Best Bass Tournament Northern Division

[BestBassTournaments]

Information on the resumes of the team of Preston Henson and Billy Hines were recently brought to the attention of the BBT.

After reviewing their overall accomplishments it has been determined that while they may not have exceeded the monetary limits in the rules, they will be immediately asked to step up to the next level.

The BBT would like to thank the anglers that expressed their opinions directly to myself, so that the matter could be considered without becoming convoluted by internet rumors.

We would also like to thank Mr. Henson and Mr. Hines for their participation and wish them the best of luck as the move into their pro endeavors.

Randy Pringle

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[Tye guy]

How about a refund to BBT ?

[norcalracer]

i bet if they would have taken 5th,6th,7th or worse there would be no problem!

[FROGvsBASS]

so the guy wins and gets booted? But there was no resume review until he cashes a check?? This whole set up sounds like a joke! He is still within the limit but his boat is faster and maybe his set ups are nicer so lets go tell the teacher?? You look at the results and guys are bagging 31#+ at the Delta but they don't want to compete with real anglers?? Did the TD not know who Preston was when he gave them his money in prior tournys? The guy won by less than a pound and 15 anglers had over 20, I think these guys now how to fish and if you are catching 20-30lbs you dont need to be splashing water in the kiddie pool.

[B.Cline]

This is exactly why "Semi pro", "Rookie league", "Future pro" or whatever you want to call them should not exist. They have ruined regular team tournaments in my opinion. If you do well in theory you are supposed to move up to the next level. What is there to move up to?? "Pro teams" or whatever you want to call them do not get hardly any turn out any more besides a very few select regions. So what are guys supposed to fish? I know it's hardly worth my time in most team circuits anymore because all of the boats are fishing the lower level tournaments so it makes the upper level tournaments not worth fishing because of the low turnout. It literally has become a winner take all in most. Not worth the time and effort in my opinion. I really believe that unless something changes It's only going to get worse and regular team tournament are going to go away.
It's not just the rookie tournaments that have done this it is also the localized regions that did this. Most guys get tired of donating to the same few teams on their home lakes so they either fish the rookie teams or don't fish period. It's just kind of sad to see what has happened. Just missing the way things used to be where everyone is allowed to fish and there were huge turnouts and big paydays. I guess those days are gone....

[BassinZ118]

REALLY....the BBT didn't know who Billy Hines and Preston Hinson were BEFORE the tournament when they ACCEPTED their money???? Let's get real, it's all about filling a tournament field for BIGGER PAY DAYS for the select few and the BBT knows the select few as the see them win these events year in and year out!

All of these sandbaggers know they can fish tournaments like the BBT because the rules are set up for them to fish...either the tournament directors are too money hungry for a full event or the "pros" don't have the guts to fish in tournaments of their level; in either case, the true amateurs are just filling the pockets of those who shouldn't be fishing these tournaments.

Wake up...if it smells "fishy" it usually is.

[Rich hamilton]

So where is a guy supposed to fish?

How can anyone afford to fish team circuits for $200-$300 for each event with 10-15 boats showing up?
For the people fortunate enough to have jobs work and family come first, we used to be able to fish events every weekend if they fit into our schedules.

As far as team partners go it is even harder to get people's schedules on the same page to fish team events. Look at all these factors together and you can see the "perfect storm failure"

[scott h]

Information on the resumes of the team of Preston Henson and Billy Hines were recently brought to the attention of the BBT.

After reviewing their overall accomplishments it has been determined that while they may not have exceeded the monetary limits in the rules, they will be immediately asked to step up to the next level.

The BBT would like to thank the anglers that expressed their opinions directly to myself, so that the matter could be considered without becoming convoluted by internet rumors.

We would also like to thank Mr. Henson and Mr. Hines for their participation and wish them the best of luck as the move into their pro endeavors.

Randy Pringle

< ° ( ( ( ( ( ( < {

Certainly a case of CYA, or an example of the phrase "making a show"

REALLY....the BBT didn't know who Billy Hines and Preston Hinson were BEFORE the tournament when they ACCEPTED their money???? Let's get real, it's all about filling a tournament field for BIGGER PAY DAYS for the select few and the BBT knows the select few as the see them win these events year in and year out!

