I prefer to fish sole and make my own decisions 100% with no 'dock talk'. That is why the various kayak tournament series are more suited for me- plus it plays into my style of fishing-slow and thorough. BASS using COVID as an excuse was laughable. They will evolve away from FFS eventually if the 'death by a thousand cuts' continues.
Love your videos, always informative. I've fished as a co angler many times. Some with great boaters and some not so great. So got my own boat, now at 74 I still fish club and some draws. I take them as they come.
Fished as a co in opens last year. Caught them good enough behind a scoper. Glad I did. It was a great experience. Had a blast fishing new places. I do not think scoping has anything to do with it.
Well now all the boaters can pay for their own hotels and gas for trailering. I was nice being able to split the hotel costs or finding someone to split gas traveling from tourney to tourney.
I've fished 136 BFLs in twenty years as a co-angler and I don't believe there should be co-anglers in semi-pro and pro circuits (Elites, Opens, BPT, Invitationals, Toyota Series or NPFL). Keep them in grassroot circuits like the BFLs and ABA America Fishing Tour. BASS and MLF should consider having team tournaments where the co can control the trolling motor and fish anywhere in the boat. The team would work together and not hinder each other. Also, the circuits would have that revenue. My two cents.
I personally think it's a good move, the opens are for the guys who want to go foward to the Elites or they are lake specific guys who think they can win. There are very few actually fishing to go to the classic. Co anglers really have no where to go so why are they there? For the co anglers that just want to fish , go fish the BFLs or the nation. You want to learn from the pro anglers, watch youtube, 90% have a channel
Livescope, is why bass got rid of the co angler. Nobody wants to sit on the back of a boat and throw the Dead water. Especially with the amount of money that you pay to be a co-angler in the bath system.
Yup, had that happen to me. I was like what?. Then when we got back to the dock , my fish were floating. Revived 4 of them, 1 died . Cost me $ and a piece of hardware. Following year was fishing a regional and got completely backended the entire day. Bought a boat the following spring and never fished as a co again. It's just not worth the grief.
@richardpace5809 When a boater worries about a nonboater cat hing more fish than he does. He himself questioned his own fishing skills. He gets to fish the best spots first as long as he likes. The nonboater Ain't the problem. A lot of time, it's the boater.
@@ernestcoleman4672 I had a boater catch his 5th fish and immediately pull the trolling motor..I said what ya doing(I had 3 fish at the time). I'd like to fill my limit...The boater said I need these fish for tomorrow so unless you're paying my entry fee we are leaving....That along with ffs is why it was my last tournament as a Co
@@russb296can’t say I blame the boater. Considering he’s the one who paid 2x entry, spent days finding the fish, towed the boat all the way up there to fish the tournament, and he Prob wants to get back to the ramp area early. If he completely stopped fishing than that’s one thing. But even than. His boat his rules
CoAnglers in a qualifying type circuit was dumb. The Pros in these tournaments are trying to make this a career, they shouldn’t have to worry about a coangler. Now there does seem to be an opportunity for a circuit like the National Walleye Tour that uses combine co and pro weights for a cumulative boat total that both angler carry to the next day. This provides value for both pro and co.
The Toyota's are Advertised as a option for Triple-A Fishing. The five divisions feature reasonable travel and great fisheries, so there’s an option for just about everyone looking to get in on the action, be it on the pro side or as a *Strike King co-angler*.
I bought a modified FFS ice fishing portable unit for my wife to use on the back deck when we went fishing (she didn't like fishing on front deck with me). I was going to actually start to let my co angler use it, but then they limited transducers. Hard to keep up with this stuff...
I had a co-angler call Ron Lappin (tournament director), during a Toyota event at Okeechobee, and reported to him that I wasn't giving him his half of the day in the front of the boat! But not only did he not know the rules, he also cast over my shoulder 3 times that day, his line landing on my shoulder or head. The last time it happened he didn't get his lure back. 😅 But, most Cos we're great.
Man this is already a problem at every level. Most of our local tournaments are now single man . No more team in working together in comradery. I hate fishing alone . I love being able to fish with my buddies. But bass couldn't keep back boaters so they had to do something to make it fair for everyone!
The game is changing fast. I do like to fish solo however the poor co anglers are the odd men out. I believe that FFS is the one man boat catalyst that eliminated them. Hard truth, everybody's knows PR and sponsorship money is of BASS higher importants than mentorship. However FFS does help level the playing field for those who can afford to go pro. Good or bad, in many ways technology has push us into the era of individualism.
I appreciate your take, but it’s 100 percent live scope related. One used to be able to get in the boat with a “pro” and learn something. Now you cant. It’s a waste of money for co anglers. I get your argument, makes allot of sense. But the “grass roots” part of BASS is gone. It’s a rich man’s game now plane and simple
Awesome video Tyler! Good stuff there! I’ve been subscribed mate and I’m loving the videos! I’ve gotta get out and make another video! Keep up the good work mate!! 🤝🤝💪💪
I think TH-cam has been the biggest impact on coanglers numbers going down. You used to have to be a co to learn what the top anglers were doing. Now you just watch TH-cam and you can see what all the top guys did.
