In the early days of professional bass fishing, several large tournament circuits existed that drew many of the top names in professional fishing at the time. Circuits like Western Bass, Lone Star, Bass Caster’s Association and American Bass Fisherman are good examples.
In many cases, these tournament organizations were competing directly with B.A.S.S., trying to knock Ray Scott and company off their pedestal. Often, these organizations were just offering the anglers another venue in which to compete. That was the case with Jerry Rhyne’s Hungry Fisherman trail.
Rhyne’s Hungry Fisherman trail, though, paid well enough to attract the top anglers of the day. Today’s Friday Finale historical news photo from the Orlando Sentinel shows a great example of the caliber of angler it drew.
The caption from the Orlando Sentinel read:
“Tom Mann, center, and Bill Dance, right, talk with Jerry Rhyne about the upcoming ‘Hungry Fisherman’ bass tourney.” The Orlando Sentinel. No photo credit. Date: Feb. 26, 1980. Did any of our readers ever fish one of Jerry’s events back in the day?
Yes, I fished many of the Hungry Fisherman tournaments. They were well run, and brought together pros and top local anglers; and the competition was great!