Bye Bye Tournaments

[flipit]

Sorry, Im confused....

[g-man]

Sorry, Im confused....

I read it earlier.

Don't let a few bad apples stop you from tourney fishing. As bas as it sounds its actually good! One less cheater out there, TD's become more aware, anglers pay more attention! Plus quitters suck!

[Nunyo Bizness]

The problem here is, if Mike Hart can do it?...who else? and where does it stop. What happens now if a newbie scores well in a non local tournament? Will everyone expect he cheated? or the team that comes into their own and scores a few victories in a row, will they now be under suspicion because they start fishing good together? I joined this for the fun and social aspect, the competition is a fun side factor for me. But this changes everything...everything! and for that, I can not forgive Mike Hart. Cheat yourself Mike, that you can live with...but what you have done to your family, friends and the fishing community in general is a scar that will remain forever.

John Younce

[longshot]

There will be cheaters in everything in life and especially if there is MONEY and EGO involved. The part that we have to have confidence in is that cheaters will eventually slip up and get caught and that is what happened here YA he took everyone and there hard earned money for a long time. At what risk though? Now he is done fishing. Can you imagine? Nothing is ever worth that risk. Most of us eat, sleep and breath fishing and allot of the fun of fishing tournaments is not actually the tournament itself. Its hanging with your buds, staying at a lake for days pre-fishing, going out to eat, bbqing, talking about strategy and learning as much as we can about a great sport geez I could go on for days but every aspect of fishing should and is fun. That is done over finished for this guy and I personally am happy about it.
This incident does not make me feel like throwing in the towel it makes me think that we need to figure out how to make it harder for them to cheat and learn from this. I personally think that I will fish the Won circuit next year because I am very impressed with the way that this was handled and they are going to step up there security even more. Maybe if every team had to check just one boat before launch for cheating devices and live bait ect. that would sure be quicker and would make it harder to cheat?
Anyways I personally love tourny fishing and there is no amount of money worth risking the fun of fishing and friends SO I say go ahead and cheat and one day you will get caught and lose everything and NOTHING is worth that risk.
L.S.

[jletsinger]

I not going to fish any more tournaments until I start seeing wand style metal detectors going over the bass before they are weighed. (There only fifty bucks ), the weight displaid on large screen to the crowd, and during a draw pro/am tournament I want to see the pairing done by drawing names out of a hat, where people in the crowd are the ones drawing the names. This needs to be damanded of the organization by the fisherman. Some of the people running the tournaments are just as crooked and hook their buddies up. Lets just keep the honest honest with checks and balances.

[MikeL.]

I don't get this metal detector stuff.


They can be beat easier that a lie detector. A cheat is a cheat and will find a way to cheat the metal detector. While everyone feels soooo comfortable that wand didn't pick up any metal.

[tunaman]

Then I guess we're all screwed and might as well all just quit tournament fishing... looks like this author got it right.

Never said it was the end-all, be-all solution, just one that should be employed. Don't know why you don't seem to get it, but that's fine.

Roger

[Marty]

That is a real shame you are going to let one shithead control you life and make you quit something you enjoy doing – a real shame! I know I will still be going out to fishing tournaments and the main reason is I trust the guys I fish with – even the ones I don’t even know. I refuse to let this shithead control my life and make me think different of what I know and the people I choose to hang out with. Fucc him.

I look at it differently – there may have been (take note I said may have) others out there that have Cheated or may have thought of it. Well just look at what happen to this shithead. If you get caught the same will happen to you! This shithead is now sitting at home wondering what is next, if he was married his wife is looking at him as a non-man. He just lost the respect of his kids if he had any. He may even be thinking of putting a cap to his mouth. That’s what comes from cheating your friends. If anyone else out there is even close to thinking of cheating this is what will happen to you.

NO I’m not quitting because of this shithead and he is not going to change my mind of what I think of the other Anglers I fish with.

[flipit]

I enjoy fishing too, so its not just about tournaments. The thing that really gets me is there are a few that constantly claim there are many cheaters fishing. I usually fish the Delta, and a few other Nor Cal lakes. This is the same area alot of accusations are being made. Personally Ive never seen anything other then guys running 5mph zones.

