For a guy who’s only fished one FLW Outdoors tournament in his life, Curtis Persinger has amassed an impressive fan base. Not counting relatives, it numbers more than 360,000. That’s how many men and women serve in the National Guard, and while there are a number of big-name pros on the Walmart FLW Tour who wear the Guard logos on their jerseys, Persinger is special. He is a National Guards officer.
In February, Captain Persinger and 86 members of the 940th Military Police Company, which he commands, visited the FLW Outdoors office and tournament headquarters in Benton, Ky., as honored guests for some R&R following months of training and conditioning. Their headquarters is Walton, Ky., but come late June they’ll join more than 1,200 other citizen soldiers from various Bluegrass bases who are being posted in Iraq as the 149th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade. The mobilization of the brigade represents the largest deployment of the Kentucky National Guard ever. Once on the ground in Iraq as part of Operation New Dawn, Persinger’s company will be responsible for base security and defense. New Dawn is part of the last phase of the American government’s involvement in Iraq, or at least that’s the plan now.
Persinger’s interest in visiting FLW Outdoors with his troops was more than cursory. Between now and deployment time, he’s fishing as a co-angler in all the Majors he can. In the Lake Okeechobee Open in early February, he caught a two-day stringer that weighed 16 pounds, 14 ounces. Although Persinger didn’t earn a check, it wasn’t a bad start for a rookie.
“I grew up fishing farm ponds in southern Indiana with my dad,” says Persinger, who hails from New Albany, Ind., across the river from Louisville. “I guess bass are pretty much the same anywhere you go, but in tournaments on big lakes there are so many different scenarios where they might be, and what you need to throw to catch them, that separates the really good fishermen from everybody else. Still, it’s pretty exciting.”
Persinger was presented with the opportunity to fish as a co-angler in late fall, about the same time that he took over command of the 940th. If he had his druthers, and hopefully he will one of these days, he would be the angler in the bow. At the University of Louisville he ran track and cross-country, and he describes himself as an “alpha male” who likes to be top dog in competitions of any kind. Powerfishing with spinnerbaits and crankbaits is his favorite approach, but he understands that versatility is essential when you’re fishing from the back of the boat with other anglers who might be drop-shotting or dragging a jig across the bottom.
Who knows; if things work out and Persinger is able to go home next winter as planned, perhaps he’ll join the ranks of the Walmart FLW Tour full-time. The thought has crossed his mind.
“I have about 10 years of service in and I’m living the best of both worlds now,” says the captain. “I think I can continue to do that and become more involved in fishing tournaments.”
First things first. Persinger, 29, is heading for his third deployment to Iraq. The first time he was posted there, he was a sergeant. During his second tour, he was a platoon leader. And now he’s a company commander. More than just his rank has changed. Persinger and his wife Kathy have a 7-month-old son, Bryson, to think about. New responsibilities take precedence; duty trumps dreams for Persinger and those in his command.
“This might be the biggest thing that they’ve ever done in their lives,” says Persinger of his company’s deployment to Iraq. “Going to a foreign country that’s a very dangerous place to be is a pretty significant event. But they are very good and I’m honored to be their commander. `Make a Way’ is our company slogan. No matter what adversity comes along, we’re going to find a way to do our job.”
Summer will be here before you know it, and soon we’ll set our minds on other things. Still, when you’re out there fishing, you might spend a moment to think about Persinger and the other men and women in uniform who’ve got your back in a hot, dusty land far away.