Who is the current best Pro?

[willyfish]

On 8/15/2020 at 8:55 AM, Bill Babler said:

Here is another deal.  Alton Jones Jr. and I just love this guy, he is another one of the up and coming studs of the sport and can catch them a foot deep or 35' deep.  Kid is unreal and going to be better than his dad.

When he says he does not have a Phoenix deal, he is right to a point.  Every component on any of these boats are a different deal.  He of course can get a Mercury deal ranging from free to a $4,500 rebate and of course totally free maintenance.  No cost for batteries and that is huge and the electronic/ trolling motor deals I stated above.

His Phoenix boat deal would be at least a dealer cost deal this year on the boat and trailer standing alone.

As far as Phoenix they don't pay but I think 2 or 3 guys to run their boats and they don't get much.  They do however give the top guys a manufacture cost on the boat and trailer but you are responsible for all the other components and on the boat you can either get a memo deal or a pay up front deal that is even better.  All these guys today have to sell their boats.

In 2021 on a $90.000 totally set up boat most of these guys are in it for about 1/2 that or what ever the retail is they are at 1/2 or a bit less and unlike the old days they own it.  No turn ins anymore.

Alton Jr. is a stick for sure. When you think of all the father son duos or even throw in the Van Dams for that matter, how would you rank them. Hibdons and Martins come to mind. Really good intel about these pros and the deals on the equipment. I was always curious about the subject. If you take all the live scope and periscopes and whatever else you want to throw on these boats to "find" fish out of the equation would a lot of these guys be able to cut it on tour? Without the fish catches you would have a pretty boring TV show for sure, which in the end tells the real story. $$$$$

[Zulu]

Jordan Lee strikes again! General Tire World Championship.

[Champ188]

On 6/28/2020 at 10:01 AM, snagged in outlet 3 said:

Dude next door brags about winning $200 in the Wednesday night deal at LOZ.  Put in $50, burned $100 in gas while driving around in $70k boat.  Gonna take a long time to come out ahead doing that😂

There are tons of misguided folks out there -- most of them willingly turning a blind eye -- who will insist until they are blue in the face that they're making money fishing local tournaments. The rest of us know the truth -- they aren't.

I quit fishing Central Pro-Am when participation dropped to the point that you literally had to WIN to recover your expenses for the event. And that did NOT include boat or truck costs. Between entry fees, gas, lodging and food, Donna and I were spending $1,500 to $2,000 per event to fish for a WINNER'S CHECK of around $1,500. You don't need a degree in finance to figure out that's not a good investment. 

[Mitch f]

9 minutes ago, Champ188 said:

There are tons of misguided folks out there -- most of them willingly turning a blind eye -- who will insist until they are blue in the face that they're making money fishing local tournaments. The rest of us know the truth -- they aren't.

I quit fishing Central Pro-Am when participation dropped to the point that you literally had to WIN to recover your expenses for the event. And that did NOT include boat or truck costs. Between entry fees, gas, lodging and food, Donna and I were spending $1,500 to $2,000 per event to fish for a WINNER'S CHECK of around $1,500. You don't need a degree in finance to figure out that's not a good investment. 

I feel bad even saying this but I would never encourage a young kid to do this for a living.

[Flysmallie]

49 minutes ago, Mitch f said:

I feel bad even saying this but I would never encourage a young kid to do this for a living.

True. They have to remember that if they want to succeed in fishing it's probably only 10% being a fisherman and the other 90% being a vendor rep. So the real question is, do they really want to be a vendor rep? Not saying it's a bad gig but I don't think they realize it isn't all about fishing. 

[fishinwrench]

If a youngster is gonna make money fishing, he's gonna have to do some guiding.  And not everyone has the personality for that.   You've gotta be a good story teller,  have some gut-buster jokes, and know how to build a killer sandwich. 👍

[Ketchup]

If i had to lay down my savings on a guy to do it today, tomorrow, and next month it would be Brandon Palaniuk. 

[Ketchup]

59 minutes ago, fishinwrench said:

If a youngster is gonna make money fishing, he's gonna have to do some guiding.  And not everyone has the personality for that.   You've gotta be a good story teller,  have some gut-buster jokes, and know how to build a killer sandwich. 👍

Lots of those types here, especially the sammich maker part. Come to think of it, that might be all their good for. 😜

[Mitch f]

On 8/17/2020 at 10:52 AM, willyfish said:

Alton Jr. is a stick for sure. When you think of all the father son duos or even throw in the Van Dams for that matter, how would you rank them. Hibdons and Martins come to mind. Really good intel about these pros and the deals on the equipment. I was always curious about the subject. If you take all the live scope and periscopes and whatever else you want to throw on these boats to "find" fish out of the equation would a lot of these guys be able to cut it on tour? Without the fish catches you would have a pretty boring TV show for sure, which in the end tells the real story. $$$$$

Got a great story about Alton Jones. Rick LaPoint and I fished a tourney up at Lake Erie in Detroit back in 2002. Alton Jones was the MC of the event. He was so cordial and introduced us to his family one by one. Rick and I ended up winning 3rd place. At the award ceremony, there was going to be a drawing for a brand new Skeeter boat. Alton’s little girl, who was probably 7 or 8 at the time, reached her hand in for the drawing. We were boat 6 and I immediately noticed she was looking at the ticket she just drew for the winner. She was turning it upside down to try to figure out what the number was. I knew then it was either a 6 or a 9. Alton. Asker her on the microphone what was the number, she said 6!!. We won the boat! Man were we happy campers.

[snagged in outlet 3]

4 hours ago, fishinwrench said:

If a youngster is gonna make money fishing, he's gonna have to do some guiding.  And not everyone has the personality for that.   You've gotta be a good story teller,  have some gut-buster jokes, and know how to build a killer sandwich. 👍

I’ve hired guides all over the place and that’s not been my experience.   The best ones explained where we are going, why and what he thought we should expect.   If I want hear BS I come hear. And poof!   Here you are.  😁