B.A.S.S. history firsts

<p><u><strong>First to earn $1 million</strong></u></p>
<p>Everyone knows the names at the top of the B.A.S.S. winnings list. But for years, Larry Nixon held that honor. The veteran Arkansas angler was the first to reach the $1 million mark, and it happened Oct. 17, 1992. In all, Nixon competed in 260 tournaments and ended his B.A.S.S. career with $1.6 million.</p>
First to earn $1 million
Everyone knows the names at the top of the B.A.S.S. winnings list. But for years, Larry Nixon held that honor. The veteran Arkansas angler was the first to reach the $1 million mark, and it happened Oct. 17, 1992. In all, Nixon competed in 260 tournaments and ended his B.A.S.S. career with $1.6 million.
<p><u><strong>First to win an event hosted by Ray Scott</strong></u></p>
<p>Stan Sloan was the first to do what hundreds would go on to do: Win a tournament led by Ray Scott, B.A.S.S.'s founder. It was 1967 in the All-American Invitational on Arkansas' Beaver Lake. Scott founded B.A.S.S. just a few months later. Sloan took home a hefty $2,000 for his win -- plus a trip to Acapulco. He competed in 29 B.A.S.S. events but never got another victory. He went on to found Stan Sloan's Zorro Bait Co., which is still in operation, years after his 2008 death.</p>
First to win an event hosted by Ray Scott
Stan Sloan was the first to do what hundreds would go on to do: Win a tournament led by Ray Scott, B.A.S.S.’s founder. It was 1967 in the All-American Invitational on Arkansas’ Beaver Lake. Scott founded B.A.S.S. just a few months later. Sloan took home a hefty $2,000 for his win — plus a trip to Acapulco. He competed in 29 B.A.S.S. events but never got another victory. He went on to found Stan Sloan’s Zorro Bait Co., which is still in operation, years after his 2008 death.
<p><u><strong>First to win a Bassmaster Classic</strong></u></p>
<p>Bobby Murray was the first angler to win a Classic title. He took home the first Classic trophy at the 1971 Bassmaster Classic, held on Nevada's Lake Mead. For the 43 pounds, 11 ounces, he brought in, he won $10,000. He went on to win the Classic again in 1978.</p>
First to win a Bassmaster Classic
Bobby Murray was the first angler to win a Classic title. He took home the first Classic trophy at the 1971 Bassmaster Classic, held on Nevada’s Lake Mead. For the 43 pounds, 11 ounces, he brought in, he won $10,000. He went on to win the Classic again in 1978.
<p><u><strong>First catch-and-release tournament</strong></u></p>
<p>Four years after B.A.S.S. was founded, Ray Scott made a monumental decision: That bass would be returned to the water after each day of competition. The first event of 1972, the Florida National, was the first to implement Scott's "Don't Kill Your Catch" policy. Competitors' catches went into "Big Blue," a specially designed temperature-controlled aerated holding tank. It was a far cry from the previous tournaments, in which bass were brought in on stringers and hung on the leaderboard for display. With the new policy, bass survival was at 80 percent -- much improved from the previous zero percent survival.</p>
First catch-and-release tournament
Four years after B.A.S.S. was founded, Ray Scott made a monumental decision: That bass would be returned to the water after each day of competition. The first event of 1972, the Florida National, was the first to implement Scott’s “Don’t Kill Your Catch” policy. Competitors’ catches went into “Big Blue,” a specially designed temperature-controlled aerated holding tank. It was a far cry from the previous tournaments, in which bass were brought in on stringers and hung on the leaderboard for display. With the new policy, bass survival was at 80 percent — much improved from the previous zero percent survival.
