AIM Tournament Format and Registration Press Release

[Jim Carroll]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

AIM™ Announces Finalized Pro Walleye Series Tournament Format and Registrations.

Plymouth, WI – February 17, 2009. AIM™ announced today the final format for their AIM Pro Walleye Series™ tournaments and registration for the 2009 season.

AIM™ will conduct four Pro-Am walleye fishing tournaments in 2009. The first three AIM Pro Walleye Series™ tournaments will serve as qualifying events for the AIM International Walleye Championship™. Each of the AIM Pro Walleye Series™ qualifying tournaments will host fields limited to 100 Pro Walleye Anglers and 100 Co-anglers.

The AIM Pro Walleye Series™ tournaments will all be three day events. The Pro Angler provides the boat, all the fishing tackle and bait for the day. Each day the Co-angler will be paired with a different Pro Angler and have the opportunity to learn individual strategies and cutting edge presentations. The full field of 100 Pro Anglers and Co-anglers will fish the first two days. The top 50% of the Pro Angler field – based on cumulative weights over the first two days – will fish the third day of the tournament along with Co-anglers who were randomly drawn during the Rules Meeting prior to the event.

The AIM Pro Walleye Series™ tournaments include the following dates and locations:

May 22-24, 2009 Bay City, Michigan fishing Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron
July 2-4, 2009 Green Bay, Wisconsin fishing Green Bay on Lake Michigan
August 13-15, 2009 Akaska, South Dakota fishing Lake Oahe

Each AIM Pro Walleye Series™ qualifying tournament is scheduled to coincide with a regional festival that will provide large numbers of spectators. This guarantees the maximum exposure for professional fishing; the sponsor’s and host communities of AIM™ along with individual Pro Anglers themselves. Pro Angler entry fees for the 2009 AIM Pro Walleye Series™ have been set at $1,500 per event. For anglers who are not AIM™ owners or “Life Members” there will also be a $250 membership fee per event. Co-angler entry fees have been held to just $250 per event which will help attract a broader base of new Co-anglers to the sport. Co-anglers will not be competing for prizes based upon their placement in the event, but instead will be awarded prizes by drawings at the daily weigh-ins. AIM™ is also announcing guaranteed paybacks of not less than 100% of Pro Angler entry fees which will ensure a minimum of $150,000 in payouts, including a first place prize of $50,000 with a full 100 boat field in AIM Pro Walleye Series™ events.


The AIM International Walleye Championship™ will be held September 2-4, 2009 on Lake Winnibigoshish in northern Minnesota. Pro Anglers will qualify for the Championship by fishing at least one AIM Pro Walleye Series™ tournament. The top three Pro Anglers in the cumulative “Angler of the Year” rankings after the first three qualifying events will receive FREE entries to the Championship. In addition, the two Pro Anglers that post the largest improvements in Angler of the Year standings from the first event to the end of the third event will also receive FREE entries to the AIM International Walleye Championship™.

Scott Matheson, AIM™ President and CEO reports, “The AIM International Walleye Championship will truly be an “international” event. Entries to our Championship will include the top finishers from national, regional and local walleye tournament organizations from across the U.S. and Canada. Each of these organizations hosts talented anglers who have the skills and desire to compete in this true Championship event, and we welcome each of them. Our initial commitment was to ‘raise the bar’ in tournament fishing and introduce a series of exciting innovations. The AIM format for 2009 accomplishes all this, and more!”

All AIM™ tournaments will incorporate the exclusive AIM™ Catch, Record, Release™ (CRR) format. The process will include the Pro Angler and Co-angler measuring the length of each walleye, taking two digital photos, and immediately releasing the fish. At the daily “weigh-in” the lengths of the seven largest walleyes will be converted to weights and counted in the cumulative total weight for the Pro Angler. The photos and weights of walleyes will be displayed both on stage and on the AIM™ website to give viewers an idea of the quantity and quality of fish caught by the competitors. On the third day of each event weights will be tallied as the fish are caught by the tournament leaders, and will be streamed on the AIM™ website along with video taken that day providing excitement never before seen in walleye tournaments.

