Today’s Friday Finale historic photo, Hank Flips to First BASS Win, dates back to 1980 and features long-time bass fishing star, Hank Parker, shortly after his 1979 Bass Masters Classic win on Lake Texoma.
When Hank Parker first decided to turn pro and make a go at fishing professionally, the year was 1977. He figured he just needed to win about $10,000 that year to keep at it for another year. He never won an event, but he did win $12,000, and that was enough to keep trying. In his first 24 professional events (not just B.A.S.S.), he led eight events, but never won one of those, instead finishing second 5 times. He started to get kidded about being a bridesmaid, but that all ended in a short span of time.
He won his first professional event, a National Bass Association Tournament at Clarks Hill Lake, at the age of 25. Then, less than two years later, he would go on to win the Bass Masters Classic on Lake Texoma, using the then hot new technique of flipping. That would open the door to numerous promotional appearances in between fishing events, most of which involved demonstrating and explaining the technique to bass anglers around the country. Today’s historic photo shows Hank demonstrating the flipping technique at one such promotion.
