If you don't fish tournaments, why not?

[Swamp Girl]

1 hour ago, Lottabass said:

@Fairly Reliable  This is funny!  I'm still chuckling!  I hope @Swamp Girl finds it funny too!

 

To be clear, my hair is always a mess, so attributing it to my 70 mph hitchhiking ride is hasty and might not be prudent.

[Lottabass]

If a person chooses to fish tournaments that is their choice.  Last summer I witnessed 2 local club events at the weigh ins.  20 or so people standing around with bags of fish for 30-45 minutes in 4 or 5 gallons of water on Sat and Sun.  Weigh 'em and take 'em down to the boat ramp and dump 'em in the lake.  Catch and Release?  Ya, right.  I came back on Monday and saw several floating in the area.

I kill and eat fish sometimes but this is like shooting a deer and leaving it lay.  This is what I saw and my opinion on it.

[Cuivre]

On 2/2/2025 at 7:06 AM, Lottabass said:

If a person chooses to fish tournaments that is their choice.  Last summer I witnessed 2 local club events at the weigh ins.  20 or so people standing around with bags of fish for 30-45 minutes in 4 or 5 gallons of water on Sat and Sun.  Weigh 'em and take 'em down to the boat ramp and dump 'em in the lake.  Catch and Release?  Ya, right.  I came back on Monday and saw several floating in the area.

I kill and eat fish sometimes but this is like shooting a deer and leaving it lay.  This is what I saw and my opinion on it.

I advocate for CPR or CPRR in some bass boat tournament related videos when they discuss the status of bass populations and health.  It isn't just the health of the fish- it is the constant relocation of fish from where they were caught.  That can change the dynamics of their distribution and the forage base they have and must compete for.  Also, it can be a vicious circle, since many folks use the "retread pattern" in subsequent tournaments by focusing around the release areas from previous tournaments.  Even kayak guys fish around weigh in areas the bass boat guys use.

[volzfan59]

I used to fish in tournaments, did fairly well. Never won one but was in the top 10 numerous times. That said, I just got to where I didn’t enjoy it. Once money is involved, there’s a certain pressure to perform. I used to be a very competitive person, that and the pressure ruined it for me. Almost ruined fishing as a whole for me.
 

When I was racing stock cars, it got to the point where it was like a job and the pressure (competitive/financial/ family) was unbearable for me. I’m a life long racing fan and it pretty much ruined it for me. Rarely ever watch or attend anymore. Due to my wife’s family being heavily involved in NHRA drag racing, we go to one national event every year.
 

To tie that back into fishing, I didn’t want tournament fishing to ruin something that I have enjoyed since childhood. It came pretty close.

 

Hope that makes sense.

[F14A-B]

In the 80’s I did when I was in the Mil in Florida on shore duty, it was all aviation guys, I did win 2 of them. One on Lochloosa one on the St. John’s. It was all about fun and competition.. 

 

Then nothing till about 95, except these were 150 boat tournaments where in Florida we were lucky to have 25 boats. After a year I was done and just took my Skeeter out on my own. It really wasn’t fun like before. I truly loved going on my own, way more fun. 

[Fairly Reliable]

On 2/2/2025 at 7:01 AM, Swamp Girl said:

 

To be clear, my hair is always a mess, so attributing it to my 70 mph hitchhiking ride is hasty and might not be prudent.

Hey Chicks dig poems, I was 7 deep when I tossed out that nugget.

[ryanerb]

I don't have the time to pre-fish and the money to throw into the 'pot' to hope I win. Always lots of competitors and chances of winning are pretty slim. Plus, most of the tourneys around here end up with bad weather and you gotta show up no matter what. I would rather fish for fun, enjoy the sport, and go when weather is at least semi-favorable, etc. Just my .02 cents. 

[Fairly Reliable]

On 2/3/2025 at 6:41 PM, ryanerb said:

I don't have the time to pre-fish and the money to throw into the 'pot' to hope I win. Always lots of competitors and chances of winning are pretty slim. Plus, most of the tourneys around here end up with bad weather and you gotta show up no matter what. I would rather fish for fun, enjoy the sport, and go when weather is at least semi-favorable, etc. Just my .02 cents. 

Absolutely spot on. It takes more money than I have to run the circuit. 

[Bazoo]

I used to want to go into tournaments. I grew up watching Bill Dance, Roland Maring, Jimmy Houston, Hank Parker, which gave me the itch. But I never had the money to get started, and I ended up getting married and having other interests such as guns and reloading, even going through a pretty long spell where I didn't fish.

 

But through it all, I realized I didn't really want to be a pro bass fisherman, I just wanted to be a bass fisherman with a pro skillset. I like the learning aspect of it. I like trying new stuff.