As a fan I would like to see MLF not give out the anglers names on the Score Tracker and instead just say that the 1st place angler has 20lbs., the 2nd place angler has 18 lbs., etc. That would eliminate a lot of this in MLF.
I love your thought! Makes total sense. You know where you stand, and you know the standings/weights, but you don’t know who it is with the weights. Totally agree! The problem is over a multiple day event how do you keep the anglers standings on the down low from the other anglers?
Not to sound like an ass. But these are public lake's they can fish anywhere they want. But I do understand what you're saying. You see a someone catching fish and just pull up on him that's F up. Some of these guys fish right on top of each other. Then you have guys that share a house and the information about their prefishing. Then they call each other and tell the other house mates to come to their spot
Id say this is a huge reason KVD retired. Instead of being fun, it turned into a more stressful day on the water. I hate tournaments becaof this type of behavior.
this is why I quit tournament and club fishing. Drama and whining and accusations constantly. I have more fun than ever now fishing for myself. I did fairly well in tournaments, but it still wasnt worth all the crap I had to hear and deal with.
@basschaser9356 I'm a st clair local. Once, a pro chastised me for sitting on a spot he wanted. I lost my mind when he told me it was his living. I flipped out and screamed about how I work 80hrs a week and get out when I can but I should stay off my home water that has 3 tournaments every weekend. It sucks because I've had 99 other interactions with pros, one hopped on my boat to teach me how to throw a blade bait mid tournament, but the bad one sticks.
Wheeler didn’t cut anyone off. He pulled up on a spot he had previously been on that Becker hadn’t caught any fish on. Quit trying to making something of absolutely nothing.
If I practiced for three days and got bit there, i'm fishing there I don't care if they are in the lead. If your there trying to provide for your family, and you found the spot in practice i;d fish there no matter who is there.
There will never be another 1990's bunch of Pro's, Doug Garrett, Larry Nixon, George Cochran, Ricky Green, Scott Rook, Scott Suggs, Jerry Williams, Mike Wurm, Woo Dave's, Stacy King, Rick Clunn and many more in the Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas. It was nothing to talk to one of these guys and then invite you to go fish with them which was excellent public relations and great for sponsors. Doug Garrett and Larry Nixon 2 of the best to take you out even to this day. When tournaments don't allow people to go out with these pros that are sponsored they are shooting themselves in the foot. These guys today are not in the same league of gentlemen as the old school guys were. Joey Cifuentes is as close as it gets.
same thig happens these days even if recreational fishing. Somebody sees you catch a nice one and next thing you know they are spotlocked 10 yards away from you. That didn't used to happen.
Public Lake. No one is on the spot. Fish it. Tell these crybaby fisherman to shut their mouth if someone is on a spot they want to fish. Disqualify their ass if they say anything. But bass pros are a sorry lot these days.
Ethics are falling by the weigh side because there not being taught. People have stopped talking to one another and just immediately go full Karen and act as if they have some sort of moral authority. It's the whole unspoken rule scenario because it's assumed that everybody was raised with those same ethics. Another issue is money. Your right, the guy in 60th place has no chance to win it, but if he's just outside the cut to get a check to at least cover his expenses. I also get that. It doesn't make it right, but for him, it might be worth living in the gray to get to the next tournament. The single biggest thing I notice more than anything else is approach and tone. A few years back I almost came to blows with some guy about disposing dog waste in his garbage can. He didn't approach me in a friendly manner or even ask my nicely not to put dog waste in his garbage. He immediately went straight to the threat. I would of gladly apologized and made a conscious effort not to do it again, but you come at me without so much as an explanation, yeah I'm not going to lie down. I'm going to respond in kind rather I'm right or not. It's more than just ethics. It's showing respect for your fellow man. But today, it's all about going out of your way to disrespect somebody as quick and as aggressively as possible. Nobody in this world is perfect and we all make mistakes. You want to call me on a mistake and bring it to my attention. I can except that, but if come at me like you've never committed a mistake your life, threaten me, or immediately go out of your way to disrespect me, well then were going to have a problem. I won't start a fight, but I will finish one.
No one owns a hole! It’s like my brother told me, if you find a good spot, you can bet others have already found it. Pulling in on someone is just wrong. First come first serve. Period, no discussion!
I’ve spent thousands of hours scanning ledges on ky lake to find the juice only to have people pull in when they see you catch a fish. Makes me so frustrated I don’t even enjoy fishing tournaments anymore.
When it comes to ethics it’s gone Bass fisherman from where I live just run right on top of other fisherman. I crappie fish and do a lot of tight line trolling and they come so close half of my rod goes under their wake and it has gave bass fisherman a bad name on the local lakes. They don’t respect other fishermen
I’ve went to the lake when a local group had a tournament they all acted like assholes to me all I saw all morning was them flying up and down the lake I was fishing for fun and bet I did better than half of them
Current thought is: “it’s all about me”. No one else matters! Sad commentary on someone’s life. Eventually someone really important will tell you to go to ****! To late at that point. JT, I agree. If we were only kinder, more thoughtful, and sincere our lives would be so much fuller and rewarding. We’d even have more fun fishing. Stay safe. Stay like you are. God Bless! P.S. I’ll share a fishing spot with you anytime, just let me catch a few fish.🙂
In several local tournaments I've been in we have a 50yrd buffer from the next boat to allow space. Alot of people think that's too close. But if someone is 400 yrd away and they want to complain your taking their spot? Come on man. Entitled much?
I made a comment on another angler's channel when he explained why he did it. I thought he did a great job explaining WHY he did it and that is why he is a winner, and I am not because I wouldn't do it. It is getting easier for these guys to rationalize bad behavior and convince themselves they did nothing wrong. Just the way the world is these days, I guess.
