Editor’s Note: This is the second half of a two-part story focusing on the impact of winning an FLW Tour Championship. Click here to read part one.
Though winning the FLW Tour Championship in 2003 gave him a true sense of accomplishment, David Dudley said much of his emotion at the time centered on knowing the payday provided career insurance – knowing he’d be able to afford life on the tournament trail for some time to come.
Championship check buys career insurance
“There’s a sense of pride that comes into play when you outfish the best 48 anglers in the world, and you’re the best that year,” Dudley said, “but the most significant thing was the relief of stress from winning that money.
“If you become content with $500,000 … it’s a lot of money, but if you let your guard down, that half-million is going to be gone quick.”
2002 FLW Tour Champion John Sappington also said that a championship payday may not go as far as those outside the sport may think. Though he had to sit out for most of this season, he said he still has a little bit of his winnings left to tide him over until he is earning checks again.
“At the time, I was needing it,” Sappington said of his $260,000 championship win. “I was sleeping in a van, and half the time I’d sleep at the ramp just to save money. I was living out of a cooler.
“This sport is a really expensive one … just to keep going. If it wasn’t for that win, (my accident this year) probably would have put me out of business. It’s been a blessing for me.”
Many professional athletes can rely at least partly on teammates – as well as opulent salary contracts – to help carry them through personal slumps. The pro bass circuit is a solo sport, so the pressure to earn enough to stay financially afloat lies behind each tournament cast.
Dion Hibdon, winner of the 2000 FLW Tour Championship and a past Bassmaster Classic winner, said of his payoffs, “It’s a huge burden lifted off your shoulders. For me, it was a sense of relief. It is an expensive sport to be in. You still have bills at home, and the travel expenses are enormous.
“In our sport, that kind of money is always a good shot in the arm for a couple of years; it can keep you fishing … or help to make some investments. You can sock it away in something – maybe a college fund for the kids.”
Win can mean more than money
A championship win can spell more than “payday” for a top-notch pro; it can translate into opportunity for the winners who want it.
A championship win may open the door to new sponsorship deals, which can in turn lead to an angler’s tournament entry fees being paid or other economic incentives like product endorsements or making appearances on behalf of sponsors as one of their pro team members.
“You can take it to whatever level you want it to be,” Hibdon said of winning the FLW Tour Championship. “If you want to work hard, you can make a lot of money.”
Hibdon said he has especially enjoyed developing his public-speaking career, which takes him to at least 40 different engagements annually. He gives presentations at all kinds of functions, not just fishing clinics: everything from boat, sports or travel shows to home-and-garden shows and colleges.
“I’ve been blessed with the gift of gab. I probably spend more time now actually speaking instead of fishing,” he said. “It’s a whole lot easier now to sell yourself. Our sport is the fastest-growing one out there right now. You can always have the speaking to fall back on.”
Dudley said the professional bass-fishing industry has reached a level where champions can parlay a win into much more than a $500,000 prize.
“You can make it be what you want it to be,” he said. “A win like that is of a great magnitude. An angler with a win like that will have the opportunity to have more pull in the industry. It’s a great bonus.”
But Dudley said such perks don’t automatically fall from the sky after the winning weight has earned a championship title. Just like an angler must be focused on fishing to win a tournament, he said a pro must seek out the potential benefits of winning a championship to make them happen if he so desires.
“You better go knocking on their door,” Dudley said of gaining new sponsors. “You really have to push it.”
Though Dudley has secured sponsorships, he has not chosen to hit the seminar circuit with full force. He said a career in professional fishing has many rewards, but is also laden with stress and frustration. When Dudley isn’t fishing, he said he uses his time to invest in other interests – both business and personal – especially his growing family.
“You try to make your living in six weeks. That’s hardcore pressure,” he said. “If you eat, breathe, sleep bass fishing all the time – well, you have to have a balance in your life. I’d rather stay at home with my family, with my kids. That’s what keeps the balance.”
When Sappington won the championship, he said the timing was perfect for him because he was at a point where he wanted to commit fully to fishing the FLW Tour. He also seized the opportunity to maximize on opportunity for sponsorship.
“What it shows to sponsors is that you have the consistency to make the championships, but also that you can win,” he said. “The way the circuits were set up, FLW had always been a better circuit for me. Winning the championship, I realigned my sponsors to the FLW and it really simplified my life. It was nothing but positive for me.”
Sappington’s take on the ramifications of an FLW Tour Championship win in terms of sponsorship differs from Dudley’s. He said earning the title also led to opportunity knocking on his door.
“I’m not one who really goes out and actively seeks sponsorship,” Sappington said. “I’ve always just waited until somebody asked me. If a sponsor wants somebody, they’ll go ask them.”
But what an FLW Tour Championship winner does with a victory is a point relevant to only some of the hundreds who fish the circuit. Perhaps more important for the pros battling it out tournament after tournament along the FLW Tour is the fighting chance they all have to make a living fishing.
Sappington said, “It’s a blessing to have a circuit like this where you can win $250,000 or $500,000. I’d really like to thank FLW for the opportunity … for making a viable career out of this.”