<p><u><strong>First Nation angler to win a Classic</strong></u></p>
<p>The first B.A.S.S. Nation representative to win the Bassmaster Classic was Bryan Kerchal in 1994. The B.A.S.S. Nation has sent anywhere from one to six anglers to the Classic since 1973, when Wendell Mann led the charge as the first Nation representative. No other time, before or since Kerchal's victory, has another Nation angler taken the crown.</p>
First Nation angler to win a Classic
The first B.A.S.S. Nation representative to win the Bassmaster Classic was Bryan Kerchal in 1994. The B.A.S.S. Nation has sent anywhere from one to six anglers to the Classic since 1973, when Wendell Mann led the charge as the first Nation representative. No other time, before or since Kerchal’s victory, has another Nation angler taken the crown.
<p><u><strong>First B.A.S.S. member (and first B.A.S.S. Life Member)</strong></u></p>
<p>Don Butler of Tulsa, Okla., was the first angler to join Ray Scott's fledgling organization in 1968. Butler asked Scott how much it cost to join, and Scott said $10. Butler handed him a $100 bill and said, "How's this for a lifetime membership?" Butler competed on the B.A.S.S. trail from then until 1977, then he fished a few more tournaments in the 1990s. He has a Classic victory to his credit, too -- the 1972 Bassmaster Classic.</p>
First B.A.S.S. member (and first B.A.S.S. Life Member)
Don Butler of Tulsa, Okla., was the first angler to join Ray Scott’s fledgling organization in 1968. Butler asked Scott how much it cost to join, and Scott said $10. Butler handed him a $100 bill and said, “How’s this for a lifetime membership?” Butler competed on the B.A.S.S. trail from then until 1977, then he fished a few more tournaments in the 1990s. He has a Classic victory to his credit, too — the 1972 Bassmaster Classic.
<p><strong><u>First international B.A.S.S. winner</u></strong></p>
<p>Norio Tanabe, a native of Tokyo, Japan, was the first international angler to win a Bassmaster event. He'd been competing off and on since 1990, and he got his victory in April 1993 on Kentucky Lake. Tanabe went on to compete for several more years. He didn't win again, but he set the stage for other international anglers, such as Takahiro Omori and Morizo Shimizu, to take home trophies.</p>
First international B.A.S.S. winner
Norio Tanabe, a native of Tokyo, Japan, was the first international angler to win a Bassmaster event. He’d been competing off and on since 1990, and he got his victory in April 1993 on Kentucky Lake. Tanabe went on to compete for several more years. He didn’t win again, but he set the stage for other international anglers, such as Takahiro Omori and Morizo Shimizu, to take home trophies.
<p><strong><u>First international Classic winner</u></strong></p>
<p>Takahiro Omori moved to the United States from Japan in 1992 to pursue his dream of becoming a bass pro. He won two Invitationals -- in 1996 and 2001 -- but in 2004, he really made a name for himself on the American stage. In a dramatic finish, Omori won the 2004 Bassmaster Classic on North Carolina's Lake Wylie. The following year, he won a Tour event and an Open, cementing his name in B.A.S.S. history.</p>
First international Classic winner
Takahiro Omori moved to the United States from Japan in 1992 to pursue his dream of becoming a bass pro. He won two Invitationals — in 1996 and 2001 — but in 2004, he really made a name for himself on the American stage. In a dramatic finish, Omori won the 2004 Bassmaster Classic on North Carolina’s Lake Wylie. The following year, he won a Tour event and an Open, cementing his name in B.A.S.S. history.
<p><strong><u>First woman in a B.A.S.S. tournament</u></strong></p>
<p>When B.A.S.S. first started in 1968, women weren't allowed to compete against the men. That rule eventually changed, and the woman who broke the barrier and became the first to enter was Vojai Reed on May 1, 1991. She finished 58th out of 244 anglers. She was the wife of Charlie Reed, who had won the Bassmaster Classic a few years before in 1986. Vojai competed in seven Bassmaster tournaments between 1991 and 1992, but she never cut a check.</p>
First woman in a B.A.S.S. tournament
When B.A.S.S. first started in 1968, women weren’t allowed to compete against the men. That rule eventually changed, and the woman who broke the barrier and became the first to enter was Vojai Reed on May 1, 1991. She finished 58th out of 244 anglers. She was the wife of Charlie Reed, who had won the Bassmaster Classic a few years before in 1986. Vojai competed in seven Bassmaster tournaments between 1991 and 1992, but she never cut a check.