I think the biggest issue for tournament fishing is … how does a tournament organization make enough profit based on the sponsor dollars and entry fees to make good profit that exceeds the risks and bs h need to put up with to run these tournaments ? It’s a tough racket and probably why your favorite trail ended. Not with the money it brought to the organization running it. Enjoy these tournaments while u can.
As much money and time the boaters put into these opens I think it’s the right call regardless of reason. Now they just have to worry about the other boaters being on the up and up👀.
BASS should have been honest instead of making excuses. They said “F” the past and tradition. By the way, I’m a past BASS Coangler that stopped when FFS took over. It’s another dishonest and weird decision by BASS in the last few months.
I used to fish as co angler in a club (have a boat now). I used to practice with my neighbor and the guy I was fishing with in the tournament got mad that I wouldn't tell him wear we taught them in practice. Probably wouldn't have me go with him if I did. Had to point out to him that we out fished them anyway. Some things you just don't do.
Ffs created this situation. I have an entire garage full of tackle and 40 rods and reels and I don’t use any of it anymore other than my drop shots and keitechs and FFS baits now. None of us need to be dragged behind a scooter all day and only be allowed to keep 3 fish. I’d rather Marshall in the elites.
Aaaand, some co-anglers have the connections to get your boat towed 10 miles back to the launch ASAP and save a tournament. lol. No really, I agree with you on this. I was just poking fun at you..
This is Paul on the Red River BTW. I have actually done one of the things you talked about. One of my first BASS Opens I paired up with Bradley Hallman on Day 1, way back in the day. He taught me about the Shakey Head on day 1. I spanked them all the way through championship day in that one. Best finish ever. I have used that technique over the years to make most of my tournament money. Keep telling it like it is Todd.
What’s up Paul. This is a prime example guys, met Paul at an Open and we practiced together. I’ll have to tell everyone the story about that next time. Breakdowns, towed in by the police, good times
Hi Todd, MLF in Bassmasters have been dead for a few years now no one cares about tournament anglers their popsicle sticks up their butts TH-camrs and influencers run bass fishing now with live scope everyone’s on the same Plainfield Bass Fishing is brand new and it’s in infancy state site Fishing. Everyone is on a level Plainfield now get with it or get left behind is what we say.
Livescope made the decision for me to not go fish bigger tournaments. Not going to sit back and watch someone catch fish. I'll stick to team tournaments at a local level.
What's amazing is that the so-called professional fisherman isn't a professional fisherman . Their just rich guys. Their the new all about me movement, that's it. Professional fishermen aren't professional at all. Most every day, fishermen can be just as good, just don't have the money.
I can see both sides..it’s hard for me to leave my boat for a team event myself …and I get the co angler side being out of the back of the boat and scope ..they can learn from pros..I have some buddies went that route ..but I agree I think they should make it just boaters ..to many variables ..If a co wants to learn maybe they can find some alternatives ??
I've had a hard time with coanglers in some cases especially with older anglers because they aren't into the stop and go and stop and go quickly at different spots. By the time they get ready to fish I'm about ready to leave again so instead of making it hard on them I just slow down and sometimes end up wasting a lot of time doing things I normally wouldn't have. Then if they get frustrated, they start chirping all of their opinions constantly like they know more than a guy that's been there all week. It throws me off mentally in a major way. Then I've also had coanglers figure out the perfect color for the day and end up catching more than me and win the MLF event lol That is a treat though because I love it when my coanglers do good!
Say what you want this sport is dwindling away . B.A.S.S. has no backbone anymore , that left when Ray left . And there are very few professionals left in this sport . 😅😅
I fished as a co last year in the opens. Live scope didnt really matter, I still enjoyed it and always had a good experience with boaters. My issue with this, is i already signed up for opens next year as a co. Its only been 10 days from when they opened registration for cos to them making this decision. They clearly were thinking about this before hand. Now i already paid my deposit and havent heard from them on a refund and sent them an email asking about it. Been fishing BASS events since Junior bassmaster tournaments in 2009, gives me a sour taste in my mouth of how they waited until after opening registration to announce they are no longer having co anglers. Some last minute decision making is not the best look
So you exploit public resources for personal gain, but complain if anyone fishes “your” spots. What do you think the cos are paying for? To learn, whether it’s techniques, or spots, they are trying to learn.
I will say the idea of helping to reduce the amount of boat pressure on lakes are reduced by having Co anglers, now all these guys are going to buy boats or jump in as a boater (boat dealers are going to score) but it will increase boat pressure more tournaments and new bass clubs. But if I was a co angler and I fished with a boater who showed me a new fishing hole I would use it in future, just part of the whole fishing environment.
I've never understood the appeal of the coangler in tournaments. The only thing that's made sense to have them was to keep people from cheating and there was still plenty of that going on. Now we just need to get them out of the BFL's
Yeah , I just don’t know how you mount the transducer on the back of another guys boat . You would need to be able to turn the transducer and fish at the same time.
@ yeah I’m just not sure how hard that would be to use on the back of a boat . Would have to mount a transducer somehow without damaging the boat. It would also have to be easy to quickly pack up in case the boater wanted to go for a boat ride.