All of these sandbaggers know they can fish tournaments like the BBT because the rules are set up for them to fish...either the tournament directors are too money hungry for a full event or the "pros" don't have the guts to fish in tournaments of their level; in either case, the true amateurs are just filling the pockets of those who shouldn't be fishing these tournaments.

Wake up...if it smells "fishy" it usually is.

Exactly, anyone who has been around long enough knows they knew......

This is exactly why "Semi pro", "Rookie league", "Future pro" or whatever you want to call them should not exist. They have ruined regular team tournaments in my opinion. If you do well in theory you are supposed to move up to the next level. What is there to move up to?? "Pro teams" or whatever you want to call them do not get hardly any turn out any more besides a very few select regions. So what are guys supposed to fish? I know it's hardly worth my time in most team circuits anymore because all of the boats are fishing the lower level tournaments so it makes the upper level tournaments not worth fishing because of the low turnout. It literally has become a winner take all in most. Not worth the time and effort in my opinion. I really believe that unless something changes It's only going to get worse and regular team tournament are going to go away.
It's not just the rookie tournaments that have done this it is also the localized regions that did this. Most guys get tired of donating to the same few teams on their home lakes so they either fish the rookie teams or don't fish period. It's just kind of sad to see what has happened. Just missing the way things used to be where everyone is allowed to fish and there were huge turnouts and big paydays. I guess those days are gone....

+1

so the guy wins and gets booted? But there was no resume review until he cashes a check?? This whole set up sounds like a joke! He is still within the limit but his boat is faster and maybe his set ups are nicer so lets go tell the teacher?? You look at the results and guys are bagging 31#+ at the Delta but they don't want to compete with real anglers?? Did the TD not know who Preston was when he gave them his money in prior tournys? The guy won by less than a pound and 15 anglers had over 20, I think these guys now how to fish and if you are catching 20-30lbs you dont need to be splashing water in the kiddie pool.

Amen ........

How about a refund to BBT ?

How about the bbt refunds all the anglers who didn't know who these guys were but the td did?

[Mike]

This is exactly why "Semi pro", "Rookie league", "Future pro" or whatever you want to call them should not exist. They have ruined regular team tournaments in my opinion. If you do well in theory you are supposed to move up to the next level. What is there to move up to?? "Pro teams" or whatever you want to call them do not get hardly any turn out any more besides a very few select regions. So what are guys supposed to fish? I know it's hardly worth my time in most team circuits anymore because all of the boats are fishing the lower level tournaments so it makes the upper level tournaments not worth fishing because of the low turnout. It literally has become a winner take all in most. Not worth the time and effort in my opinion. I really believe that unless something changes It's only going to get worse and regular team tournament are going to go away.
It's not just the rookie tournaments that have done this it is also the localized regions that did this. Most guys get tired of donating to the same few teams on their home lakes so they either fish the rookie teams or don't fish period. It's just kind of sad to see what has happened. Just missing the way things used to be where everyone is allowed to fish and there were huge turnouts and big paydays. I guess those days are gone....

Ditto

[george]

You guys aught to be happy that there are circuits like these to fish in central and nor-Cal and that these organizers like Randy have put them together! He has done of hell of a job from what I have seen from down here in SoCal and has put together a great sponsor base also.
The success of these rookie leagues just goes to show you that the average angler and weekend warrior does not think that he can compete against the guys who are fishing for a living and have the ability to be on the water everyday preparing for tournaments. So they choose to fish the "Rookie Leagues", for a lower fee and have a chance to make a check once in a while, learn more about the sport and have fun.

Randy and Vince have been smart enough to cater to the masses and both have developed great tournament circuits that have low fees, pretty decent payouts and a venue for the 90% that does not fish FLW, Bass or high level competition.
You should be saying "Thanks" and not trying to beat em down; It is a business they are running and they seem to be trying to put out the best product possible!

If there is policy within the rules of these "Rookie Leagues" that state there is a maximum on the amount of tournament winnings or overall success and anyone over that limit cannot take part in this competition then the anglers who knew these guys were fishing the event should have protested within the protest period to the Tournament Director.
The TD can then make a decision to hold the winners check until he can research the situation and if he finds that they have exceeded the leagues policy of winnings they would not receive the check and it would go back into the TOC fund as well as there would be no refund of tournament fees because the angler knows how much they have won.