I work for a living, as most of us do. I fish tourneys for fun and comraderie. Hanging out fishing with my partner, and clowning with buddy's is what I enjoy. I like to win, but I dont have the time to fish like some do, so I always go out there with the fun in mind.

Im sure I will fish tourneys. However I will be much more selective about what I chose. Meaning no speciality events(frog, berkley big bass).

The only way I can see to stop cheating is an observer in every boat. Of course we all know that would be next to impossible.

Like most, Im just a bit shocked about this whole incident. Thanks for the coments.

[Nunyo Bizness]

Like flipit, I too love to tournament fish. I have not won anything or even placed that well, but still enjoy the social aspect of it all. I will not quit fishing the circuits I do, because like Marty said,"I trust the people I fish with"....I know, what a fool. But still, even though we were all fooled by what Hart did, I refuse to let that scumbag ruin the sport and the competition for me. I'm just shocked that this would happen. Trust me when I say, like most I have talked to about this, we are all having trouble getting our minds around this. For the guys who have never fished down here where the scumbag dominated for so long, it easy to say fry him. For those of us who have been losing money to him over the last few years, its a hard pill to swallow....thinking all along that this was the guy you needed to beat and finding out it doesn't matter what you do...he was going to cheat you out anyway. I say prosecute him to the fullest, brand him a cheater and be done with him.

Yoz

[Tin Can]

I don't get this metal detector stuff.


They can be beat easier that a lie detector. A cheat is a cheat and will find a way to cheat the metal detector. While everyone feels soooo comfortable that wand didn't pick up any metal.

Shove em full of rocks instead!!

[Bill K]

Stop tourny fishing, etc, etc over a few such incidents. NO, just watch closely at weigh-ins and check the fish, by hand closer.
There will be a cheater come to light, on occasion, but to stop all the fun we have had a all the various tournys is obsured.
Use some common sense and just be watchful. Bill K

[Greg_Cornish]

Since guys like g-man never make any money anyway, just stop making the prize money so big.

[Murph]

I have to wonder, how many times, if any, a Red Flag might have went up with the Weighmasters at these certain events. Like, Man, I thought this team's Bag looked alot bigger, but , The Scales don't Lie! It seems like it's always a rush to get through the weigh-ins as quickly as possible, maybe we need to slow them down, just a bit, and be a little more observant. You can still maintain Proper Fish Handling with the right tools.

[mark poulson]

Hey, he got caught, the system works.

[Rob Dickson]

When a dead fish is weighed in why not put a tag on it with the anglers name and at the end of the tourney cut open the dead fish then and there? Not a fix all but something to think about.

[Brian Linehan]

Not a bad point Rob!

I know when I'm running the weigh in, I'm very concerned with keeping the weigh in moving so there's no lag. I'm going to slow down a little and take a better look at people's fish and inspect them if something looks weird.

[Tin Can]

Hey, he got caught, the system works.

Only by luck was he caught. If someone didn't ask to see what the dead fish had been eating he would have got away with it. He wasn't caught because of any normal practice of the organization.

[mark poulson]

Actually, I think I read the Arizona DFG claims all the dead fish, has them cleaned and gutted, and given to homeless people, so that is a part of the tournament mechanism, in a round about way.
Either way, he still got caught.
If he got away with it for years, then eveyone he ever fished with as a partner would have to be suspect, too.
You decide.
Myself, I don't think all those guys are cheaters.

[FinesseKid]

I cant believe Hart left the scene peacefully without getting Gang Pounded!!!

How is it that nobody threw a punch when the news came out?

[2ndsuks]

Hey, he got caught, the system works.

+1

[f350mudder]

I am not a tournament fisherman,Yet.I plan on fishing some here and there but that does not make me a tournament angler,I'll just be a guy who loves bass fishing. I use to play alot of mens competitive softball,I remember playing with and against the Cali legend him self Robert Mansor.I stopped playing because of my kids,they play sports now and second I love bass fishing. And another thing there is way to much cheating and BS in softball now a days.No matter what sport you like to play or watch...etc there are always gonna be people trying to cheat the system,especially if money is involved,I will not stop fishing because of a few morons messing it up for all the honest people out there. One thing I've noticed at some of the tournaments I have been to (to watch weigh in)is every single angler that I have met have been really nice people.I'm sure 99% of all angler are honest its that 1% that need to be tied up and dropped off the boat,wow did I say that.