Most of us don't have the gear, the electronics, the time, the money or the talent it takes to compete in pro level fishing tournaments. So the chances of us ever winning big money from fishing are pretty much nil.
But a series of luck-of-the-draw events slated for this summer will allow all of us ham-and-eggers at least a shot at some pretty impressive prizes, including new pickup trucks and high-dollar boat and motor rigs.
The deal is the sweepstakes-style events tag a few fish and the luck-struck angler who happens to catch them wins the big prize.
To be sure, you don't have a very good chance of winning--in fact, it's no doubt just a bit better than being struck by lightning--but on the other hand you don't have to make a big investment, or any investment in some cases, to have a shot at the prize.
In Florida, the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is celebrating the 10th season of their Trophy Catch Program with some amazing prizes for anglers who catch one of 10 trophy-sized largemouths they’ve stocked into lakes across the state.
Each angler that catches and documents a pink-tagged bass will score a $5,000 gift card to Bass Pro Shops, $1,000 to shop at AFTCO, with a chance to win an additional $10,000.
“Our freshwater biologists tagged 10 huge bass across the state – just about everyone is within a day-trip’s distance to fish for one of these tagged bass from a boat, kayak or even the bank,” says KP Clements, Director of FWC’s TrophyCatch program.
The lakes are all well-known big bass waters that traveling anglers will want to fish in any case. Here’s the list, with click-throughs for more information on each lake:
1. Newnans Lake
2. Lake George
3. Lake Talquin
5. Tenoroc Fish Management Area
8. Lake Griffin
10. Johns Lake
Of the 10, I’d be inclined to concentrate on the two smallest, Newnan’s Lake east of Gainesville, which is about 5,600 acres, and John’s Lake, which is just 2,500 acres, west of Orlando. I’ve personally caught several large bass out of John’s Lake, and the fact that it’s so small means the odds of recapturing that tagged prize winner will be best here.
FWC’s TrophyCatch program is a tool for FWC’s freshwater fisheries research and management. It provides reward incentives to encourage anglers to catch, release and report trophy-sized (weighing 8 pounds or more) largemouth bass in Florida.
The program develops public-private partnerships to protect trophy bass, promote fishing and support fisheries conservation programs. TrophyCatch anglers with approved bass receive rewards from program partners while FWC biologists learn more about producing and sustaining trophy bass fishing in the state.
Visit the 10-tag webpage on the TrophyCatch website for rules on how to participate in the season 10 promotion.
Also on the cast-for-cash agenda are the Coastal Conservation Association STAR tournaments in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida.
Again, the deal is you catch a fish tagged by the committee, in this case redfish, and you win big.
In this event, there's an entry fee of $40, plus you have to join CCA to participate, so that's an added $35, but for $75 bucks you get a shot at prizes worth over $500,000, in the case of the Florida event. Here’s a link to their site:
That sounds BIG until you look at the Texas STAR event (naturally), which will award each of the first five anglers to catch and certify a tagged redfish in the 2022 event with a Ford F150 “Texas Edition” XLT Super Cab connected to a Haynie 23 Bigfoot bay boat with a Mercury 150 L Pro XS Optimax and Coastline Trailer.
And the second five to catch and certify one of the tagged redfish will each take home a Haynie 23 Bigfoot bay boat with a Mercury 150 L Pro XS Optimax and Coastline Trailer.
And there are also big prizes for other species both inshore and offshore, and even a couple of boats to be given away by straight drawing from among tournament entrants. There’s a whole lot more—see details here:
To be sure, once again you’re sort of looking for that needle in the haystack on many miles of coastline in the CCA events, but worst case is you don’t catch a winner but you become part of a conservation group that has done a huge amount for fisheries and recreational anglers all over the Southeast for the last 40 years or so.
—Frank Sargeant
Frankmako1@gmail.com