Professional bass fishermen call their profession, "living the dream," and some do.
For others, it is a life of financial ruin and disappointment.
Some simply aren't good enough to compete at an elite level. Others have the ability, but they are undisciplined financially and in other areas.
Travis Fox of Rogers is one who seems to be doing it right.
I met Fox when he became a full-time pro on the FLW Tour in 2010, and I've tracked his steady ascent through the years to the Forrest Wood Cup, where he finished second in early August.
"The stats say I've been fishing professionally since 2008 because that's when you could 'jackpot' whatever FLW you wanted to fish," Fox said, "but 2010 is when they made it it to where you had to fish them all. So that's when I went full-time pro."
Fox's career started with a motorcycle accident. He used the money from his insurance settlement to enter the 2008 FLW Tour event at Beaver Lake.
"That's probably a better investment than buying another two-wheeled death machine," Fox said. "I got my investment back, and I did it again the next year."
Fox, who also is a field representative for Nikon, has an advantage of many professional bass fishing aspirants because he has a reliable income aside from fishing. However, he didn't start by plowing full bore into the FLW Tour, where the biggest names compete.
Instead, he eased into by fishing club tournaments on Beaver Lake. Then, he entered Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournaments. BFL is Fishing League Worldwide's (FLW) lowest level.
"I did good there, so I started fishing regional stuff," Fox said.
The Costa Series is FLW's regional circuit. It takes about a day for any angler to travel to the various Costa venues, which gives aspiring anglers a small taste of the rigors of the the road.
Fishing regionally is important, Fox said, because it teaches an angler humility, but it also forces him to adapt to the subtleties of different fisheries and different types of water.
"I see some people who never get off their home lake," Fox said. "They think they're awesome, and they are on their home lake, but when you go fish a lake you've never been before, it's not as easy as it looks on TV."
Fox prospered in the Costa Series, so he eventually moved to the FLW Tour, which demands a major commitment in time and money.
"I took the right approach because I didn't just jump right in," Fox said.
I have seen a lot of pros come and go over the years, and I've seen them succeed and fail for a variety of reasons. Some won big-money tournaments, but the grinding life of a touring pro burned them out. It's tough to leave a family behind for weeks on end, especially when you have small children.
It also strains a family to max out a wallet full of credit cards fishing tournaments. For some, the conflicts are insurmountable.
I've seen phenomenally talented anglers fail because they simply don't have the personalities to make themselves marketable. Conversely, I've seen marginally talented anglers succeed financially because they have marketable personalities. Catching fish is only part of the equation. You must be outgoing and telegenic, with a gift of gab to sell your sponsors and to attract television cameras.
Gerald Swindle never wins tournaments, but his consistency has earned him two Bassmaster Angler of the Year titles. Nobody besides Mike Iaconelli is more telegenic or quotable, and it enables him to earn a nice living.
Our colleague Philip Martin often mentions that there are people working in factories that play guitar as well or better than Jimi Hendrix. I really doubt that, but for the sake of argument, let's go with it.
The difference between hobby pickers and guitar legends is hunger, vision and commitment. It's the same with hobby anglers and established pros. The legends sacrifice whatever they must to reach the top. They constantly hone their craft and incorporate new licks and riffs into their repertoire. They chisel a persona, and they live it.
In short, the heroes of the fishing world are never satisfied to merely be the kings of Beaver Lake or Lake Dardanelle. They are not content to live or die as spinnerbait specialists, crankbait specialists or jig specialists. They excel at whatever the venue requires.
They really do live the dream.
Sports on 08/24/2017