I feel bad for those guys like me that have to put in vacation ahead of the new year. If I fished them this year I would have put in for those days off prior to this decision. That would have sucked
I am not very good. But man I hated co anglers in the ABA tournaments. I get the whole they keep it honest but, not a fan. And guys that do it to make money or become a pro it's tough on them as well. If you need to learn fish a team trail.
One of the selling points of bein a co-angler had always been the opportunity to learn. Not much to learn behind an angler scopin. Not against it. Just sayin. Elite tournament circuits are in trouble, in my opinion.
BASS needs to either take some pages from the Kayak tournament fishing book, like measuring the bass you caught, taking a picture of your catch, sending the image to tournament officials with the proper ID and date time stamp, and release the bass back into the water where you caught it, or do what MLF does and send boaters out the gate with an official on the boat. This is why MLF and the Kayak tournaments are much better than BASS. All MLF boaters have officials ensuring that no cheating on the water occurs. As long as you have cash payouts at tournaments, you'll always have some DA trying to cheat. Will either of these tournament programs stop all cheating? No, because you still have dock talk and illegal information being passed by locals to Pros before and during the tournament. The professional anglers who fish the PRO series events have quite the conundrum and need to unite as a unified body to establish a set of rules/regulations that are enforceable with the available resources. Until this happens, you'll keep having unscrupulous people cheat during tournaments.
Try finding that many Marshalls, never gonna happen. The measuring of bass and sending in a picture with inches with 230 anglers you would probably have 50 guys tie. It’s not even close to being reasonable
@toddcastledinefishing5924 Ahh, you just nailed the issue on the head with BASS tournaments, you have 230 anglers. Isn't that a little excessive to have that many anglers participating in a bass fishing tournament? Hence the difference between BASS (230 anglers and unmanageable) and MLF (50 anglers with Officials on the boats and manageable). Whenever you have to big of an organization that doesn't have enough resources you lose the ability to manage and sustain it. This goes especially for trying to ensure cheating is being mitigated, which it isn't in your profession.
I’m fine with 230 anglers, we fish team events all the time with over 300. Opens and BPT are 2 different events. One is thriving one is struggling so much they have to keep cutting.
It would be cool to be a co angler if it was a team deal,like teaming up with a pro for the entirety of the tournament,split winnings 60/40 with the pro,more co anglers would sign up knowing they get to team up with a pro for 3days that would be fun as hell,in my opinion
Just curious what advantage would a boater have to get a stranger that might not be able to fish that great, did no practicing, and then split winnings? I only see one example of where that would be interesting but you might not like that answer.
@@toddcastledinefishing5924 lol the boater probably wouldn't have much of an advantage,Im just all for team tourney s just seem like more fun,and teaming up with a pro would be cool,definitely no advantage for by the pro cause he could get screwed big time sometimes,probablymost of the time,there's noway I could ever be a co,I'm like you I just couldn't dobit,I'd rather be the boater,lol,they pay out part would be tricky for sure,especially if pro catches all the fish lol
CO-ANG NEEDS TO BE IN THE TEAM TOUR-S NOT THE BIG TOUR PERIOD TELL NOW IT WAS JUST FR THE MONEY THEY PUT UP . IF I SPEEND 250 DAYS ON A LAKE FISHING I WOULD LIKE TO FISH ALONE - BUT IN TOUR IT HELPS WHEN THEIR IS A BACK SEATER THIS IS MY WAY TO. BUT IF I WIN OR LOSE THAT IS THE WAY IT ALL ON ME.
@@Mjones8383 Makes you wonder about their educational level or if they care at all what others think of them. I always try to proof read what I post just to not prove how ignorant I may really be, lol.
@@glynnreid1217 most bass guys think Swindle and Watson are funny guys… they also probably giggle at their own farts. I Wonder why they can’t get any non-fishing related sponsors?
I can speak for myself, in that I stopped being a co because of ffs and it took all the fun out of it for me. But I'm not a hard core tournament guy, so it being fun was the thing for me and weaving around over 40 ft of water on 10 isn't fun for someone in the back of the boat. Pretty simple and I'm not bothered one way or the other about it, it just was my choice. But I can say that the numbers of folks like me is only growing. BASS obviously decided that the dwindling co entry money wasn't worth the effort so they are pushing co's to go to the Nation events. Makes sense, as they can structure the Nation events as a feeder to the Opens and market it that way in the hopes co's get a boat and go that way. But if it's the same ffs rules then the co's aren't going to show, so it's all a wash. The optics are now the Opens are a true AAA type tourny org and those egos don't have the excuse of a co angler on why they don't have a return on their money. The biggest issue out of all of this, in my opinion, is now there is no way to police all the anglers unless they require video in every boat and BASS isn't going to pay for the extra manpower to go through all that footage. It's going to be even more shady than it already is. But, as I said, not my problem anymore so have at it boys.