“CRR will bring us back to the head-to-head competition that this sport needs” emphasizes Pro Angler Gary Parsons, “It will eliminate the guesswork that slot limits and culling restrictions have brought to walleye competitions. We’ll be back to fishing on great bodies of water where the angler who catches the biggest fish – wins!” Catch, Record, Release™ will also eliminate the concerns by local anglers and fisheries managers of excessive fish harvest or mortality of released fish.


Registration for AIM Pro Walleye Series™ events is now available online at www.aimfishing.com, or by mail and telephone at 920-526-3399


Anglers Insight Marketing, LLC (AIM) is an angler owned organization dedicated to lead the fishing industry in competitive angling through the insight and knowledge of its owners who are predominantly participants in the sport.

# # #

For more information, contact:
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC
PO Box 110
Plymouth, WI 53073
Office: 920-526-3399
smatheson@aimfishing.com

[Randy Reek]

Thanks to all the tournament enthusiasts who have been patiently waiting for the AIM format, schedule, payouts, rules, etc to be finalized. It has been a huge endeavor, especially considering the process really only started last fall.

Registration is now available online, or by calling the AIM office (920-526-3399.)

We recognize that many operational details will be refined as the season progresses. I welcome your constructive suggestions - contact me direct at rreek@aimfishing.com.

The AIM dates and format may not work for everyone. However, for those anglers that have been wanting an alternative - or additional events - I invite you to consider the AIM Pro Walleye Series. Check the website (www.aimfishing.com (http://www.aimfishing.com)) for continuous updates as we get closer to the first event, May 22 in Bay City, Michigan!

Randy Reek
AIM Operations Director
rreek@aimfishing.com

[Fishing Insider 2]

Thanks for posting the new information. The dates and locations look good. I see that your entry fees with individual tournament memberships total $1750.00 if I am not mistaken. The next obvious question is this. When will you be posting the entire AIM payouts here on Walleye Central? Does AIM have them yet? As long as AIM is posting all the other information, how about the AIM payouts for the AIM qualifiers and AIM championship. The press releases so far have been great, don't get me wrong. When you have an actual AIM payout schedule for your tournaments, posting it here on W/C would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[K Gonefishin]

Thanks for posting the new information. The dates and locations look good. I see that your entry fees with individual tournament memberships total $1750.00 if I am not mistaken. The next obvious question is this. When will you be posting the entire AIM payouts here on Walleye Central? Does AIM have them yet? As long as AIM is posting all the other information, how about the AIM payouts for the AIM qualifiers and AIM championship. The press releases so far have been great, don't get me wrong. When you have an actual AIM payout schedule for your tournaments, posting it here on W/C would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.


All the information you just asked about is posted on the AIM website as of a couple days ago, rules, payout, entry forms, it's all there now. Check it out.

[Juls]

Thanks for posting the new information. The dates and locations look good. I see that your entry fees with individual tournament memberships total $1750.00 if I am not mistaken. The next obvious question is this. When will you be posting the entire AIM payouts here on Walleye Central? Does AIM have them yet? As long as AIM is posting all the other information, how about the AIM payouts for the AIM qualifiers and AIM championship. The press releases so far have been great, don't get me wrong. When you have an actual AIM payout schedule for your tournaments, posting it here on W/C would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

2009 AIM Pro Qualifier Payouts
Place - Payout Value

1 $50,000.00
2 $11,000.00
3 $8,000.00
4 $7,000.00
5 $6,500.00
6 $6,000.00
7 $6,000.00
8 $6,000.00
9 $6,000.00
10 $6,000.00
11 $2,500.00
12 $2,500.00
13 $2,500.00
14 $2,500.00
15 $2,500.00
16 $2,000.00
17 $2,000.00
18 $2,000.00
19 $2,000.00
20 $2,000.00
21 $1,500.00
22 $1,500.00
23 $1,500.00
24 $1,500.00
25 $1,500.00
26 $1,500.00
27 $1,500.00
28 $1,500.00
29 $1,500.00
30 $1,500.00