But look at it this way; In Major League Baseball you get guys that go back to the minors to re-hab or to get better at what they do. On the PGA golfers can play and win the US Open and go back to playing at the lower level competitions the next week.
If you are fishing a competition and it has a monetary value in winnings you are no longer an amateur!

Maybe there should be some sort of handicapping system in tournament bass fishing that would level the field based on prior winnings! This would allow everyone to fish and increase the pot but would put the guys that have greater winnings on the same level as the majority by having a weight handicap assessed against them at the start of the event!

George

[B.Cline]

You guys aught to be happy that there are circuits like these to fish in central and nor-Cal and that these organizers like Randy have put them together! He has done of hell of a job from what I have seen from down here in SoCal and has put together a great sponsor base also.
The success of these rookie leagues just goes to show you that the average angler and weekend warrior does not think that he can compete against the guys who are fishing for a living and have the ability to be on the water everyday preparing for tournaments. So they choose to fish the "Rookie Leagues", for a lower fee and have a chance to make a check once in a while, learn more about the sport and have fun.

Randy and Vince have been smart enough to cater to the masses and both have developed great tournament circuits that have low fees, pretty decent payouts and a venue for the 90% that does not fish FLW, Bass or high level competition.
You should be saying "Thanks" and not trying to beat em down; It is a business they are running and they seem to be trying to put out the best product possible!

George,
I realize that they are catering to a large majority of fisherman. What I am saying is it leaves a large number of fisherman out who enjoy team fishing. Trust me the number of guys "making a living fishing"
is very, very small out here in the west. The number of guys that can't afford to fish the FLW tournaments and Pro-Am style tournaments and they still enjoy fishing team style tournaments but are over qualified for the rookie team tournaments is a much,much larger number. So really the bottom line is the "stepping up to the next level" goes from rookie team fishing for a couple hundred bucks for a team on a weekend to Solo fishing Pro-ams or Opens for four or five days and a much larger entry($300-$1,000)+expenses per tournament??
That leaves alot of us out of the equation.

[forgetaname]

This is always an interesting and touchy subject. Obviously other factors come into play but i think if you qualify to fish something then you should be allowed to fish. Whether or not your getting complaints from other anglers is irrelevant. It just puts a td in a bad position to possibly lose more than just one team. It's up to tournament directors to implement restrictions that would prevent anglers from becoming professional semi pro's and dominating the circuit. But honestly these tournaments are getting the most draws and sponsor support so they will never go away. If anglers are content with fishing these circuits then leave them alone let them fish. All fishermen have different goals and ultimately it's up to the anglers to step up to the "next level". Which really isn't much of a difference outside of entry fee and more consistent grade of competition. But as long as you have the oppurtunity to win the money and prizes that these events put out and fish against competition that makes you feel like you've gotta shot to win, nothing will change.

[B.Cline]

This is always an interesting and touchy subject. Obviously other factors come into play but i think if you qualify to fish something then you should be allowed to fish. Whether or not your getting complaints from other anglers is irrelevant. It just puts a td in a bad position to possibly lose more than just one team. It's up to tournament directors to implement restrictions that would prevent anglers from becoming professional semi pro's and dominating the circuit. But honestly these tournaments are getting the most draws and sponsor support so they will never go away. If anglers are content with fishing these circuits then leave them alone let them fish. All fishermen have different goals and ultimately it's up to the anglers to step up to the "next level". Which really isn't much of a difference outside of entry fee and more consistent grade of competition. But as long as you have the oppurtunity to win the money and prizes that these events put out and fish against competition that makes you feel like you've gotta shot to win, nothing will change.

I realize that they are never going away. I guess I am just bitching because before there were rookie team tournaments, there were regular team tournaments where everyone could participate. Yeah there still are but now nobody fishes them. I am just old school I guess. The way it is set up now guys like me can either fish Pro-ams or just a few yearly specialty larger team events (If we want to continue fishing team events)
I just wonder how many guys that are fishing these "rookie" events are going to be able to "step up" when required to do so with the time and financial requirements of fishing a Pro-am or Open circuit?? I know it's not cheap, I have tried it a number of times over the years. I just wish there was something more affordable and required less of a time commitment to fish In between these. It's really difficult with a family to find the time and money to make that big of a jump.