Outdoor media people used to ride with the competitors in the Classics. It was during the 2000 Classic in Chicago that one Pro told me that he was concerned bigger money would change bass fishing in a negative way. I was a fly on the wall in 2001 at New Orleans when the Bass Professor Doug Hannon and a Mercury Rep talked about how the fishing industry was changing and how companies would be doing backgrounds on their sponsored pro staff to keep negatives away from the environment... No doubt it has changed and is changing...
You're absolutely correct. I was a media observer in Edwin Evers boat and we spoke about what I could expect and his responses told me what a newbie observer needed to know. I understood the high stakes after fishing the Media Classic with Brent Chapman and our interactions knowing he'd wrapped up his practice fishing for a PR tourney and dinner afterwards. But what I saw from both men as up and comers was they talked to the veterans and older seasoned guys and there was clearly respect. There's a lot of lacking in this area today.
It’s not just pros, or even amateur money tournaments. I fish in a local club and we just fish for bragging rights. We have a guy in our club who does this to the other guys in our club.
They ought to try crappie fishing below Ross Barrett spillway. When you can walk on the boats next to each other you'll learn patience or take up another sport.😊
Ive lived on Toledo Bend for a couple of years and bank fish it dang near every weekend, from end to end. I REALLY hate when a boat pulls in on me after seeing me catch one from 500 yards out in the middle. But, when i know a big tournament is happening, i usually wont go out of respect for them. I live there, most of them dont. I get to fish it way more, so i dont mind.
Just my two cents. Showing 8 hrs of live tournament fishing has created several problems. Firstly, people find it boring and are blaming FFS when in reality if you had live fishing 20 years ago before FFS spectators would be bored watching an angler catch a bass every other hour anyways. Secondly, live fishing opens the door for anglers to “cheat” by showing up the next day in the same area the day one leader fished. And thirdly, the cost for cameraman is expensive and can be used to increase payouts. We need to keep it simple and go back to highlights.
Well in my opinion that was a totally dick move by Wheeler cutting off Becker, afterwards he said he was defending that spot and that makes me even madder than I was because he wasn’t nowhere around and Becker was fishing down that bank and Wheeler thinks he owns the water so he pulled up in front of Becker like he had the right to where ever he wants any time he chooses. What a dick!
To add to the story: Wheeler found that spot in practice and LET Becker fish ahead of him Day 1 on that stretch. Becker didn't boat one fish. Wheeler trolls up and puts a smack down on them. Becker knows where Wheeler is and hears his official notify him of the score tracker. He knew where Wheeler was and decided he would "claim" that stretch. Wheeler pulls up more that 150 yards in front of Becker (legally) and is defending ONE spot (a trench). Becker throws his TM on 100% when he saw Jacob way ahead to try and intercept. The rest is history. Becker tucked his tail like he should have and left. Speaking of history: Becker was the same guy boating the same fish over and over at Cayuga last year. Doing so propelled him into the top ten, and he ultimately beat Wheeler for AOY by the skin of his teeth. Was is ethical for Becker to catch the same bed fish over and over, and even admit he did it? To me, this was Wheeler's payback by not letting him slide in on the juice. Becker didn't make the cut that day. Adios!
Great video. I don't tournament fish but understand your point. I see other men fish on my lake but I stay away from them and fish other places. It is just good manners. These same pe0ple see me and treat me the same way. Love the sport but need to treat each other in a good way.
I quit bass tournaments 30 years ago because every fisherman thinks he’s Kevin VanDam or Roland Martin. If they get on fish they think they own that spot and 2 miles each side of it. If you have a honey hole you only own it while you are fishing it. If you leave it it’s not automatically yours for the rest of the tournament. That said there should still be a respectful way of handling it. You don’t jump in front of or right behind someone. That’s just wrong. But there is a distance limit that should apply and I like your thinking. If you’d be upset by a competitor’s actions then you should apply that same thought when it’s you moving towards another angler. It happens even more when recreational fishing. Some guys or gals don’t get it, some are plain stupid and some are just plain rude. It is nice to know that I made the correct decision 30 years ago. It just ain’t worth the aggravation or the risk. Kind of like road rage, you know.
Reminds me of a time when I pulled up on a community hole early with not one soul in sight on Pickwick below the dam. IYKYK. Anyways, just sitting on a prime spot off a point with the current generated by the damn pushing shad into the slack side of the post and bass just going nuts on topwater, my friend that took out were casting spooks and whooper bloopers and just slaying them. The average size was 2+. Just pure fun. That's when I see several boats fishing downstream along the southern side and a couple from the Rockpile Rec area, for those familiar with Pickwick, power up their big motors and cons streaming in like what Ben Miliken calls hole vultures and proceeds to literally cast over our lines, snagging us several times. Look I know it's a community hole, but do you really have to busting up on us because you weren't catching anything tossing your shad and drifting or your jug on some boulder rocks just of the current break not catching a darn thing because you suddenly saw us slaying schooling bass? I would've welcomed them. Yet they came in literally casting over our lines knowing the exact spot we were casting into with their popping corks and plugs. Felt nice "setting a hook" on some yahoo with a spinning gear setup tossing that plug over my spook on 65 lb braid. Thought I had a setup for a second until he cried about it. 😂 Served him right.
How close is too close ? That is the question that should be answered by the tournaments....before hand. The answer to the problem seems kind of easy to me. This for pro on pro or, and just as important a pro pulling up on a non tournament fisherman acting like he owns the lake because of the tournament.