<p><strong><u>First woman in the Classic</u></strong></p>
<p>Kim Bain-Moore was the first woman to compete in the Bassmaster Classic. She earned a berth by winning the Women's Bassmaster Tour Championship in 2008, and she went on to finish 47th in the 2009 Bassmaster Classic. The following year, Pam Martin-Wells earned the WBT's invitation to the Classic, and she finished 22nd in 2010. The WBT was discontinued then, and no other female has qualified for the Classic.</p>
First woman in the Classic
Kim Bain-Moore was the first woman to compete in the Bassmaster Classic. She earned a berth by winning the Women’s Bassmaster Tour Championship in 2008, and she went on to finish 47th in the 2009 Bassmaster Classic. The following year, Pam Martin-Wells earned the WBT’s invitation to the Classic, and she finished 22nd in 2010. The WBT was discontinued then, and no other female has qualified for the Classic.
<p><strong><u>First African-American in the Classic</u></strong></p>
<p>Alfred Williams was the first African-American angler to cross the Bassmaster Classic stage. That honor came in 1983 on the Ohio River. Williams qualified as the Central Division victor from the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship. He finished in 10th place, just ahead of Hank Parker and Paul Elias.</p>
First African-American in the Classic
Alfred Williams was the first African-American angler to cross the Bassmaster Classic stage. That honor came in 1983 on the Ohio River. Williams qualified as the Central Division victor from the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship. He finished in 10th place, just ahead of Hank Parker and Paul Elias.
<p><u><strong>First father and son duo in the Classic</strong></u></p>
<p>Bill (wearing the blue shirt) and Greg Ward (wearing red) were the first father and son to compete in a Classic. Bill finished in 28th and Greg in 26th in the 1975 Bassmaster Classic. Greg was only 19 years old, and he holds the record to date for the youngest Bassmaster Classic competitor. The two both qualified for multiple Classics, and they share another first: They're the first (and only, to this date) father and son to have both placed last in a Classic.</p>
First father and son duo in the Classic
Bill (wearing the blue shirt) and Greg Ward (wearing red) were the first father and son to compete in a Classic. Bill finished in 28th and Greg in 26th in the 1975 Bassmaster Classic. Greg was only 19 years old, and he holds the record to date for the youngest Bassmaster Classic competitor. The two both qualified for multiple Classics, and they share another first: They’re the first (and only, to this date) father and son to have both placed last in a Classic.
<p><strong><u>First brothers in the Classic</u></strong></p>
<p>Tom Mann (shown) and his brother, Don Mann, both competed in the 1975 Bassmaster Classic — the same one father and son Bill and Greg Ward competed in. Tom finished in fifth place, and Don in 22nd. It was Don's first Classic, and he got a return trip in 1976, but it was his last. Tom earned his first Classic qualification in 1971, and he qualified six more times throughout the 1970s. Tom is perhaps best known as the founder of Mann's Bait Co.</p>
First brothers in the Classic
Tom Mann (shown) and his brother, Don Mann, both competed in the 1975 Bassmaster Classic — the same one father and son Bill and Greg Ward competed in. Tom finished in fifth place, and Don in 22nd. It was Don’s first Classic, and he got a return trip in 1976, but it was his last. Tom earned his first Classic qualification in 1971, and he qualified six more times throughout the 1970s. Tom is perhaps best known as the founder of Mann’s Bait Co.
<p><strong><u>First college angler in Classic</u></strong></p>
<p>In 2012, B.A.S.S. began sending its top angler from the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series to the Bassmaster Classic. Andrew Upshaw of Stephen F. Austin University was the first to qualify. </p>
First college angler in Classic
In 2012, B.A.S.S. began sending its top angler from the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series to the Bassmaster Classic. Andrew Upshaw of Stephen F. Austin University was the first to qualify.