BASS keeps shooting themselves in the foot on just about every issue that comes up. The fact is, the co-angler program was one of the most popular for years until the cheater box came on the scene. Keep watching your "sport" tank with leadership like you have at BASS...
i don't think its bass that made this decision i think the lack of co anglers that want to be front ended all day by a pro playing his livescope video game is the real problem. bass may have cut co anglers out but thats because they were not getting enough any more. i wouldn't pay all the money for entries, lodging, fuel and everything else just to have a pro front end me all day. they need to bring back the term non-boater and let them have the front of the boat for 1/2 the tournament hours like they used to
I got to kinda disagree with co anglers never being an advantage. I started fishing as a co angler as a learning experience. In Florida it’s different. There’s very few guys that can go out and win or be in contention just scoping. I’ve had times where something has changed and I couldn’t get bit, or my boater couldn’t get but, doing what I was doing, or what they were doing in practice. Either I, or my co angler either threw something different or targeted something different in the grass and cracked the code and figure it out . That either clued me, or my boater when I was a co angler in. I was able to position my boat either spot lock or power poling down in a way that we both had an opportunity when there was a big school in that area and we both just crushed in them that day. One of those times it was a kid that was fishing his first BFL ever, and that kid did everything a co angler should do, I was like 17th or 18th out a 200+ boat in event ( which I thing is respectable ) he had a top 10 and seeing that kids face during and after weigh in made my day vs how I did. On the other hand, I’ve had a few co anglers that I just couldn’t wait until the day was over to get them off my boat. This whole no co angler deal, the ABAs did it first and they sold it as a marketing deal. It definitely made me want to fish them more. That’s a double edge sword seeing how I started as a co. The problem is there is a lot of co anglers that want to go out and their whole goal is to out fish the boater like they got something to prove. You got a lot of bad apples that have ruined it for others. My opinion though is when you got guys that are trying to qualify for the opens don’t need to have that distraction in the opens. Toyotas are a little different like you said but there is still some guys trying to qualify for the invitationals but then that adds another level before you get to the BBT on the MLF side
I literally said they are an advantage for some and that’s why it’s not fair at that level. I also said that there is an advantage in practice as well, it’s a huge advantage. I’m not sure where you got that.
I have not joined BASS since they eliminated co’s from the elites. They don’t appreciate what co anglers do for the sport. I have met and made some great friends through the co programs. The recreational anglers are being forgotten by BASS and other circuits.
Unfortunately, by eliminating co-anglers, BASS Will lose boat sponsorship. You need co anglers to develop to buy boats and push the industry forward in that area. They also will be purchasing more tackle and push the industry forward in that area. This is a pretty grievous error on the part of BASS And I’m not saying this lightly because I am a bass lifetime member.
Nehh. Plenty of tournaments co anglers can fish if they want. If you are trying to qualify for the elites... you shouldn't have to play the co angler game.
Come on Todd. You have great content, but to lay it to the co angler for hole jumping, the co doesn't control the boat correct? The pros do it religiously. The largest issue we have in professional fishing IMO is the whiney and entitled pros. I think they have all forgotten that the water is public, BASS nor any pro have no exclusive right to any venue, any location on the lake. In their arrogance, if a local is sitting on a location, the pro automatically says they jumped "his" spot. Like no one ever knew of the place prior to his coming there. Go back to two pros in the boat, each with half the day. No need for Co's and the cheating is eliminated. The resource is public, taxpayer built and maintained/managed, yet somehow these self proclaimed elites think they should have priority to it.
I liked it better when less people fished. Lol. I’m kinda serious. I don’t really care about the sport though. I just like fishing. And it was more enjoyable when the lakes were less crowded
@@toddcastledinefishing5924BASS has been putting out old clips. Higher tournament winnings with about 1/6 the cost. It’s not making these days look good, that’s for sure!
@@ryanstarzenski3072the last time I went to my favorite lake it was more crowded than I had ever seen it I usually fish it in early spring pre spawn and through the spawn and most of the time there are not many people there but we went hoping to find some bluegill on the beds and there were so many people there I couldn’t hardly believe it and they weren’t bluegill fishing so I only hope that when we go back there early spring that all of those people haven’t figured out how good the fishing is there at that time of the year .
Just picture sitting on the back of the boat as a Co in the middle of the lake while the pro is live scoping. He isn’t there to let you scope. He is there for himself. It would and is dead ass boring
They don't require 2 anglers, they require a captain 1 or 2 anglers, if 1 another person as a spectator or Marshall. I captain my nephew and he fishes all BASS tournaments alone, my dad will go as a Marshall
@@MJ_Bass yeah it's much better, had one of my best tournament days in the back behind a guy who was locked in on bedding smallmouth. I was dragging a c-rig and drop shot off the ledge behind him and caught 13lbs of smallmouth. Not every fish is on bed at the same time and usually the bigger ones stay off deeper anyways.
I am sure most pro's is happy that they are doing away with co-anglers. however that means also more pro's are going have to truly step up there winning.. eventually they may be forced to bring back CO's.
I never liked co anglers, I wanna see the best of the best go head to head, they way they'd no excuses , i think the elites are the elites, bpt is second by a lot and the opens are right there with the bpt, without co anglers , the opens night take second
I guess im different than alot of guys ,if i was a coangler and drew you or some other uppe lwvel boater i probably wouldnt wven fish. Id be more interested in having you teach me. I dont mean spits i mean why is this spot good .why does a bait presented this qay catch more then another etc..