Fishing has lost it's soul. From the cost of even starting to compete in higher level tournaments, to the rise of ffs and the proliferation of livewelling fish for a glory pick. I followed every second of the elites last year, I haven't paid any attention this year.
just another example of the impending decline of tourney fishing . us locals look forward to the day when tourneys are outlawed and the people who pay for the roads and landings dont have to put up with it anymore
Don't leave the spot if don't want someone to pull in. Agree with the 1st and 80th example..let's remember these pros have practiced for sometime prior to the tourney. They all basically find the same spots..example logan martin.
There's no ethics, morals, respect for the sport of fishing, respect for the limited source (the fish),....$$$$$$ controls everything, and todays anglers have no interest in the actual sport itself...need to start calling them Catchermen, instead of fishermen.....that's the big difference in todays anglers...a passion for the sport isn't evident, with video gaming ,eyes glued, and hunting fish that have no chance in any body of water to flee fishing pressure the top priority....I've watched my last Scopermaster Classic 2 years ago, my last Elite Scope Series event, and my last TV scope show....Some of us still have pride & respect for the limited resource
As other post have mentioned, the lack of ethics and courtesy no longer exist in the fishing world as a whole. Not only fishing ethics, but boating ethics as well. The last 5 yrs I can't count the number of times an ignorant F#'k ran between me and bank on pad. I'm 40 yrds off the bank ! One example, but things have changed and it sucks. 👎
Nice video man! Your videos are very well done and I love watching! I make fishing videos as well and it’s cool to see what you’re up to!! Keep up the good job!👌👌
It’s called honor and integrity. Most of us learned that in childhood playing outside, getting in fights and becoming friends, playing in the neighborhood, Boy Scouts, at church, and team sports. We also learned critical thinking because of these processes. But with participation trophy’s, and growing up on an iphone and a notebook we don’t learn those things any more as two phycologist’s explained to me the other day. It is a curse to society. But a planned curse, on purpose. And you’re describing how it starts JT. Honor and integrity are getting harder and harder to find.
They unintentionally put others right on their spot. Shouldve stayed relatively close to their hole and folks wouldve went elsewhere. Its a huge mind game that kinda backfired on em. I get it lol
You cant claim a spot that big on a public lake... There are weekend fishermen as well as other local tournaments...that's part of the challenge. If I only get a chance to fish with my dad, brother,son or grandson on Saturday first come first served...deal! It's kind of like weather,deal with it, if it's tough for you it's tough for everybody.
JT, it’s not new. Hope you read this. The tourney you won on Toho years back, I was fishing a bedding flat on the east shore over by Whaleys. You know the spot. I had 3 guys come in on plane ripping through the pads, and shut down right on top of me. Seriously, I could cast my senko into any of their boats. They thought nothing of coming in and blowing out the fish I was on. I heard them conversing that they would sit still for a while and let the bass come back in. So unethical boat antics to a local and sharing info amongst themselves? Funny how they were unhappy when I jumped up on plane and ran 3 circles around them when I left. I went straight to my favorite offshore spot and you were there. I stayed outside and watched you catch your winning bag. 👍🏻
Yes, bass anglers are worse than a pack of soap opera addicted humans!!!! The drama is out of hand and it is mostly because of ethics, morals, & money. Out of all the drama this year only two stick out to me - Zaldain & Wheeler. The Wheeler incident upset me the most because I consider him the best fisherman out of both tours and I still feel that way, but I am very disappointed at what he did.
I’m with you. I’ve been defending him for years against people saying he’s a dykk, but now I’m thinking I’m the one who was wrong. I’m definitely off the Wheeler bandwagon.
I never move in on someone but if someone leaves a spot I may or will get on it. But if I'm on a honey hole and I have my daily bag. I'm not going to leave it. I'll lay down my rod, eat a sandwich, have a Coke and a smoke, save it for the next day. But if someone moves in on me, I'm going to call them on it.
Ethics been gone ever since side imaging came out , definitely down here on the Tennessee river on them ledges , an it seems it’s the young ones , once they pull in on my ass I reel in an troll all over the ledge or place I’m fishing , it’s a damn shame folks would do mess like this for a bass shameful , parents have gave birth to spoiled entitled folks , iv learnt to deal with it good luck out there.
Bass Boats and tournament life has become so expensive the average person can simply not keep up. Most of the current bass pros are rich kids, with rich kid ethics. Yes there are some outliers but the current bass pro is an adult spoiled brat.
When Ray Scott got out of it , it went to hell . B.A.S.S. and MLF have no guts . Just get rid of the rules and let them fight it out on the bank 😅 . Its ashame that Ray created something that has never been equaled and it has gone to crap for the love of money . Somebody with a backbone step up and take charge .
This happens everyday in real life. not just fishing...hole hopping, poaching drifts, cutting people off, pulling up side along others. No more ethics in fishing....live scopes are ensuring limits...ethics are gone.
Whenever you have a major payout in a sport where your pros are not on salary, and they're struggling to make a paycheck, this is the outcome you're going to have, especially with guys just getting into the BPT who have yet to make a name for themselves or significant payouts.
The water is open to everyone, if you're not on the spot it's free. If you want to protect the area stay on the spot. Once you leave it's open season. I respect your view but it's not illegal and not a written rule. Don't get mad at the anglers get mad at the game or the person writing the rules.
Childish behavior everywhere you turn these days. Bass tournaments are no exception. Even smaller local tournaments get ridiculous, which is why I no longer fish them. I wouldn't mind if states abolish tournaments and give the water back to the general public.
Anglers don't respect each other the way they used to. I doubt the "House of Ott" would do that - if it was done to THEM though they may not like it. Maybe because J Lee was no longer "one of us" some felt they could move in around him? Jacob posted a video as to why he moved in to get his side of it. Everybody can self justify their actions - that's why we have judges I guess
Only some have ethics. This has been going on for a while the one for me a while ago I remember is Haynes and Lambert. That was awful. Many would argue Duckett has horrible ethics running an organization.
