February in the Midwest meant one thing: boat and sport fishing shows throughout the area featuring many of the top pros in the nation hosting seminars. Today’s Throwback Thursday historical photo takes us back to one such show in early 1993, the Great Lakes Fishing and Outdoor Exposition, which was to be held over a 5-day period in the Buffalo Convention Center.
A look through the posted seminar schedule revealed today’s featured angler, Penny Berryman. “One of the very best women bass anglers,” who was hosting seminars at the Hawg Trough on Wednesday and Thursday. Berryman was there “to deliver talks about becoming a better fisherman.”
Other names you might recognize who appeared over the course of the event included Babe Winkelman and Larry Richter, along with a few walleye and salmon fishing pros.
Berryman was a pioneer in the early years of women’s bass fishing. She fished the BassN’ Gals circuit along with other ladies circuits. In the span of nearly 30 years, she qualified for more than 20 Women’s Pro Tour Classic World Championships, won the 1985 BassN’ Gals Tournament of Champions, the 1987 BassN’ Gals Georgia National, the 1989 Lady Bass Missouri National, the 1995 BassN’ Gals U.S. Invitational and became the 1992 BassN’ Gals World Classic Champion. She also won the 1997 BassN’ Gals Angler of the Year title.
Her first Bassmaster event was the 1992 25th Anniversary event held on Beaver Lake, Arkansas. Her next venture into the Bassmaster arena was after ESPN purchased BASS and introduced the Women’s Bass Tour in 2005. Berryman fished 16 of those events, through 2009, finishing in the money 8 times. In 2008, she was diagnosed with meningioma and passed in 2012.
Berryman was inducted into the Legends of the Outdoors National Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame in 2014.
