Can O' Worms

[stevefellegy]

is, which tournament circuit will be the leader on the cutting edge culture change within the sport?

[Raybob]

Many of us Gray-Beards fished tourneys long before the chicago duo got started in 1975...

[jet man]

Originally Posted by Raybob

Many of us Gray-Beards fished tourneys long before the chicago duo got started in 1975...

your point is?

Best article I have read from Al Linder. Who was it who originally instituted and promoted the "team" concept as the best way to be competitive in individual competition anyway? How did it get started? I know Al didn't start it..

[stevefellegy]

Originally Posted by Vikings Fan

Best article I have read from Al Linder. Who was it who originally instituted and promoted the "team" concept as the best way to be competitive in individual competition anyway? How did it get started? I know Al didn't start it..

serves me right, that surely I invite anyone to question and correct me if I'm wrong, the first "team" success story was exposed at the awards banquet for the '93 PWT Championship. Until then, again if my memory serves me right, the team thing was around to a certain extent between roommates and or business partners or relatives competing in the same event. Heck, best friends, roommates etc. often didn't tell all to each other and surely commonly lied to be more competitive ( in their minds at the time). JK predicted that "exposing the team concept" that happened at that banquet, would change the tournament scene, extremely.

Next question? Who was on that first "exposed" team--5 anglers-- in '93? Anyone that was there ( and still alive to recall in your old age LOL) remember who? A future trivia subject?

Originally Posted by stevefellegy

serves me right, that surely I invite anyone to question and correct me if I'm wrong, the first "team" success story was exposed at the awards banquet for the '93 PWT Championship. Until then, again if my memory serves me right, the team thing was around to a certain extent between roommates and or business partners or relatives competing in the same event. Heck, best friends, roommates etc. often didn't tell all to each other and surely commonly lied to be more competitive ( in their minds at the time). JK predicted that "exposing the team concept" that happened at that banquet, would change the tournament scene, extremely.

Next question? Who was on that first "exposed" team--5 anglers-- in '93? Anyone that was there ( and still alive to recall in your old age LOL) remember who? A future trivia subject?

Don't have the answer, but good reply Steve.

[SENORGOOGLE]

If walleye tourneys went with the b.a.s.s. and flw bass rules, the rich boys would quit fishing these tournaments. In the bass leagues, the use of guides and teamwork are prohibited. You will be tossed out. Half of the walleye fisherman have no clue on how to find their own bites that is why they team up and follow people.I have fished many tourneys and I always pull to the side in the morning to let the followers see that they are not going to my bite that day, they can go get skunked with the rest of them. Teamwork should be prohibited in all tournaments. I think you would see larger fields even with this economy.

[GiddyGills]

Teams are just one item of a whole laundry list of subjects that are a detriment to the sport. The whole concept needs to be reconstructed from scratch.

[stevefellegy]

Originally Posted by GiddyGills

Teams are just one item of a whole laundry list of subjects that are a detriment to the sport. The whole concept needs to be reconstructed from scratch.

that one of the reasons competitive fishing has so few fans relative to major league sports is "teams" sharing info. LOL Heck, try to find somebody on the street that knows anything about the sport let alone the "team" aspect. Yes, maybe within the relatively small fan base we have here , some show concern and or negative thoughts about anglers sharing info to influence the end results. But even with that group, it's hard to find a majority worrying about it.

The endemic sponsors Al speaks about need to wake up.

"Team" fishing should be the least of their concerns in regard to NOT growing the sport. They need to think about what, in reality, hurts the growth of the sport. Again, you see the "team" aspect having zero negative effects on the fastest growing fan base sport there is today. AUTO RACING! They even use the "team" thing LIVE during the race via radio. When is the last time Al, Mark Fisher from Normark or anyone complained about that--from any perspective--be it as a fan and or as a driver? Anyone not gonna watch the NFL this week after knowing each team shared tape of the other one 's previous games? Heck! They use LIVE camera shots to plan the next series of plays/downs! And the Mark Fishers of the world think team fishing hurts? LOL

Need "level playing fields"? Try taking away the chatter that the Yankee history MLB thrives on from a fan aspect. Sure, one needs to touch/work on the subject but then can you say the Earnhart effect was/is a negative to the growth of auto racing? Successeful "serials", which major league sports really are, need the "bad guy" that seems to always win, the one that always loses to the bad guy and the under dog that almost wins once in while. Can you say the TV show "Dallas"? THAT is the same concept major league sports fans come from and relate to.

Endemic sponsors Al speaks about need to get out of that old school shell they've lived in for the past 40 years of competitive angling history, and join the ranks of major league thinking and marketing. Or at the rate their sales are going, the ONLY customer base they will have are broke Pro Anglers. As Al says "do the math".

Once again Thanks to Al for opening this can...again. Our world, the walleye tournament fishing world, is a small one at best. Endemic sponsors and non-endemic sponsors alike want the best return on their dollars possible. For that who can blame them? I desire the same thing. Sponsors, no matter who, have never quite looked at the anglers as employees. Sure some have made a living from sponsorship moneys and they could be said to be employed or hired as anglers but that is not really a true picture. Of course even those select few are under "confidential" contracts. So for tournament anglers to actually be hired or drafted as mentioned earlier the whole concept and format of tournaments would have to change. In fact calling competitive angling tournaments would in fact have to change to. The exception would be a special event. Heck right now all we have is special events and more and more they are turning into stand alone events with only a handful of well financed anglers fishing entire circuits.

What is happening is pretty plain to see, the tournaments are losing their lifeblood, (life is in the blood)namely the anglers, and without enough anglers there will be fewer or no tournaments. Sure the economy can be blamed for some of this, maybe even most of it. Nevertheless, without anglers that are willing to compete at their own expense, the circuits are struggling. Remember when the MWC used to field 100's of boats? The PWT had a waiting list and a screening process to get in, and there are more examples if one thinks back. The thing is we are a small comunity after all and word does get around eventually. The word is that there is almost no hope for walleye tournament anglers to make a living at competitive angling. After all there is only one winner at an event that makes any real money. There are only a handful of winners each year. Congratualtions to the winners, they deserve it, no matter how they won. Still, they only made enough to get to the next year, unless a sponsor puts them on a payroll large enough to keep the Mrs. happy at home. God knows how many families have been put asunder because of a crazed fisherman. Of course you don't have to be crazy to fish tournaments, but it helps. LOL How many sponsors have laughed and though us crazy behind closed doors?? To many to count. Yeah and even I can laugh at myself over this fishing stuff but on game day I'm not laughing, it all turns serious then.

Seiously speaking the buisness of walleye tournament fishing is still, after all these years, trying to find it's way. A solid buisness will find it's own niche in todays market place or go under. There is still a place for the buisness of tournament fishing, and it is not complicated. It is just fishing after all. Let the anglers fish, drop all the rules that are broken. All unenforcable rules are broken routinely. Even with the entire nation watching professional sports on national TV rules are broken, on purpose, to gain an advantage. Why would we expect anything different at a fishing tournament. Team format? It is probably the wisest choice. A savy buisnessman knows how to take problematic areas of his buisness and turn them around into advantages, which in turn makes working capital and a stronger company.

Just for all who are still thinking embracing teams is not an answer to this can o' worms think again. Teams can still be pro/co-am but with multiple boats fishing as one team. Sponsors need to step up. If they want their buiness to grow from tournament fishing they need to reel-eyes (realize) they need the anglers. The anglers need to be paid a livable wage, either by contract or direct hiring, putting them on the payroll is key. It may well be the only key to the future of competitive walleye angling. Or is the past going to be always to be thought of as the good ole' days?