When you turn a hobby to a sport, sport to a career and now you make your living off of this people will do whatever they have to to be ahead of the next person whether it’s cheating lying or just not giving a shit it’s ruined a lot of things definitely Fishing has gotten a hell of a lot worse because of this. Not to mention the lake takeovers on because of these tournaments and the egos on some of these guys are insane. it’s like anything else these days pay to play.
Televised bass tournaments lost a ton of viewers this year, as they should have. Between watching fisherman video game fishing on ffs and the ethics of it, I’m definitely done with it. I love bass fishing. And I appreciate good sportsmanship. None of that is left anymore. Truthfully, I hope it all goes bankrupt. Time to go get real jobs boys.
JT, I think it's just part of the sport. If you was first boat out on day one, Bad practice, found the spot by accident. Loaded the boat, Day two, you last boat out and there is someone on the spot. You can't just reverse the spot for yourself, the lake is open to everyone fishing the tournament. What if you came on the spot on day two and a local is fishing it. You going to tell him it's my spot, get off. Which Ethics are you talking about. If you can't handle the heat, get out of the kitchen.
I absolutely QUIT watching any fishing tournaments due to Forward Facing Sonar 🤬 how can these kids be better than the Rick Clunns, Matt. Herron, Greg Hackney! when all they do is play video games! Absolutely bull SHIT! I’m DONE!
At first I thought it was old man yelling at clouds, but I was watching the Smith Lake tourney and it hit me: This is freaking boring. You’re right. We need to get to where the guys who know how to fish have a chance. If they want to start up a video game trail, they should do that and let competition between the fishing league and video game league sort it out. I know which one I’d be watching.
I’m not gunna act like pro bass fishing has never been about money but the problem is it’s a total free for all , there is ZERO structure , there is ZERO accountability and self reflection, everyone acts like they got it all figured out Nobody is teaching anyone anything because as long as they have enough money it doesn’t matter! We need legitimate rules and some respect shown to the roots of this sport.
Another ethical dilemma for you. Around the time of every major tournament up here, lake st clair, the local facebook groups get flooded with hot girls and poor anglers that can't buy a bite, looking for tips. You know every one of those is some shady pro skirting the rules.
Instead of abandoning the spot, why not just stay there but "fake fish"? Instead of throwing a frog over the mat, turn around and throw a spinner bait on the edge of the mat. Don't move your boat, just don't fish your fish.
Guys that pull right up on top where your fishing are the worst ! These types of guys can’t find fish on their own so they basically cheat doing this. D Bags The Toho deal isn’t what I’m saying. That was a complete miscommunication by both parties.
Bass tournaments have killed local fisherman and recreation and fishing in general. Morals and fishing ethics down the drain with their $100,000 Bass boats with 300 hp flying up and down the lake all the time, looks like the ocean out there. They even fish tournaments at night flying up and down the lake. Not safe and come on guys let us have some peace at night.
This all started with the complete crap of everyone gets a trophy. Now it seems like they will do anything to win because there isnt any repercussions.
Boomer here, with the worst take you've ever heard! Everybody gets a Trophy. Now people will do anything to win because there isn't any repercussions. Love ur logic and reasoning. or lack thereof
It’s not just bass fishing. Ethics and doing what is right has been thrown out the window. It’s in every aspects of country any more.
that's what happens when you flood the country with immigrants alien to our way of life
Someone else was jettisoned around the same time, without Him this is to be expected.
Who gets to decide what's right?
Common sense@@lowvpro9651
Yeah, everything basically sucks now
As a fan I would like to see MLF not give out the anglers names on the Score Tracker and instead just say that the 1st place angler has 20lbs., the 2nd place angler has 18 lbs., etc. That would eliminate a lot of this in MLF.
I love your thought! Makes total sense. You know where you stand, and you know the standings/weights, but you don’t know who it is with the weights. Totally agree! The problem is over a multiple day event how do you keep the anglers standings on the down low from the other anglers?
Thats a fantastic idea. No more rolling up on guys you know are doing good so you can claim that you were attempting to fish their area.
Great idea!
Not to sound like an ass. But these are public lake's they can fish anywhere they want. But I do understand what you're saying. You see a someone catching fish and just pull up on him that's F up. Some of these guys fish right on top of each other. Then you have guys that share a house and the information about their prefishing. Then they call each other and tell the other house mates to come to their spot
Great idea
He's talking to you, Zaldain.
Id say this is a huge reason KVD retired. Instead of being fun, it turned into a more stressful day on the water. I hate tournaments becaof this type of behavior.
this is why I quit tournament and club fishing. Drama and whining and accusations constantly. I have more fun than ever now fishing for myself. I did fairly well in tournaments, but it still wasnt worth all the crap I had to hear and deal with.
With the Jacob wheeler cutting off
Zaldain pulling up on a local guy
@basschaser9356 I'm a st clair local. Once, a pro chastised me for sitting on a spot he wanted. I lost my mind when he told me it was his living. I flipped out and screamed about how I work 80hrs a week and get out when I can but I should stay off my home water that has 3 tournaments every weekend. It sucks because I've had 99 other interactions with pros, one hopped on my boat to teach me how to throw a blade bait mid tournament, but the bad one sticks.
Wheeler didn’t cut anyone off. He pulled up on a spot he had previously been on that Becker hadn’t caught any fish on. Quit trying to making something of absolutely nothing.