[Fishing Insider 2]

2009 AIM Pro Qualifier Payouts
Place - Payout Value

1 $50,000.00
2 $11,000.00
3 $8,000.00
4 $7,000.00
5 $6,500.00
6 $6,000.00
7 $6,000.00
8 $6,000.00
9 $6,000.00
10 $6,000.00
11 $2,500.00
12 $2,500.00
13 $2,500.00
14 $2,500.00
15 $2,500.00
16 $2,000.00
17 $2,000.00
18 $2,000.00
19 $2,000.00
20 $2,000.00
21 $1,500.00
22 $1,500.00
23 $1,500.00
24 $1,500.00
25 $1,500.00
26 $1,500.00
27 $1,500.00
28 $1,500.00
29 $1,500.00
30 $1,500.00

Thanks for posting the information requested. After reviewing the payouts I still have several questions.

1. "Payout Value"?

What is Payout value? Will we as prospective AIM Pros be competing for cash only, prizes along with cash or just prizes? Cash is cash, but "Payout Value"? What does that mean??????

2. Are these posted AIM payouts for just the three qualifiers? Is there going to be a different payout schedule for the AIM championship? I read about the Boat and motor championship first prize, but where does it go from there? How deep into the field? If I understand it correctly, the AIM Championship could include 100 to 200 boats?

3. As I understand it i would have $1750.00 in entry expenses for individual AIM tournaments That is if not an owner or lifetime member. How does this compare to the FLW Walleye Tour's posted payouts? The FLW entry fee is $1750.00 also. It would be nice to see a payout comparison done between the two circuits.

4. Are the posted AIM payouts enough? Will their be any additional increases in payouts or contingencies?

Based on my previous PWT tournament expenses it appears to me that I could fish this circuit, take two second place finishes out of the four tournaments and barely break even. Those are long odds. Two seconds would result in my winning $22,000.00. IF the fields were full. $5500.00 per tournament in expenses times four equals $22,000.00. That would be the break even point for me. Like I said those are long odds to just reach the break even point and that is with CASH payouts. Will there be any additional payout increases or added contingencies? Hopefully so.

I had hoped to and had given serious consideration to doing the new AIM circuit. To the point of even scheduling it on my calender. These posted "Payout Value"s numbers leave me nervous and with even more questions. I am not sure that even with a solid performance I could even begin to make it pencil out. For me that is dissapointing. This isn't what I expected.

[bbbbbbbbbbb]

I hope they can pull some money from other sponsors. But like you running the numbers it just isn't going to work. Face it this payout schedule is not going to make guys come running to get in, even with the New Fun Concept of catching as many fish as you can all day long. With that being said the fields will be short of Pro's so therefor the payouts will be less. You also have another good question about payout value will part of it be prizes.

[Wondering]

100 teams at $1500 is $150,000. Payout is $150,000. Must be some prizes in there or based on more than 100 teams because they can't survive on 100% payouts

[Juls]

It would be nice to see a payout comparison done between the two circuits.

2009 AIM Pro Qualifier Payouts
Place - Payout Value

1 $50,000.00
2 $11,000.00
3 $8,000.00
4 $7,000.00
5 $6,500.00
6 $6,000.00
7 $6,000.00
8 $6,000.00
9 $6,000.00
10 $6,000.00
11 $2,500.00
12 $2,500.00
13 $2,500.00
14 $2,500.00
15 $2,500.00
16 $2,000.00
17 $2,000.00
18 $2,000.00
19 $2,000.00
20 $2,000.00
21 $1,500.00
22 $1,500.00
23 $1,500.00
24 $1,500.00
25 $1,500.00
26 $1,500.00
27 $1,500.00
28 $1,500.00
29 $1,500.00
30 $1,500.00

____________________________________________
FLW Season Qualifiers-Payout (Cash only)

Base payout/Ranger Cont./Evinrude & Yamaha Cont.

