beaching a boat, you might not want to get into tournament fishing! Those guys boats take a serious beating 

[Deleted account]

21 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

If you can’t stand the thought of beaching a boat, you might not want to get into tournament fishing! Those guys boats take a serious beating 

Fishing for a living, in it's many forms is not for the "OMG, there is a scratch on the gel coat, I gotta wax the boat today, let me show you a picture of my boat" crowd. I'm not beating up equipment on purpose, but whatever happens while using it, be it rod, reel, boat, truck or whatever, that just builds character...

[Boomstick]

11 hours ago, PressuredFishing said:

I'd agree, but even if I was a superstar in bass fishing, I wouldn't want to deal with the stress of constant travel and strain on family, I want to keep bass fishing about therapeutic stress relief and mental healing, not be causing the stress yknow. Kind of like basketball, there are a few guys that got drafted for the NBA but didn't want to play, I'm sure there are a handful,just not many

There is that too. A lot of times doing it professionally takes the fun out of it.

[Cgolf]

Not many. That said many of us could give them a run for there money on a lake or two, but traveling to different waters across the country very few would cash checks.

 

Would be curious to compare daily limits from the pros to what is seen by local bass tourneys where most that fish those that is either their home lake or one they fish it regularly. If the pros daily numbers are higher that would push the number even lower.

[billmac]

When BASS first came to the St. Lawrence river back in '78 (I think), they discovered a largemouth fishery that the locals didn't really know was even there.  And fishing northern waters was not even much of a thing in those days, so a bunch of southerners came up and kicked butt.  If you are not skilled in a large variety of waters and conditions, and are driven by honey holes and preconceived notions, you aren't going to make it.

[Skunkmaster-k]

2 hours ago, king fisher said:

The officials at BASS would rather bring the Alabama rig back, and allow explosives rather than let him enter a tournament.

This gave me a good laugh ! Thanks , I needed that.