If I practiced for three days and got bit there, i'm fishing there I don't care if they are in the lead. If your there trying to provide for your family, and you found the spot in practice i;d fish there no matter who is there.
There will never be another 1990's bunch of Pro's, Doug Garrett, Larry Nixon, George Cochran, Ricky Green, Scott Rook, Scott Suggs, Jerry Williams, Mike Wurm, Woo Dave's, Stacy King, Rick Clunn and many more in the Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas. It was nothing to talk to one of these guys and then invite you to go fish with them which was excellent public relations and great for sponsors. Doug Garrett and Larry Nixon 2 of the best to take you out even to this day. When tournaments don't allow people to go out with these pros that are sponsored they are shooting themselves in the foot. These guys today are not in the same league of gentlemen as the old school guys were. Joey Cifuentes is as close as it gets.
Some great names you mentioned there. I remember those days.
same thig happens these days even if recreational fishing. Somebody sees you catch a nice one and next thing you know they are spotlocked 10 yards away from you. That didn't used to happen.
Public Lake. No one is on the spot. Fish it. Tell these crybaby fisherman to shut their mouth if someone is on a spot they want to fish. Disqualify their ass if they say anything. But bass pros are a sorry lot these days.
Ethics are falling by the weigh side because there not being taught. People have stopped talking to one another and just immediately go full Karen and act as if they have some sort of moral authority. It's the whole unspoken rule scenario because it's assumed that everybody was raised with those same ethics. Another issue is money. Your right, the guy in 60th place has no chance to win it, but if he's just outside the cut to get a check to at least cover his expenses. I also get that. It doesn't make it right, but for him, it might be worth living in the gray to get to the next tournament. The single biggest thing I notice more than anything else is approach and tone. A few years back I almost came to blows with some guy about disposing dog waste in his garbage can. He didn't approach me in a friendly manner or even ask my nicely not to put dog waste in his garbage. He immediately went straight to the threat. I would of gladly apologized and made a conscious effort not to do it again, but you come at me without so much as an explanation, yeah I'm not going to lie down. I'm going to respond in kind rather I'm right or not. It's more than just ethics. It's showing respect for your fellow man. But today, it's all about going out of your way to disrespect somebody as quick and as aggressively as possible. Nobody in this world is perfect and we all make mistakes. You want to call me on a mistake and bring it to my attention. I can except that, but if come at me like you've never committed a mistake your life, threaten me, or immediately go out of your way to disrespect me, well then were going to have a problem. I won't start a fight, but I will finish one.
No one owns a hole! It’s like my brother told me, if you find a good spot, you can bet others have already found it. Pulling in on someone is just wrong. First come first serve. Period, no discussion!
So, where’s the line? 1/4 mile? 500 feet? 100 feet?
@JoshuaWard21, great question 🤔
@@JoshuaWard21 if you're not crossing lines and tangling up then it's fine.
I’ve spent thousands of hours scanning ledges on ky lake to find the juice only to have people pull in when they see you catch a fish. Makes me so frustrated I don’t even enjoy fishing tournaments anymore.
Are there any ETHICS Left --in Bass Fishing-- ?
When it comes to ethics it’s gone Bass fisherman from where I live just run right on top of other fisherman. I crappie fish and do a lot of tight line trolling and they come so close half of my rod goes under their wake and it has gave bass fisherman a bad name on the local lakes. They don’t respect other fishermen
I’ve went to the lake when a local group had a tournament they all acted like assholes to me all I saw all morning was them flying up and down the lake I was fishing for fun and bet I did better than half of them
Current thought is: “it’s all about me”. No one else matters! Sad commentary on someone’s life. Eventually someone really important will tell you to go to ****! To late at that point. JT, I agree. If we were only kinder, more thoughtful, and sincere our lives would be so much fuller and rewarding. We’d even have more fun fishing. Stay safe. Stay like you are. God Bless! P.S. I’ll share a fishing spot with you anytime, just let me catch a few fish.🙂
In several local tournaments I've been in we have a 50yrd buffer from the next boat to allow space. Alot of people think that's too close. But if someone is 400 yrd away and they want to complain your taking their spot? Come on man. Entitled much?
its kind of funny you guys think you own part of a lake because you pulled a fish out of it lmao. wild. you guys are a little entitled tbh.
I made a comment on another angler's channel when he explained why he did it. I thought he did a great job explaining WHY he did it and that is why he is a winner, and I am not because I wouldn't do it. It is getting easier for these guys to rationalize bad behavior and convince themselves they did nothing wrong. Just the way the world is these days, I guess.
There is none wether weekend angler to Pro its all gotten out of hand. I still pull up if someone is there I move on and come back later.
Outdoor media people used to ride with the competitors in the Classics. It was during the 2000 Classic in Chicago that one Pro told me that he was concerned bigger money would change bass fishing in a negative way. I was a fly on the wall in 2001 at New Orleans when the Bass Professor Doug Hannon and a Mercury Rep talked about how the fishing industry was changing and how companies would be doing backgrounds on their sponsored pro staff to keep negatives away from the environment... No doubt it has changed and is changing...
You're absolutely correct. I was a media observer in Edwin Evers boat and we spoke about what I could expect and his responses told me what a newbie observer needed to know. I understood the high stakes after fishing the Media Classic with Brent Chapman and our interactions knowing he'd wrapped up his practice fishing for a PR tourney and dinner afterwards. But what I saw from both men as up and comers was they talked to the veterans and older seasoned guys and there was clearly respect. There's a lot of lacking in this area today.
Money and ethics are highly incompatible to begin with
The larger the sum of money at stake the less ethics has any chance of mattering
Myself I try not fish anybodys spot or if they are fishing I try move little ways from them not next to them
It’s not just pros, or even amateur money tournaments. I fish in a local club and we just fish for bragging rights. We have a guy in our club who does this to the other guys in our club.
