We’ve written a bit about the World Series of Sport Fishing here at the Bass Fishing Archives. We’ve also mentioned Virgil Ward of Bass Buster Lure fame before. But we haven’t discussed the two topics together. Today in Virgil Ward 1962 Champion, we’re going to do just that.
1962 would mark the third annual World Series of Sport Fishing event put on by Sports Illustrated photographer and promoter Hy Peskin. The event started out in 1960 as both a salt and freshwater event but quickly morphed into a freshwater only event by 1961. The inaugural winner of the 1960 freshwater event was TV personality Harold Ensley on Union Lake, Michigan. Joe Krieger took top honors in 1961 on Grand Lake, Oklahoma.
State Champions were automatically invited to the event while other contestants got an invite based on their finish in the state event or if they were a known top angler. Ward didn’t fish the Missouri State Championship so he must have been invited.
The event in 1962 would be fished on five separate bodies of water in Oklahoma, Grand Lake, Eucha Lake, Tenkiller Lake, The Illinois River, and Fort Gibson. Moving to different lakes each day would require adaptability of the anglers and only the best would be able to figure each lake out during the event.
From the start, the odds makers were giving the win to Oklahoman and 1961 WSOSF winner Joe Kreiger. But there were other sticks in the event who couldn’t be counted out.
Missouri had the strongest contingent of top anglers. They were Jim Rogers of Lamar, Dave Jadwin of Salem, Tom Wilhoit, Theodosia, Charlie Campbell, Forsyth, 2023 Bass Fishing Hall of Fame Inductee Glen Andrews, Lampe, and Virgil Ward of Amsterdam.
Day 1
At the end of Day one, Virgil Ward took the lead with 107 points. Points were given based on the weight of fish caught as well as the species. These first events allowed not only bass but also bluegill, crappie, and white bass to be weighed. Wards creel was big fish for the day, a 7-pound largemouth. At five points per pound for bass, that fish would become an obstacle for every angler to overcome.
Other fish rated between 1 and five points per pound with crappie and bluegill getting one point and white bass receiving three points.
Tournament favorite, Keiger, held down the second spot with 78 points, Bill Ward (Virgil’s son) was third, Jim Rogers was fourth, and Glen Andrews finished out the top five.
Day 2
The second day of the event saw Ward maintain his lead by bring in enough fish to garner 91 points for a total of 198 points. Bill Ward moved into the second spot with an additional 66 points bringing his total to 128. Keiger fell a spot, ending the day in third with 120 points. Andrews moved from fifth place to fourth with a total of 116 points, and Jim Rogers rounded out the top five with 83 points.
The daily creel for the second day saw 39 bass, 66 white bass, 27 crappie, and 340 sunfish come to the scales.
Day 3
Not much would change on the third day of the event with respect to the leader. Again, Virgil Ward would maintain his lead with a total of 256 points. But there was a big shuffle in the rest of the top five.
Glen Andrews moved from the fourth spot to the second spot by bringing in 46 points worth of fish. Keiger stayed in the third position with a total of 148 points, Bill Ward fell two spots to fourth with a total of 146 points, and Jim Rogers stayed in fifth with 144 points.
Day 4
Day four was supposed to be fished on the Illinois River but high water and swift current would keep the anglers on the stingy Tenkiller another day. Ward continued his commanding lead by posting 23 points for a total of 279 points over four days. Glen Andrews increased his total to 195 points and held on to the second spot.
Rounding out the top five were Joe Keiger (185 points), Bill Ward (153 points), and Don Nichols (128 points).
Through four days of fishing the creel total was 1,667 fish, which included 217 black bass, 896 white bass, 29 crappie, and 525 sunfish.
Day 5
The final day of the event saw the anglers head to Fort Gibson to crown the champion. With such a commanding lead, it was Ward’s to lose. But over the course of the day, he was able to bring in four black bass and three white bass to claim the championship round and win the 1962 World Series of Sport Fishing. His final points tally was 307, 83 points more than second place finisher Glen Andrews.
Ward’s Day-1 7-pound bass helped but it’s clear he was on better fish than any of the other competitors. Another thing that may have played in his winning strategy was his use and knowledge of white bass.
Third place went to the 1961 WSOSF champion Joe Kreiger who amassed 202 points, while Bill Ward finished fourth with 171 points. Don Nichols rounded out the top five with 142 points.
Summary
Reading the reports on these events always leaves me wanting more. So much information is left out but this was from a time when fishing tournament reporting was in its infancy. One thing you get from them is the number of anglers who would make a name just a few years later when contemporary tournament angling would take hold.
Jim Rogers would qualify for a BASS Masters Classic and go on to win the 1977 New York Invitational, Bill Ward would become a 7-time Classic contender with 21 top-10 finishes on the Bassmaster Trail. Charlie Campbell would qualify for five Classics, have 30 top-10 finishes, and keep the Zara Spook from being discontinued. And of course, Virgil Ward would become one of the most celebrated anglers bass fishing has ever known.
This event may not seem anything like the events we have today, but they were the cornerstone of what would become competitive bass fishing. Only five years later Ray Scott would get a crackpot idea to hold a bass tournament on Beaver Lake Arkansas, which by the way included white bass in the count, and the genesis of professional bass fishing was born.
The rest of the daily tournament reports are posted below.
