Obviously, the winner of this event will deserve and own the trophy — to do with it as he wishes. That’s no different than the Super Bowl Trophy, the Stanley Cup, or any other piece of hardware reflecting a comparable victory. But as a writer, and a budding historian of the sport, I spend a lot of time thinking about what a particular victor would mean for bass fishing’s development and notoriety.
Fortunately, we have a lot of great stories at the top They come with a variety of backstories, media presences, sponsors and potential impacts. We’ve had a few past winners who didn’t “grow the sport” — as I said above, that’s their prerogative — but it’s a whole lot better for the rest of us when they use the platform for all that it’s worth.
Two time defending champ Hank Cherry says “Don’t Blend In.” That’s good advice for whoever succeeds him (assuming that he doesn’t become the biggest story of all by threepeating).