Tell him,not UA-cam viewers
This is why YOU are THE MAN brother! Preach!
The word is "respect"....there is zero respect anymore in society...it's a "Me, Me, Me" world now. Excellent video.
at 6:07, its not your spot anymore, you left
They ought to try crappie fishing below Ross Barrett spillway. When you can walk on the boats next to each other you'll learn patience or take up another sport.😊
Ive lived on Toledo Bend for a couple of years and bank fish it dang near every weekend, from end to end. I REALLY hate when a boat pulls in on me after seeing me catch one from 500 yards out in the middle. But, when i know a big tournament is happening, i usually wont go out of respect for them. I live there, most of them dont. I get to fish it way more, so i dont mind.
You are right, have fish 30yr in tournament, seen it happen, your not the only one in the world
Just my two cents. Showing 8 hrs of live tournament fishing has created several problems. Firstly, people find it boring and are blaming FFS when in reality if you had live fishing 20 years ago before FFS spectators would be bored watching an angler catch a bass every other hour anyways. Secondly, live fishing opens the door for anglers to “cheat” by showing up the next day in the same area the day one leader fished. And thirdly, the cost for cameraman is expensive and can be used to increase payouts. We need to keep it simple and go back to highlights.
Well in my opinion that was a totally dick move by Wheeler cutting off Becker, afterwards he said he was defending that spot and that makes me even madder than I was because he wasn’t nowhere around and Becker was fishing down that bank and Wheeler thinks he owns the water so he pulled up in front of Becker like he had the right to where ever he wants any time he chooses. What a dick!
To add to the story: Wheeler found that spot in practice and LET Becker fish ahead of him Day 1 on that stretch. Becker didn't boat one fish. Wheeler trolls up and puts a smack down on them. Becker knows where Wheeler is and hears his official notify him of the score tracker. He knew where Wheeler was and decided he would "claim" that stretch. Wheeler pulls up more that 150 yards in front of Becker (legally) and is defending ONE spot (a trench). Becker throws his TM on 100% when he saw Jacob way ahead to try and intercept. The rest is history. Becker tucked his tail like he should have and left.
Speaking of history: Becker was the same guy boating the same fish over and over at Cayuga last year. Doing so propelled him into the top ten, and he ultimately beat Wheeler for AOY by the skin of his teeth. Was is ethical for Becker to catch the same bed fish over and over, and even admit he did it? To me, this was Wheeler's payback by not letting him slide in on the juice. Becker didn't make the cut that day. Adios!
You actually get mad about this? LoL
Great video. I don't tournament fish but understand your point. I see other men fish on my lake but I stay away from them and fish other places. It is just good manners. These same pe0ple see me and treat me the same way. Love the sport but need to treat each other in a good way.
Do unto others…Good video JT agreed 100 %.
I quit bass tournaments 30 years ago because every fisherman thinks he’s Kevin VanDam or Roland Martin. If they get on fish they think they own that spot and 2 miles each side of it. If you have a honey hole you only own it while you are fishing it. If you leave it it’s not automatically yours for the rest of the tournament.
That said there should still be a respectful way of handling it. You don’t jump in front of or right behind someone. That’s just wrong. But there is a distance limit that should apply and I like your thinking. If you’d be upset by a competitor’s actions then you should apply that same thought when it’s you moving towards another angler.
It happens even more when recreational fishing. Some guys or gals don’t get it, some are plain stupid and some are just plain rude. It is nice to know that I made the correct decision 30 years ago. It just ain’t worth the aggravation or the risk. Kind of like road rage, you know.
Reminds me of a time when I pulled up on a community hole early with not one soul in sight on Pickwick below the dam. IYKYK.
Anyways, just sitting on a prime spot off a point with the current generated by the damn pushing shad into the slack side of the post and bass just going nuts on topwater, my friend that took out were casting spooks and whooper bloopers and just slaying them. The average size was 2+. Just pure fun. That's when I see several boats fishing downstream along the southern side and a couple from the Rockpile Rec area, for those familiar with Pickwick, power up their big motors and cons streaming in like what Ben Miliken calls hole vultures and proceeds to literally cast over our lines, snagging us several times. Look I know it's a community hole, but do you really have to busting up on us because you weren't catching anything tossing your shad and drifting or your jug on some boulder rocks just of the current break not catching a darn thing because you suddenly saw us slaying schooling bass? I would've welcomed them. Yet they came in literally casting over our lines knowing the exact spot we were casting into with their popping corks and plugs. Felt nice "setting a hook" on some yahoo with a spinning gear setup tossing that plug over my spook on 65 lb braid. Thought I had a setup for a second until he cried about it. 😂
Served him right.
How close is too close ? That is the question that should be answered by the tournaments....before hand. The answer to the problem seems kind of easy to me. This for pro on pro or, and just as important a pro pulling up on a non tournament fisherman acting like he owns the lake because of the tournament.
Jacob wheeler and Chris Zaldain..
Ethics? Certainly not at the boat ramp with parents thinking it’s a swimming hole for their kids
As sponsors dry up and cost continue to raise this will become more and more common
Fishing has lost it's soul. From the cost of even starting to compete in higher level tournaments, to the rise of ffs and the proliferation of livewelling fish for a glory pick. I followed every second of the elites last year, I haven't paid any attention this year.
just another example of the impending decline of tourney fishing . us locals look forward to the day when tourneys are outlawed and the people who pay for the roads and landings dont have to put up with it anymore
Always level headed opinions form you JT!
love JT, back to FLW days, guys real!!!
