Skeet Reese talks about 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series Changes

Auburn, Calif. – While the Bassmaster Elite Series has been a heavily discussed topic for the past 10 days, 2007 Bassmaster Angler of the Year Skeet Reese had been out of the country.  While on vacation with his family, Reese had been able to keep up on the general information regarding the Elites schedule and payout changes, but only looked at the fine details after returning late last week.

“I returned home from vacation to find that there have been a lot of happenstances that affect the Bassmaster Elite Series,” said the three-time BASS winner.  “I was not able to take part in any of the discussions, but when I could, I stayed up to date with the changes.”

When word of the initial adjustments to the schedule and entry fee reductions became public, Reese felt that they were on the right track for the benefit of all parties involved.  However, the first payout adjustments were not what he expected.  “From a business standpoint, the initial payout left a lot to be desired,” Reese explained.  “But they (BASS) listened to the anglers and sharpened their pencils and I think things are definitely improved now.”

Had he been able to draft the adjustments himself, Reese would have been pleased to see an eight event schedule, with $4000 entry fees and a payout that saw the last paycheck position receive $8000; double their entry fees in return, thus keeping the payout structure roughly the same as the $5200 model.  He said that where they finally settled is not ideal, but they at least make sense.

“I know that change is not always a welcome occurrence, but I believe that the developments of the past two weeks are necessary, and while they’re not perfect, I think they are well intended,” Reese reported.  “What is important to consider is the overall health of the sport, which includes the financial well being of the sponsors, the organizations and the anglers; we are all inter-related and need each other to survive.

“We come into this sport as individual athletes and businesses, but we all have a common focus, which is our ability to make a living doing what we love to do,” Reese opined.  “The tournament organizations are businesses, as we are, and the companies that support all of us; if we don’t make adjustments, it could drastically affect the future.”

“We’ve all seen that BASS has taken some financial hits themselves recently, and those reductions certainly impacted their decision making in those adjustments, but everything is starting to come into focus now,” said the Auburn, Calif. pro.  “It is important for us to look at the whole picture and realize that the Elite Series is the only circuit that has a one in two payback in the nation, and as long as we have the chance to make this situation work.”

“I think what we’ve seen this offseason, is that BASS, and FLW for that matter are willing to listen to their anglers and make adjustments to their programs based on angler input,” he said.  “BASS made decisions based on the whole economic situation, and when they didn’t make sense for the anglers, they took the input, and made further adjustments.”

Reese said that the only other topic that is left somewhat hanging to him is the postseason Angler of the Year chase, he feels that it creates imbalance in the Angler of the Year race as a whole.  “I know there are television considerations, but to reduce the field to 12 anglers for those two events sacrifices the integrity of the AOY title,” he said he thinks adjustments should be made to this program.  “I think keeping the field size to a larger number maintains the ability for anglers to lose or make up points in proportion to the rest of the season. 

Keeping the entire field or possibly the top 50 in the Angler of the Year standings maintains the uniformity of the race.  Either that or crown the AOY after the eight events then use those two events as a separate playoff type round or something else.”

“It may not change, and if that’s so, it is what it is, and we’ll go forward.  However, this off season has shown that if we all communicate in a business manner, realizing that everything is inter-related, and for a year we can all make some adjustments to keep things moving forward,” Reese said in closing.  “Then we can all turn our attention to the Classic and the season in front of us.”

Skeet Reese is a Bassmaster Elite Series pro, the 2007 Bassmaster Angler of the Year with career earnings that total more than $1.5 million.  Reese has qualified for 10 Bassmaster Classic appearances, and has finished in the top 10 40 times, including three wins in BASS competition in an 11 year career.  Reese is a 39-year-old California native who resides in Auburn, Calif. with his wife Kim, and two daughters; Leamarie and Courtney. Visit his website: www.skeetreeseinc.com.