HOT SPRINGS, Arkansas — Long-time bass tournament pro anglers Guy Eaker and Ken Cook, along with respected journalist Dave Precht, will join 40 other members of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame this coming February when they are officially inducted.
The annual BFHOF Induction Banquet takes place on Friday, February 18 at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside Grand Ballroom during the 2011 Bassmaster Classic in New Orleans.
Eaker, from Cherryville, N.C., went from guiding on Santee Cooper Reservoir to casting for cash first at American Bass events and then on the B.A.S.S circuit. He qualified for10 Bassmaster Classic events and won the 1994 B.A.S.S. Texas Invitational on Lake Sam Rayburn. He has fished in B.A.S.S. events for more than 35 years, and has had a pleasure of fishing with both Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.
From covering the Bassmaster Classic as outdoor editor for the Houston Post, to his current position as senior director for B.A.S.S. Publications, Dave Precht’s career spans more than 35 years of writing about bass fishing and the professional tournament scene. Like Eaker, he’s also talked fishing with one of the most powerful men in the world.
In 1989, Precht represented the interests of bass anglers and the bass fishing industry during roundtable discussions about our nation’s fisheries with President George H.W. Bush.
Winner of the 1991 Bassmaster Classic on Chesapeake Bay casting a spinnerbait he designed, Ken Cook started his career as a fisheries biologist for the Oklahoman Department of Wildlife Conservation. In 1983, he won the Super B.A.S.S. 1 event on the St. Johns River in Florida, and with it, a $100,000 cash prize that at the time was the richest payout in bass tournament fishing history.
“On behalf of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame Board of Directors, we all look forward to February 18 when the bass fishing community will come together to honor these true greats in our sport,” said Sammy Lee, BFHOF president.
The Bass Fishing Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization dedicated to all anglers, manufacturers, tackle dealers, media and other related companies who further the sport of bass fishing.