I just don’t really get the point of “high level” co angling nowadays. If a guy is that committed he should get into a kayak and run his own show. If he just wants to have fun, man get into a team tournament or lower stakes club deal.
don't be bitchin when the payouts and viewership for everything go down now. co-anglers are the majority of the fans for these leagues, not everyone can afford the boat and electronics.
So they get rid of the Co Anglers, what happens now? Do they pair the pros together in a boat, or do they all get to fish by themselves? Cause I'm thinking I don't want another pro in my boat, and I shouldn't have to share my boat if I paid to fish the tournament with someone that isn't on the same level!
They definitely fish by themselves, over the past couple of years if they didn’t have enough cos guys fished by themselves. Problem was it wasn’t fair that some had cos and some didn’t
@@toddcastledinefishing5924 and people have no idea how important it was whether you have a co on day 1 or 2. I’ve had a co on day 1 snatching bass off a spot that I returned to on day 2 and now I’m having a hard time getting a limit. It affects the outcome for sure.
If you've never been stuck in the back of a boat on the lake end of Pickwick (no structure at all) with an angler who uses ffs as their main tool, then your blessed.
@@wwp2213 Steve… I’m not a co angler cowboy.. but can definitely see why someone would “whine” or just not fish in the back.. hints no co angler in bass. People like you are exactly why this great sport is in bad shape.
I prefer to fish sole and make my own decisions 100% with no 'dock talk'. That is why the various kayak tournament series are more suited for me- plus it plays into my style of fishing-slow and thorough. BASS using COVID as an excuse was laughable. They will evolve away from FFS eventually if the 'death by a thousand cuts' continues.
Love your videos, always informative. I've fished as a co angler many times. Some with great boaters and some not so great. So got my own boat, now at 74 I still fish club and some draws. I take them as they come.
Fished as a co in opens last year. Caught them good enough behind a scoper. Glad I did. It was a great experience. Had a blast fishing new places. I do not think scoping has anything to do with it.
Well now all the boaters can pay for their own hotels and gas for trailering. I was nice being able to split the hotel costs or finding someone to split gas traveling from tourney to tourney.
I've fished 136 BFLs in twenty years as a co-angler and I don't believe there should be co-anglers in semi-pro and pro circuits (Elites, Opens, BPT, Invitationals, Toyota Series or NPFL). Keep them in grassroot circuits like the BFLs and ABA America Fishing Tour. BASS and MLF should consider having team tournaments where the co can control the trolling motor and fish anywhere in the boat. The team would work together and not hinder each other. Also, the circuits would have that revenue. My two cents.
I could see that
Between bed fishing and FFS, I won't miss yall.
But your here
I personally think it's a good move, the opens are for the guys who want to go foward to the Elites or they are lake specific guys who think they can win. There are very few actually fishing to go to the classic. Co anglers really have no where to go so why are they there? For the co anglers that just want to fish , go fish the BFLs or the nation. You want to learn from the pro anglers, watch youtube, 90% have a channel
Livescope, is why bass got rid of the co angler. Nobody wants to sit on the back of a boat and throw the Dead water. Especially with the amount of money that you pay to be a co-angler in the bath system.
When a boater says that the non-boater is catching his fish. He's dumb ass hell. And they do say it.
Yup, had that happen to me. I was like what?. Then when we got back to the dock , my fish were floating. Revived 4 of them, 1 died . Cost me $ and a piece of hardware. Following year was fishing a regional and got completely backended the entire day. Bought a boat the following spring and never fished as a co again. It's just not worth the grief.
@richardpace5809 When a boater worries about a nonboater cat hing more fish than he does. He himself questioned his own fishing skills. He gets to fish the best spots first as long as he likes. The nonboater Ain't the problem. A lot of time, it's the boater.
Did you actually listen to this video?
@@ernestcoleman4672 I had a boater catch his 5th fish and immediately pull the trolling motor..I said what ya doing(I had 3 fish at the time). I'd like to fill my limit...The boater said I need these fish for tomorrow so unless you're paying my entry fee we are leaving....That along with ffs is why it was my last tournament as a Co
@@russb296can’t say I blame the boater. Considering he’s the one who paid 2x entry, spent days finding the fish, towed the boat all the way up there to fish the tournament, and he Prob wants to get back to the ramp area early.
If he completely stopped fishing than that’s one thing. But even than. His boat his rules
CoAnglers in a qualifying type circuit was dumb. The Pros in these tournaments are trying to make this a career, they shouldn’t have to worry about a coangler.
Now there does seem to be an opportunity for a circuit like the National Walleye Tour that uses combine co and pro weights for a cumulative boat total that both angler carry to the next day. This provides value for both pro and co.
The Toyota's are Advertised as a option for Triple-A Fishing.
The five divisions feature reasonable travel and great fisheries, so there’s an option for just about everyone looking to get in on the action, be it on the pro side or as a *Strike King co-angler*.
I bought a modified FFS ice fishing portable unit for my wife to use on the back deck when we went fishing (she didn't like fishing on front deck with me). I was going to actually start to let my co angler use it, but then they limited transducers. Hard to keep up with this stuff...