1. 50,000/25,000/25,000........100,000
2. 20,000/5,500/5,500.............31,000
3. 12,000/4,250/4,250.............20,500
4. 10,000/3,000/3,000.............16,000
5. 8,000/2,500/2,500...............13,000
6. 7,000/2,000/2,000...............11,000
7. 6,500/1,750/1,750...............10,000
8. 6,000/1,500/1,500.................9,000
9. 5,500/1,250/1,250.................8,000
10. 5,000/1,000/1,000...............7,000
11-15. 4,000/600/600................5,200
16-20. 3,500/500/500................4,500
21-30. 3,000/500/500................4,000
31-40. 2,750/325/325................3,400
41-50. 2,500/250/250................3,000

[tzonetom]

Quite the difference there. Even without the cont. money. But they're just starting out, so time will tell.

[Gutterball]

FLW payouts are based on a 150 boat field

AIM payouts are based on a 100 boat field

[mrbreeze]

FLW payouts are based on a 150 boat field

AIM payouts are based on a 100 boat field

The importance of comparing apples to apples rears its ugly head LOL.

[tzonetom]

Compare away....I'm not fishing either.

[bbbbbbbbbb]

The Flw pays down to 50 th place and AIM pays to 30 th. Another apple to apple comparison is the Entry fees are both $1750 per event unless you are an owner or lifetime member but then they have added costs. Flw pays $2500 for 50th and Aim pays $1500 for 30th. The Flw pays top 33% of the field with a full roster and Aim pays the top 30% of the field with a full roster. Just pointing out some facts. I hope both Tournaments thrive and build into bigger things it truly would be great if things blossomed to bigger things like the old days when RCL first hit the seen man the dream of fishing for $400,000 would be great. But instead we have gone backwards. Look at the Flw Bass side those boys fish for $1,000,000 championship they didn't go backwards because ESPN bought B.A.S.S. and stepped it up a knotch so FLW therefor stepped it up a Knotch.

[Fiddlestyx]

Lets not forget the championship models which are a very integral part of the tournament season and the decision to fish or not. Remember those fishing a circuit usually contribute to the championship through enrties during the regular season.
To get to the championship
AIM- qualify through AIM tourneys (3) and/or placing highly in other team or pro circuits.
FLW- top 50 anglers from the 4 qualifier tournaments and the 4 league division winners

Apples to apples championship

Circuit AIM FLW

Field size 150-200 boat 50
Field source Mult tourney field Top 50 from circuit
Entry $1750 Free
Winning $ up to $10,000 $150,000 including contingencies
Prize boat package N/A
Valued $65,000 N/A
Min payout ? $1150
Places paid ? 50

Seems to me that there is a little difference between the two. Oh, and yes I fully understand that AIM is a new tournament. However it still has to be looked at as business decision on whether to fish it or the FLW. Look at the numbers and you make the call.

I also had a qustion in the rules regarding

-"AIM reserves the right to require the addition and placement of AIM corporate-sponsor logos on Pro-Angler clothing and/or boats."
Whats that all about? Not knowing what will or won't be placed on a boat or shirt before you sign up seems a bit backwards and in fact those that are locked in owners or life members might find that a bit contrary to what they were told when they initially invested in AIM.

-Non-factory installed removable gas tanks are restricted to a maximum of 18 gallons
and must meet U.S. Coast Guard regulations. These tanks must be properly secured in
the boat and equipped with fuel lines that connect directly to the motor. Most all circuits have eliminated that from being an option for safety concerns. Wouldn't that open up major liabilities on the AIM owners and investors??


Just some more thoughts

Peace Love
Peace Love

[Fishing Insider 2]

The importance of comparing apples to apples rears its ugly head LOL.

Reviewing the AIM and FLW payouts is very sobering indeed. Agreed, as far as comparing apples to apples, the numbers of competitors on each circuit do need to be taken into consideration.

However there is still a huge disparity in payouts. One in particular gets my attention. I am basing the following on the posted payouts of each circuit.