Don't leave the spot if don't want someone to pull in. Agree with the 1st and 80th example..let's remember these pros have practiced for sometime prior to the tourney. They all basically find the same spots..example logan martin.
What if the same dealer sold the exact same way points to multiple fishermen? Then, who gets first dibs?
There's no ethics, morals, respect for the sport of fishing, respect for the limited source (the fish),....$$$$$$ controls everything, and todays anglers have no interest in the actual sport itself...need to start calling them Catchermen, instead of fishermen.....that's the big difference in todays anglers...a passion for the sport isn't evident, with video gaming ,eyes glued, and hunting fish that have no chance in any body of water to flee fishing pressure the top priority....I've watched my last Scopermaster Classic 2 years ago, my last Elite Scope Series event, and my last TV scope show....Some of us still have pride & respect for the limited resource
I agree!
Never had any as far as tournament fishing goes.
As other post have mentioned, the lack of ethics and courtesy no longer exist in the fishing world as a whole. Not only fishing ethics, but boating ethics as well. The last 5 yrs I can't count the number of times an ignorant F#'k ran between me and bank on pad. I'm 40 yrds off the bank ! One example, but things have changed and it sucks. 👎
Nice video man! Your videos are very well done and I love watching! I make fishing videos as well and it’s cool to see what you’re up to!! Keep up the good job!👌👌
Blind spot reservations would fix this. Some people can't afford a 600HP motor to get to their spot first.
It’s called honor and integrity. Most of us learned that in childhood playing outside, getting in fights and becoming friends, playing in the neighborhood, Boy Scouts, at church, and team sports. We also learned critical thinking because of these processes. But with participation trophy’s, and growing up on an iphone and a notebook we don’t learn those things any more as two phycologist’s explained to me the other day. It is a curse to society. But a planned curse, on purpose. And you’re describing how it starts JT. Honor and integrity are getting harder and harder to find.
They unintentionally put others right on their spot. Shouldve stayed relatively close to their hole and folks wouldve went elsewhere. Its a huge mind game that kinda backfired on em. I get it lol
What is hole hopping?
Hole hopping is an ice fishing term. Means moving around from hole to hole. Bass guys, please get your own terms.
You cant claim a spot that big on a public lake...
There are weekend fishermen as well as other local tournaments...that's part of the challenge.
If I only get a chance to fish with my dad, brother,son or grandson on Saturday first come first served...deal!
It's kind of like weather,deal with it, if it's tough for you it's tough for everybody.
JT, it’s not new. Hope you read this.
The tourney you won on Toho years back, I was fishing a bedding flat on the east shore over by Whaleys. You know the spot. I had 3 guys come in on plane ripping through the pads, and shut down right on top of me. Seriously, I could cast my senko into any of their boats. They thought nothing of coming in and blowing out the fish I was on. I heard them conversing that they would sit still for a while and let the bass come back in. So unethical boat antics to a local and sharing info amongst themselves? Funny how they were unhappy when I jumped up on plane and ran 3 circles around them when I left. I went straight to my favorite offshore spot and you were there. I stayed outside and watched you catch your winning bag. 👍🏻
Yes, bass anglers are worse than a pack of soap opera addicted humans!!!! The drama is out of hand and it is mostly because of ethics, morals, & money. Out of all the drama this year only two stick out to me - Zaldain & Wheeler. The Wheeler incident upset me the most because I consider him the best fisherman out of both tours and I still feel that way, but I am very disappointed at what he did.
I’m with you. I’ve been defending him for years against people saying he’s a dykk, but now I’m thinking I’m the one who was wrong. I’m definitely off the Wheeler bandwagon.
@stevefisher2121 if wheeler was the best, he'd be in bass. He's great, but something has always felt off about him to me.
I never move in on someone but if someone leaves a spot I may or will get on it. But if I'm on a honey hole and I have my daily bag. I'm not going to leave it. I'll lay down my rod, eat a sandwich, have a Coke and a smoke, save it for the next day. But if someone moves in on me, I'm going to call them on it.
I think it’s ffs that makes it seem that way. I don’t have it, fish shallow most of the time and find that I’m seldom fishing around anyone
That’s why saltwater flats fishing is the best… no electronics just your eyes
Ethics been gone ever since side imaging came out , definitely down here on the Tennessee river on them ledges , an it seems it’s the young ones , once they pull in on my ass I reel in an troll all over the ledge or place I’m fishing , it’s a damn shame folks would do mess like this for a bass shameful , parents have gave birth to spoiled entitled folks , iv learnt to deal with it good luck out there.
Get rid of side imaging , and ffs and just all depth finder in tournaments
It's real simple. They need to make a new rule. Can't fish within 100 to 200 yrds of
another angler.
Bass Boats and tournament life has become so expensive the average person can simply not keep up. Most of the current bass pros are rich kids, with rich kid ethics. Yes there are some outliers but the current bass pro is an adult spoiled brat.
When Ray Scott got out of it , it went to hell . B.A.S.S. and MLF have no guts . Just get rid of the rules and let them fight it out on the bank 😅 . Its ashame that Ray created something that has never been equaled and it has gone to crap for the love of money . Somebody with a backbone step up and take charge .
This happens everyday in real life. not just fishing...hole hopping, poaching drifts, cutting people off, pulling up side along others. No more ethics in fishing....live scopes are ensuring limits...ethics are gone.
Should of sat on it and blocked it ?? You can see all the lanes in the cheese < That's a give away also *** peace !
Well said,Its all about money
Does the term "PUBLIC LAKE" ever enter peoples minds???