I had a co-angler call Ron Lappin (tournament director), during a Toyota event at Okeechobee, and reported to him that I wasn't giving him his half of the day in the front of the boat! But not only did he not know the rules, he also cast over my shoulder 3 times that day, his line landing on my shoulder or head.
The last time it happened he didn't get his lure back. 😅
But, most Cos we're great.
Man this is already a problem at every level. Most of our local tournaments are now single man . No more team in working together in comradery. I hate fishing alone . I love being able to fish with my buddies. But bass couldn't keep back boaters so they had to do something to make it fair for everyone!
The game is changing fast. I do like to fish solo however the poor co anglers are the odd men out. I believe that FFS is the one man boat catalyst that eliminated them. Hard truth, everybody's knows PR and sponsorship money is of BASS higher importants than mentorship. However FFS does help level the playing field for those who can afford to go pro. Good or bad, in many ways technology has push us into the era of individualism.
I appreciate your take, but it’s 100 percent live scope related. One used to be able to get in the boat with a “pro” and learn something. Now you cant. It’s a waste of money for co anglers. I get your argument, makes allot of sense. But the “grass roots” part of BASS is gone. It’s a rich man’s game now plane and simple
Yup.. a rich pricks playground. As they blow by the public doing 90. No one likes them.
Awesome video Tyler! Good stuff there! I’ve been subscribed mate and I’m loving the videos! I’ve gotta get out and make another video! Keep up the good work mate!! 🤝🤝💪💪
I think TH-cam has been the biggest impact on coanglers numbers going down. You used to have to be a co to learn what the top anglers were doing. Now you just watch TH-cam and you can see what all the top guys did.
Can’t disagree with you
Great point
Merry Christmas Todd. Keep smashing them.
I think the biggest issue for tournament fishing is … how does a tournament organization make enough profit based on the sponsor dollars and entry fees to make good profit that exceeds the risks and bs h need to put up with to run these tournaments ? It’s a tough racket and probably why your favorite trail ended. Not with the money it brought to the organization running it. Enjoy these tournaments while u can.
As much money and time the boaters put into these opens I think it’s the right call regardless of reason. Now they just have to worry about the other boaters being on the up and up👀.
cheating will be rampant
@@MekyeBarnes I hope not. Maybe they will have marshals
@@jasonmitchell8211 i highly doubt they’ll have Marshall’s for the opens. It’s going to be an interesting year to say the least.
BASS should have been honest instead of making excuses. They said “F” the past and tradition. By the way, I’m a past BASS Coangler that stopped when FFS took over. It’s another dishonest and weird decision by BASS in the last few months.
Merry Christmas to you and yours!
The fact that people own spots is like Karen saying you can't fish my dock.😂😂😂
@@josephphillips590 it’s just bad educate to fish spots another guy showed you . Especially a week after they showed it to you.
I used to fish as co angler in a club (have a boat now). I used to practice with my neighbor and the guy I was fishing with in the tournament got mad that I wouldn't tell him wear we taught them in practice. Probably wouldn't have me go with him if I did. Had to point out to him that we out fished them anyway. Some things you just don't do.
Most co anglers and Marshalls dont know the rules anyway😂
ONLY IN TEAM TOUR- THEY SHOULD BE IN AND WEIGHT THE FISH FOR BOTH OF THE CATCH AND GET BOTH SPLIT THE MONEY.
Co anglers with patches and championship and sponsors is what messed things up...pro ams. Just show up and fish was the way to go
I was going to say just go to team tournaments, way more fun, Merry 🤶
Simple right? Any good anglers out there wanna team up with a total stranger….anyone…. ? Ok
Ffs created this situation. I have an entire garage full of tackle and 40 rods and reels and I don’t use any of it anymore other than my drop shots and keitechs and FFS baits now. None of us need to be dragged behind a scooter all day and only be allowed to keep 3 fish. I’d rather Marshall in the elites.
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Perfect. That’s why you coanglers are gone. Hope you’re happy. Now no more bitching.
Aaaand, some co-anglers have the connections to get your boat towed 10 miles back to the launch ASAP and save a tournament. lol. No really, I agree with you on this. I was just poking fun at you..
This is Paul on the Red River BTW. I have actually done one of the things you talked about. One of my first BASS Opens I paired up with Bradley Hallman on Day 1, way back in the day. He taught me about the Shakey Head on day 1. I spanked them all the way through championship day in that one. Best finish ever. I have used that technique over the years to make most of my tournament money. Keep telling it like it is Todd.
What’s up Paul. This is a prime example guys, met Paul at an Open and we practiced together. I’ll have to tell everyone the story about that next time. Breakdowns, towed in by the police, good times
Hi Todd, MLF in Bassmasters have been dead for a few years now no one cares about tournament anglers their popsicle
sticks up their butts
TH-camrs and influencers run bass fishing now with live scope everyone’s on the same Plainfield Bass Fishing is brand new and it’s in infancy state site Fishing. Everyone is on a level Plainfield now get with it or get left behind is what we say.
