According to a story posted on the Strike King website last night, Denny Brauer has announced his retirement from the Bassmaster Elite Series following the 2012 season.
“While I will not ever fully retire from this great sport that has been my passion for so many years, it is time for me to step down from competing on the Bassmaster Elite Series,” said the 63-year-old Brauer in the release. “The last 32 years have been tremendous. Shirley and I are so appreciative of all that this sport has been for us.”
Brauer has had a legendary career, with 17 first-place finishes in B.A.S.S. tournaments. He won the 1998 Bassmaster Classic at High Rock Lake, Greensboro, N.C. He also was the 1987 Bassmaster Angler of the Year, and is one of only 12 anglers to have won both Angler of the Year and the Bassmaster Classic. Brauer has earned more than $2.5 million in his Bassmaster career, which ranks him third in dollars won among all the competitors in B.A.S.S. history.
We’ll have more coverage of Brauer and his career coming up. In the meantime, here’s a 20 Questions with Denny Brauer from a couple of years ago.