The FLW Walleye Tour pays $2500.00 for last place (50th) with no contingency money figured in. Up to an additional $500.00 more ($3000.00 total.) will be paid with posted FLW sponsor contingencies. That is for 50th place. Last place. It is paid in cash. Not prizes.

Aim's posted "Payout Value" shows the same amount, $2500.00 for 11th place. 11th place! What the FLW pays for last place?

You are right. We are not comparing Apples to Apples.

[sick of this]

check rule 18 of the FLW walleye tour

[stpper]

Not sure what you're sick of but I have no problem with rule 18...its been in effect that way for awhile.

[Brad Bahls]

I'm not going to fish either circuit (maybe AIM as a co on GB), but here is what I see.

If every angler fishing an AIM event is NOT a life member, they will collect $175,000 in entry fees and memberships and they will pay out $150,000 (86%).

The FLW will collect $262,500 in entry fees and they will pay out $208,750 (80%).

Not much of a difference unless you bought a new Ranger boat in the last couple of years.

Even if you did buy that new Ranger (and they are very nice boats) you just dropped about $55k. On this very site you can pick up any one of a dozen used rigs for $20k less fish either circuit for two years and unless you do very well, odds are a lot better that you'll be money ahead WITHOUT the contingency money. Heck, take a 5th at one FLW event and 20th in the other 3 and your still only up an extra $8k.

Honestly, I don't see how fishing tournaments can possibly be a money making proposition for 95% of the people fishing them unless they are making money with sponsors.

[Juls]

check rule 18 of the FLW walleye tour

18. Logo usage and television coverage

During all days of competition, alcohol and/or tobacco logos may not be worn or displayed. Smoking is not allowed in the weigh-in line during all days of competition. On day 4 of qualifying tournaments and days 3 and 4 of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship:

No logos, patches or decals other than the Walmart FLW Walleye Tour logo, logos of Walmart FLW Walleye Tour sponsors or logos of Ranger, Stratos or Champion dealers may be worn or displayed during tournament hours extending through the weigh-in.
Anglers who make the cut must wear shirts, rainsuits and PFDs and use camera equipment and Frabill dip nets if supplied by FLW Outdoors.
Competitors may not fish while using tobacco products.
FLW Outdoors may, at its sole discretion, place a camera operator in a tournament boat.

On days 3 and 4 of the FLW Walleye Tour Championship, anglers will fish out of boats provided by FLW Outdoors.
-------------------------------------------------------------
That rule is only for day 4 of the qualifiers and days 3 and 4 of the championship. It doesn't affect the other three days of fishing, stage time, or tv time building up to day 4 in the show.

It has also been proven over and over that there are non-flw sponsor logos/equipment shown on their tv shows. Who really looks that closely anyway? I'm usually focused on the person's face or actions in the boat when I watch the shows...not what their running or wearing.

That shouldn't be a reason to fish a circuit or not.

Yeah, yeah, I know the arguement...it's an old one....but, no one can promise tv time to get a sponsorship anyway.

An angler can't promise sponsors TV time, because there is no way to know for sure it will happen.

People need to get sponsorships for what they can do for their sponsors for 365 days a year....not 5 minutes on a TV show. Unless of course, they have their own TV show. ;)

Just a thought.

Juls

[bbbbbbbb]

I didn't run the numbers like that good point. Maybe that money that didn't get put in the cash payout pot is being used for the no Entry Fee Championship I don't know. I guess if you only fish one tournament you wouldn't have the chance to benefit from that.

[Jim Adsem]

Try asking the FLW how far down they will pay and what the payouts will be if they only get 100 boats entered, then compare.

[bbbbbbbbbbb]

Checked some numbers from last years tournaments on FLW site one tourney had 124 pros and payed down to 41st place. So that is eqaul to 33% of the field. So I suppose they would pay down to 33rd place if they had 100 pro boats just a guess I don't work there so don't know for sure. You could also turn that question around and ask yourself how far down and how much money is AIM going to pay if they only get 70 Pros. If you use the 30% factor for AIM then I suppose it would be around 21st place. Just a guess.