How is this directed at me, what do you mean get with it? I’m way ahead of you on all of this been saying it for years🤦♂️🤦♂️
The boaters can’t salvage gas money from their co’s anymore, sucks for them LOL
Livescope made the decision for me to not go fish bigger tournaments. Not going to sit back and watch someone catch fish. I'll stick to team tournaments at a local level.
What's amazing is that the so-called professional fisherman isn't a professional fisherman . Their just rich guys. Their the new all about me movement, that's it. Professional fishermen aren't professional at all. Most every day, fishermen can be just as good, just don't have the money.
You are right on. Your thoughts are spot on. I use to fish tournaments and found same problem with co anglers on multi day tournaments.
Agreed
Still have bass nation the bfls and the Toyota series I guess 👍
I agree made lots of new friends that I practiced with and fished with. Great memories!!!!!
10:15 what do you mean by this? They came back in their own boat?
Nothing like leading after the first day and then finding a boat with yesterday's co-angler setting on your spot the next morning. It sucks.
Would love to see someone organize a team trail with divisions based on location that would eventually lead to a Championship event...
May want to consider Fisher of Men. Generally 5 events that leads to a division event that leads to a National Event.
They're out there
Media Bass.
@@TheFishdoctor1952 not really an option when you live in the Northeast
I can see both sides..it’s hard for me to leave my boat for a team event myself …and I get the co angler side being out of the back of the boat and scope ..they can learn from pros..I have some buddies went that route ..but I agree I think they should make it just boaters ..to many variables ..If a co wants to learn maybe they can find some alternatives ??
I've had a hard time with coanglers in some cases especially with older anglers because they aren't into the stop and go and stop and go quickly at different spots. By the time they get ready to fish I'm about ready to leave again so instead of making it hard on them I just slow down and sometimes end up wasting a lot of time doing things I normally wouldn't have. Then if they get frustrated, they start chirping all of their opinions constantly like they know more than a guy that's been there all week. It throws me off mentally in a major way. Then I've also had coanglers figure out the perfect color for the day and end up catching more than me and win the MLF event lol That is a treat though because I love it when my coanglers do good!
Great . Probably saved me some money on gear and fees
BASS and MLF are doomed. They can’t compete with millions of TH-cam videos a day. RIP BASS and MLF. 😂
Thanks Todd.
Always a level headed explanation to emotional issues when you make a video.
Say what you want this sport is dwindling away . B.A.S.S. has no backbone anymore , that left when Ray left . And there are very few professionals left in this sport . 😅😅
It is big deal! Coanglers behind a live scoper doesnt stand a chance in hell to catch a bass. I don't blame the coanglers for quiting.
I fished as a co last year in the opens. Live scope didnt really matter, I still enjoyed it and always had a good experience with boaters.
My issue with this, is i already signed up for opens next year as a co. Its only been 10 days from when they opened registration for cos to them making this decision. They clearly were thinking about this before hand. Now i already paid my deposit and havent heard from them on a refund and sent them an email asking about it. Been fishing BASS events since Junior bassmaster tournaments in 2009, gives me a sour taste in my mouth of how they waited until after opening registration to announce they are no longer having co anglers. Some last minute decision making is not the best look
@@flockofmooosen2825 the lack of cos registering possibly played into their decision unfortunately.
I have caught most co’s on a spot we fished together. That’s why I never fish draw tournaments anymore.
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So you exploit public resources for personal gain, but complain if anyone fishes “your” spots. What do you think the cos are paying for? To learn, whether it’s techniques, or spots, they are trying to learn.
@@Really-cq2uwyou saying this is a perfect example of why co-angling is dying….
I will say the idea of helping to reduce the amount of boat pressure on lakes are reduced by having Co anglers, now all these guys are going to buy boats or jump in as a boater (boat dealers are going to score) but it will increase boat pressure more tournaments and new bass clubs. But if I was a co angler and I fished with a boater who showed me a new fishing hole I would use it in future, just part of the whole fishing environment.
"Your" fish and "Your" spot. That mentality is the problem.
I've never understood the appeal of the coangler in tournaments. The only thing that's made sense to have them was to keep people from cheating and there was still plenty of that going on. Now we just need to get them out of the BFL's
With all the opens guys fussing about co anglers and Co's fussing about anglers this is one time B.A.S.S. should have made everyone happy..Not!!! Lol
Open on Neely Henry, I had a co take his 2nd day pro to my first day spot. No way it was coincidence.
I've had it happen too.
Wonder how long it takes for Garmin to come out with a portable live. Scope for co anglers .
I've beeusing my portable Garmin for years now ice fishing
Yeah , I just don’t know how you mount the transducer on the back of another guys boat . You would need to be able to turn the transducer and fish at the same time.
Years back
@ yeah I’m just not sure how hard that would be to use on the back of a boat . Would have to mount a transducer somehow without damaging the boat. It would also have to be easy to quickly pack up in case the boater wanted to go for a boat ride.
I feel bad for those guys like me that have to put in vacation ahead of the new year. If I fished them this year I would have put in for those days off prior to this decision. That would have sucked
I would only fish an open to knock something off my bucket list
I am not very good. But man I hated co anglers in the ABA tournaments. I get the whole they keep it honest but, not a fan. And guys that do it to make money or become a pro it's tough on them as well. If you need to learn fish a team trail.
