I had to chime in on this one it hit a hot button. I hate the whole idea of fishing tournaments for money and "Pro" fishing. In Minnesota it has always been tradition and law that one cannot make money off a natural resource that belongs to the public. So you wouldn't think we could justify fishing tournaments, but we do. In Minnesota all tournament fishing is done on public waters. I agree with Pottsy, these guys aren't "Pros", there just guys with enough money, time and greed to spend their lives beating the water and harming a resource that belongs to all of us. If I had my way I'd make all fishing for money illegal. The same way that you can't catch wild fish or shoot wild ducks and sell them you should not be able to catch fish for profit. I know some will argue that the fishing equipment industry is strengthened by this kind of thing. In my opinion we don't need an equipment industry like we have. Look what it's turned into. Sure you can buy just about anything, no self sufficiency or creativity required. Along with at least a 500% profit margin on everything. What ever happened to the days when a person went out and caught fish for fun and a meal based upon skill not on gadgets? I can't count how many times I've gone to my favorite bass lake only to find I can't even get at the boat landing because of some tournament. Then if you can get on the water you are surrounded by idiots flailing their arms off trying to keep the lure in the water and cover the most territory the fastest. And of course you gotta have a boat that goes 90 mph too. That's what I call sport! It's just greed at the expense of the rest of us. The next few days after the tournament there's dead fish floating all over. Now I hear about this new angle. Never thought about it but of course if you can catch big hawgs before they lay eggs you'll get some heavy ones. Again, real sport! I don't think you need a scientific study to tell you that this is not good resource management. No apologies for the ranting. I'd just like to know if I'm the only red neck who feels this way.