[crawdaddy]

"This is exactly why "Semi pro", "Rookie league", "Future pro" or whatever you want to call them should not exist. They have ruined regular team tournaments in my opinion. If you do well in theory you are supposed to move up to the next level. What is there to move up to?? "Pro teams" or whatever you want to call them do not get hardly any turn out any more besides a very few select regions. So what are guys supposed to fish? I know it's hardly worth my time in most team circuits anymore because all of the boats are fishing the lower level tournaments so it makes the upper level tournaments not worth fishing because of the low turnout. It literally has become a winner take all in most. Not worth the time and effort in my opinion. I really believe that unless something changes It's only going to get worse and regular team tournament are going to go away.
It's not just the rookie tournaments that have done this it is also the localized regions that did this. Most guys get tired of donating to the same few teams on their home lakes so they either fish the rookie teams or don't fish period. It's just kind of sad to see what has happened. Just missing the way things used to be where everyone is allowed to fish and there were huge turnouts and big paydays. I guess those days are gone...."

At least these leagues go to multiple venues to get an "Angler of the Year". What killed team fishing is "All in for $300" tournaments that fish one body of water 7+ times in a year. That is a lot of cash for guys to go up against the one lake wonders (one of which even posted on this thread). I would rather travel and fish multiple bodies of water for less and then have a TOC of anglers who have demonstrated skill over multiple bodies of water. I have fished both sides and I enjoy doing pro/ams from the front but I would not if they only fished one body of water. Expensive micro circuits are killing team fishing. I laugh when guys who only fish one body of water tell guys who are fishing all over to "step up", thats a joke to me. Step out of your zip code and your comfort zone and lead by example. There is plenty of blame to go around but the truth is that guys fish tourneys for different reasons and there are too many orgs and not enough tournament fishermen anymore. Plain and simple.

[B.Cline]

Crawdaddy,
I don't think you read the last part of my post.

It's not just the rookie tournaments that have done this it is also the localized regions that did this. Most guys get tired of donating to the same few teams on their home lakes so they either fish the rookie teams or don't fish period. It's just kind of sad to see what has happened. Just missing the way things used to be where everyone is allowed to fish and there were huge turnouts and big paydays. I guess those days are gone....

I agree that this is a huge part of the problem. I wish there was a traveling team circuit that drew a good number of boats that does not have restrictions on winnings and/or over qualifications. There is just no such thing anymore. I am not at all bashing any angler fishing these, and I do think it is great that the rookie teams do travel. It makes for a much more even playing field. The point I am trying to make is if/or when a team fishing the rookie events is asked by the tournament director to step up to the next level would they be able? Or even want to? There is not enough boats fishing regular teams and they are all "localized" and the other choice would be Pro-ams or opens wich is quite a big jump financially and alot more time required to be competitive. I know I wouldn't want to. Why would anyone want to fish regular teams for higher entries less winnings and fish against the local cherry pickers. I really don't believe there is any fixing the situation. Just venting I guess.....

[BassinZ118]

Isn't one of the responsibilities of the Tournament Director to monitor an police the rules "they" created????? Furthermore, these tournament directors have been around the block more than once...and have been in the region for many, many years so you can't tell me they don't know the "sticks" that have been fishing in and winning in their events over the years. Its a slap in the face to all of us if you expect us to believe the tournament directors are unaware of these individuals.

It may be unfortunate that the next level for the more qualified anglers is "too expensive" with little $$$ payouts but its even more unfair for the 'true rookies" wanting to learn the sport, gain new skills and knowledge to become better anglers with no chance of ever having the opportunity to win an event and gain some confidence.

Maybe the tournaments need to be sub-divided within by Divisions such as "A" anglers, "B" Anglers and "C" anglers with the overall pots prorated somehow, like 50% of the total pot for A anglers, 30% for B anglers and 20% for C anglers...that way everyone has an opportunity of a pay-day.

Anyway, until such time as the tournament field is "leveled" somehow or the rules are changed myself and three other teams I know of will no longer be fishing these events and DONATING our money to the select few.