There is a long history with Major League Fishing as Bass Cat was the original founding sponsor. Jim Wilburn took a lead from Roger Werner (Outdoor Channel), as Roger wanted a fishing program that would not leave the OC network. He sought to own his own program content, as FLW and others we always shopping networks once the became known of on The Outdoor Channel. He wanted a “made for television” format. Which Gary and Boyd were in for the angler portion.
Bass Cat has always been supportive of Bassmaster and has retained friendships inside the organization for decades and generations, from the top down. Sponsorships were held, including that first non Ranger boat agreement almost 25 years ago. Bassmaster made moves in the early 2000 era, and through another political shift, they returned to a single boat sponsorship. We also walked away from a very expensive and encumbering boat sponsorship offer in a previous more recent era. Everyone forgets that Bassmaster has also been under five different ownership structures since origin and it could be defined technically as six. We also know there has been one group majorly engaged for most of those ownerships. They are emotionally tied to Bassmaster and are committed to its success.
Bass Cat was the original MLF sponsor, long before any format was locked, then courting Mercury into the sponsorship, eventually Bass Pro Shops joined. After that Nitro joined and MLF got off the ground. Yes, the crew of Elite anglers were definitely leaving Bassmaster over frustrations and most of those centered around a single source. We distanced ourselves from that political chasm as it was laced with emotions. Some of those angler emotions still exist, even though the negative influencers are gone.
At that time MLF slowly morphed long before anyone knew of it and became what would begin as the “Cup” events. It was a constant organizational shift finding the structure it landed on. Our best description of that I termed what was a skins game in fishing, never intended to compete directly with Bassmaster and that format. Evolving and then it grew with the “Selects”. Over time that changed as OC to Sportsman’s Group, they then sold to Kroenke Media soon after and ownership altered focus some. That further changed as FLW a became insolvent and the business was purchased by MLF.
Had MLF not entertained ownership of FLW it was done and would have been dismantled. MLF then suddenly found themselves in the membership, magazine and tournament business, which was never the intent. As MLF jumped in the management team had their eyes on the FLW Tour alone, the rest was the unimportant to them. Quick they learned that The Bass Federation was not what they were told, the Stren Tour was not what everyone felt, and the BFL events were the core of the membership and base loyalist to FLW.
Today MLF is finding themselves where FLW was without the WalMart backbone. Sure, Kroenke group is flush with capital though MLF is not. They are going to eventually be sifted through to find a more lucrative position in the Kroenke group. That’s what’s happening now. What has happened in the last decade plus of MLF is regrouping as they change and change at a fast pace. The addition of FLW in 2019 was early on in the life cycle, and on the tails of that OC, to Sportsman’s Group, to Kroenke ownership change. MLF continues to be in an evolvement cycle for many reasons. People tend to forget FLW failed like many fishing organizations before it.
For us, MLF is still fluid in development and it’s not yet gelled. Those ownerships, acquisition, management changes and more have definitely shifted their direction many times. They’ve been on a path of change since inception. The only consistent aspect to us now is the BFL side, and here they know now that’s a solid group.
For us, and in my opinion, there has been and will only be one Bassmaster. That membership was once about 630,000 and hovers today around 530,000 memberships. In comparison to MLF and the FLW base being between 35,000 and 40,000 of what are mostly hard core weekend anglers. They (MLF) join mostly to compete, where Bassmaster members join for the magazine, memberships and the magazine in the mail box.
While we can’t say we won’t ever sponsor Bassmaster again, we can say that the funds spent on MLF will not go nearly as far with BASS as they did MLF. MLF helped Bass Cat cement its brand as it was another fledgling group we grounded with. This one happened to take hold.
MLF management has frequently recognized to industry groups the role we held in organizing MLF. Jim Wilburn has become a personal friend of mine and his vision here is on par with other sporting events he worked with. The MLF team members have become our friends and while our sponsorship comes to an end this season, those friendships will last beyond that contract frame. We appreciate the friendships and relationships we have with the staff and management of both major organizations. Those relationships stretch beyond the mythical boundaries bass fishing enthusiasts, on the outside, choose to place on the organizations.
It ‘ain’t’ usually as you see things on the outside and a YouTuber or PodCast emphasizer usually doesn’t have the true grit of most decisions. They chose to stir things to create more drama and more views.
Rick Pierce
