Berkley: Cast for Cash to win $100,000

One lucky person will be chosen from the crowd to test their casting skills against Louie the Largemouth.

A professional angler averages 5,000 to 6,000 casts per tournament to have a shot at $100,000.

You only need to make one cast to win $100,000.

For the ninth year, the Berkley PowerBait Cast for Cash contest will be held during the final weigh-in of the Bassmaster Classic. One lucky person will be chosen from the crowd to test his or her casting skills against Louie the Largemouth by casting a plug perfectly into the big bass’ mouth. The plug must land inside a 12-inch opening and stay in to win.

If making a perfect cast in front thousands of screaming fans for $100,000 is something that might hamper your focus, fear not, for Hank Parker will be on hand to give you a few private pointers on making the right cast to get the big fellow to bite. The chosen caster can also relax in knowing that even if he or she does not ring the roof of the fish’s mouth, they have already won $5,000 and a pile of fishing gear just for trying.

The contestant will be allowed to chose between casting, spinning or spincast gear. This decision alone is crucial. Casting gear likely offers more control for a long under-handed pitch, but spinning gear provides more finesse and the ability to “feather” the plug’s momentum. Then again, maybe the best approach is to just push the button on the spincaster and let it fly in Hail Mary fashion. Parker will advise further on this in the free private casting consultation just before the big moment. After all, he has won two Bassmaster Classics and knows a thing or two about putting lures in the exact places they need to go.

“It’s a tricky cast to make,” Parker admits, “But it’s entirely possible to nail it for the $100,000. The key is in the arc of the cast, it needs plenty of height to…well, I should probably save my tips for the actual lucky contestant.”

In nine years, the perfect cast has never been made for the $100,000, but there have been a few close calls.

In 2012, Jerry Brandon of Haughton, La., nearly won it all in front of a hometown crowd at the CenturyLink Center in Shreveport, La. Brandon had the right line on the target, but fell just short.

In 2013, Dan Rahler of Dixon, Mo., thrilled the fishing fans in the BOK Center in Tulsa with plenty of distance, but landing just left of the target.

In 2014, Kyler Chelminiak of Franklin, Wis., landed just 2 feet away from the $100,000 prize in front of a packed Classic weigh-in in Birmingham.

All three of these contestants will never forget the thrill of trying to make a $100,000 cast at the “Super Bowl of bass fishing.” If only for a few minutes, they got to experience the exuberance of what bass fishing’s biggest stars experience when they climb the Classic stage with their catch.

“At Berkley, we look forward to this event each year,” said Chris Hockley, Berkley Brand Marketing Manager. “It isn’t often we get to possibly reward someone with $100,000. As the plug sails through the air, I don’t know who is more nervous, the contestant or me! Either way it is a big rush for them to be in front of thousands of screaming fans, on the sport’s biggest stage, walking in the footsteps of Classic champions past. The crowd alone makes the ride around the stadium worth it and to have a shot at a such big prize is icing on the cake.”

If you think you’ve got the pinpoint accuracy it takes to lip Louie the Largemouth with a single cast in front of thousands of people for $100,000, brush up on your casting skills and head to the Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Feb. 22 around 3 p.m. ET for your shot at $100,000 in the Berkley PowerBait Cast for Cash.