Fishing tournaments are a popular activity for some anglers, while others loathe such endeavors as a corruption of a sport they enjoy.

To each his own, I suppose, but organized fishing tournaments at so many levels are now in place, that competition fishing is not going away and continues to grow. And is there anything inherently wrong with a fishing competition? That is and will have to remain entirely a personal judgement.

Unlike most competitive ventures folks engage in, however, money is not the great motivator that draws most anglers to enter most fishing tournaments. With the exception of a few high-level bass tournaments that are able to offer large cash payouts subsidized by tackle manufacturers and other deep-pocket sponsors, most fishing competitions offer small cash prizes if any.

The motivation to enter them therefore is not financial gain but largely comes from the fact that so many humans are by nature quite competitive. And I will admit to being one of them. We crave a good contest that lets us see how we stack up among our peers in some type of venture.

One downside of competition, of course, is it can bring out the worst in some folks from bad or unsportsmanlike behavior to outright cheating. When Ray Scott founded the B.A.S.S. tournament trail in 1967, one of the biggest obstacles he faced was credibility.

Back then cheating was rampant in any fishing tournament that offered any kind of significant cash prizes. That dubious status stifled top-notch sponsors or competitors from risking their reputations to get involved with events that had any appearance of not being on the up and up. But Scott stuck to his dream and put enough checks and rules in place to make his tournaments trustworthy.

By the 1970s, professional level bass tournaments were well established, and in many ways, they revolutionized the sport of bass fishing. The modern high-performance bass boats were designed to meet the demands of the tournament pros and a lot of avid weekend anglers wanted one as well.

The tournament scene was a constant source for productive new fishing lures, techniques and tackle and consequently a marketing boom for the tackle industry. Hobby anglers wanted the rods, reels and lures the pros used to win last weekend, and the tackle manufacturers were only too happy to accommodate them.

The tournament culture also had an impact on conservation by promoting catch-and-release fishing. By the early 1970s, most major bass tournaments had adopted the requirement for anglers bringing in their catch alive using aerated livewells with penalties for dead fish.

The catch-and-release ethic gained traction at the local level as local bass clubs began holding their own tournaments, and their members realized the value of catch-and-release angling for bass and embraced it.

As competitive bass fishing at all levels matured and continues to grow, the competitive side of trout fishing is still rather insignificant by comparison. Because I am equally enthusiastic about both bass and trout fishing, I have fished in some tournaments for both species on occasions.

But many avid trout anglers I know are not so open minded and are outright opposed to making a contest with their beloved trout. As previously noted, that is a personal judgment for some.

The biggest trout fishing competitions tend to be held in Europe in the form of the World Fly Fishing Championships. These are typically team events with separate categories for men, women and youth. And the Europeans in several countries take their fishing competition very seriously. Remember, of course, over there they also think soccer (football to them) is the greatest game ever.

Until recently, most of the United States teams have not done all that well against the Europeans. Two members of the Women’s and Youth U.S. Fly Fishing teams will be making a personal appearance next week to convey what those competitions are like.

Special presentation

The John Kennedy Chapter of Trout Unlimited will be hosting its monthly meeting at the Allegheny Township Volunteer Fire Department Hall, 651 Sugar Run Rd, Altoona, this Thursday from 7-9 p.m. This event is free and open to the public and will feature a special presentation titled “Lessons Learned and Stories from Fly Fishing Competition” by Ashley Wilmont and Helena Fischer.

Wilmont is a member of the U.S. Women’s Fly Fishing Team, an adjunct professor for the Penn State Fly Fishing Program, a director of the Reel Girls Fly Fishing Program, a volunteer for Casting for Recovery of Western Pennsylvania and a volunteer for Project Healing Waters. She was the women’s overall national champion last year and placed fourth in the individual standings of the 2024 Ladies World Championship in the Czech Republic. She owns and operates the fishing guide service, Spring Creek Fly Fishing LLC.

Fischer is currently a member of the U.S. Youth Fly Fishing Team. She is the second girl to make the national youth team.

Fischer is in 11th grade at Chestnut Ridge High School. She has fished in two nationals for the U.S. Youth Fly Fishing Team and will be competing in her third nationals this month. Among her accomplishments, she placed first in a casting competition with a cast of 80 yards.

Fischer has competed in many competitions and has attended many clinics, including Reel Girls. Fischer is an instructor with Reel Girls and a current member of the John Kennedy Chapter of Trout Unlimited.