Do away with score tracker and make it a 5 fish limit
It's all about Money and putting pictures on social media
Whenever you have a major payout in a sport where your pros are not on salary, and they're struggling to make a paycheck, this is the outcome you're going to have, especially with guys just getting into the BPT who have yet to make a name for themselves or significant payouts.
I’ve cashed a lot of checks by hole hopping. It’s a lost art form.
Lol😂😂
Im just a regular fisherman but i think all of these bass tournaments amd competition fishing is ruining fishing.
The water is open to everyone, if you're not on the spot it's free. If you want to protect the area stay on the spot. Once you leave it's open season. I respect your view but it's not illegal and not a written rule. Don't get mad at the anglers get mad at the game or the person writing the rules.
Childish behavior everywhere you turn these days. Bass tournaments are no exception. Even smaller local tournaments get ridiculous, which is why I no longer fish them. I wouldn't mind if states abolish tournaments and give the water back to the general public.
Why is it wrong to go to any spot if there is no one fishing it at that moment? They don’t own the lake.
Using FFS is UNETHICAL!
Zaldain needs to learn not to pull up on anglers who aren't fishing in the tournament
@@jenlvjim he really showed his true colors the last 3 years.
Two words. Fish trails. If ya know ya know. And yes that’s hole hopping
Respect for other people. It is that basic
You dont have a spot! You are either fishing there or you are not period, if you are 600 ft away (two football fields) im fishing away
Anglers don't respect each other the way they used to. I doubt the "House of Ott" would do that - if it was done to THEM though they may not like it. Maybe because J Lee was no longer "one of us" some felt they could move in around him? Jacob posted a video as to why he moved in to get his side of it. Everybody can self justify their actions - that's why we have judges I guess
Only some have ethics. This has been going on for a while the one for me a while ago I remember is Haynes and Lambert. That was awful. Many would argue Duckett has horrible ethics running an organization.
💯% agree!!!!
Respect and integrity is a thing of the past unfortunately!!!!
Damn hole buzzards be on that bent rod pattern in my neck of the woods!!
When you turn a hobby to a sport, sport to a career and now you make your living off of this people will do whatever they have to to be ahead of the next person whether it’s cheating lying or just not giving a shit it’s ruined a lot of things definitely Fishing has gotten a hell of a lot worse because of this. Not to mention the lake takeovers on because of these tournaments and the egos on some of these guys are insane. it’s like anything else these days pay to play.
There aren't any ethics left in society, much less fishing
Televised bass tournaments lost a ton of viewers this year, as they should have. Between watching fisherman video game fishing on ffs and the ethics of it, I’m definitely done with it. I love bass fishing. And I appreciate good sportsmanship. None of that is left anymore. Truthfully, I hope it all goes bankrupt. Time to go get real jobs boys.
JT, I think it's just part of the sport. If you was first boat out on day one, Bad practice, found the spot by accident. Loaded the boat, Day two, you last boat out and there is someone on the spot. You can't just reverse the spot for yourself, the lake is open to everyone fishing the tournament. What if you came on the spot on day two and a local is fishing it. You going to tell him it's my spot, get off. Which Ethics are you talking about. If you can't handle the heat, get out of the kitchen.
I absolutely QUIT watching any fishing tournaments due to Forward Facing Sonar 🤬 how can these kids be better than the Rick Clunns, Matt. Herron, Greg Hackney! when all they do is play video games! Absolutely bull SHIT! I’m DONE!
At first I thought it was old man yelling at clouds, but I was watching the Smith Lake tourney and it hit me: This is freaking boring. You’re right. We need to get to where the guys who know how to fish have a chance. If they want to start up a video game trail, they should do that and let competition between the fishing league and video game league sort it out. I know which one I’d be watching.
They should have just sat on their spot. Fish around it or something.
I’m not gunna act like pro bass fishing has never been about money but the problem is it’s a total free for all , there is ZERO structure , there is ZERO accountability and self reflection, everyone acts like they got it all figured out
Nobody is teaching anyone anything because as long as they have enough money it doesn’t matter!
We need legitimate rules and some respect shown to the roots of this sport.
Another ethical dilemma for you. Around the time of every major tournament up here, lake st clair, the local facebook groups get flooded with hot girls and poor anglers that can't buy a bite, looking for tips. You know every one of those is some shady pro skirting the rules.
Boyd’s the king of unethical behavior. #FBD. Fishing Boat Docks!
It’s interesting that one of Boyd’s employees puts out a video basically defending his boy Wheeler.
No unfortunately Ethics are out the window
Instead of abandoning the spot, why not just stay there but "fake fish"? Instead of throwing a frog over the mat, turn around and throw a spinner bait on the edge of the mat. Don't move your boat, just don't fish your fish.
Guys that pull right up on top where your fishing are the worst ! These types of guys can’t find fish on their own so they basically cheat doing this.
D Bags
The Toho deal isn’t what I’m saying. That was a complete miscommunication by both parties.
When you have knockoffs winning awards at ICast, I'd say ethics has left.
Bass tournaments have killed local fisherman and recreation and fishing in general. Morals and fishing ethics down the drain with their $100,000 Bass boats with 300 hp flying up and down the lake all the time, looks like the ocean out there.
They even fish tournaments at night flying up and down the lake. Not safe and come on guys let us have some peace at night.
Unfortunately the money is a lot not like the old days Money brings out the true character
If you don't need anymore and want to save a spot why not just camp on it?
Hey JT as a fan I think there is to much disrespectfulness between the pros these days. .
This all started with the complete crap of everyone gets a trophy. Now it seems like they will do anything to win because there isnt any repercussions.
Boomer here, with the worst take you've ever heard! Everybody gets a Trophy. Now people will do anything to win because there isn't any repercussions. Love ur logic and reasoning. or lack thereof