Prestige part of bass (qualifying for classic or elites) is definitely more appealing than the bpt in my opinion
Guys that fish Toyotas aren’t trying to qualify for BPT. They are doing it for the money.
One of the selling points of bein a co-angler had always been the opportunity to learn. Not much to learn behind an angler scopin. Not against it. Just sayin. Elite tournament circuits are in trouble, in my opinion.
BASS needs to either take some pages from the Kayak tournament fishing book, like measuring the bass you caught, taking a picture of your catch, sending the image to tournament officials with the proper ID and date time stamp, and release the bass back into the water where you caught it, or do what MLF does and send boaters out the gate with an official on the boat. This is why MLF and the Kayak tournaments are much better than BASS. All MLF boaters have officials ensuring that no cheating on the water occurs. As long as you have cash payouts at tournaments, you'll always have some DA trying to cheat. Will either of these tournament programs stop all cheating? No, because you still have dock talk and illegal information being passed by locals to Pros before and during the tournament. The professional anglers who fish the PRO series events have quite the conundrum and need to unite as a unified body to establish a set of rules/regulations that are enforceable with the available resources. Until this happens, you'll keep having unscrupulous people cheat during tournaments.
Try finding that many Marshalls, never gonna happen. The measuring of bass and sending in a picture with inches with 230 anglers you would probably have 50 guys tie. It’s not even close to being reasonable
@toddcastledinefishing5924 Ahh, you just nailed the issue on the head with BASS tournaments, you have 230 anglers. Isn't that a little excessive to have that many anglers participating in a bass fishing tournament? Hence the difference between BASS (230 anglers and unmanageable) and MLF (50 anglers with Officials on the boats and manageable). Whenever you have to big of an organization that doesn't have enough resources you lose the ability to manage and sustain it. This goes especially for trying to ensure cheating is being mitigated, which it isn't in your profession.
I’m fine with 230 anglers, we fish team events all the time with over 300. Opens and BPT are 2 different events. One is thriving one is struggling so much they have to keep cutting.
Live scope is ruining it for everyone….if they fix this is tournaments will be done…
👍👍👍👍👍
It would be cool to be a co angler if it was a team deal,like teaming up with a pro for the entirety of the tournament,split winnings 60/40 with the pro,more co anglers would sign up knowing they get to team up with a pro for 3days that would be fun as hell,in my opinion
Just curious what advantage would a boater have to get a stranger that might not be able to fish that great, did no practicing, and then split winnings? I only see one example of where that would be interesting but you might not like that answer.
@@toddcastledinefishing5924 lol the boater probably wouldn't have much of an advantage,Im just all for team tourney s just seem like more fun,and teaming up with a pro would be cool,definitely no advantage for by the pro cause he could get screwed big time sometimes,probablymost of the time,there's noway I could ever be a co,I'm like you I just couldn't dobit,I'd rather be the boater,lol,they pay out part would be tricky for sure,especially if pro catches all the fish lol
CO-ANG NEEDS TO BE IN THE TEAM TOUR-S NOT THE BIG TOUR PERIOD TELL NOW IT WAS JUST FR THE MONEY THEY PUT UP . IF I SPEEND 250 DAYS ON A LAKE FISHING I WOULD LIKE TO FISH ALONE - BUT IN TOUR IT HELPS WHEN THEIR IS A BACK SEATER THIS IS MY WAY TO. BUT IF I WIN OR LOSE THAT IS THE WAY IT ALL ON ME.
Dude do you not have spell check😂
@@Mjones8383 Makes you wonder about their educational level or if they care at all what others think of them. I always try to proof read what I post just to not prove how ignorant I may really be, lol.
@@Mjones8383 I GUESS I HAVE TO PROFF-MY WORDS THANKS I HAVE BEEN FISHING FOR OVER 5O YRS AND GETTING MY ORDS WITH MY FA FINGERS IN THE WAY
@@glynnreid1217 most bass guys think Swindle and Watson are funny guys… they also probably giggle at their own farts. I Wonder why they can’t get any non-fishing related sponsors?
I can speak for myself, in that I stopped being a co because of ffs and it took all the fun out of it for me. But I'm not a hard core tournament guy, so it being fun was the thing for me and weaving around over 40 ft of water on 10 isn't fun for someone in the back of the boat. Pretty simple and I'm not bothered one way or the other about it, it just was my choice. But I can say that the numbers of folks like me is only growing.
BASS obviously decided that the dwindling co entry money wasn't worth the effort so they are pushing co's to go to the Nation events. Makes sense, as they can structure the Nation events as a feeder to the Opens and market it that way in the hopes co's get a boat and go that way. But if it's the same ffs rules then the co's aren't going to show, so it's all a wash.
The optics are now the Opens are a true AAA type tourny org and those egos don't have the excuse of a co angler on why they don't have a return on their money. The biggest issue out of all of this, in my opinion, is now there is no way to police all the anglers unless they require video in every boat and BASS isn't going to pay for the extra manpower to go through all that footage. It's going to be even more shady than it already is.
But, as I said, not my problem anymore so have at it boys.
BASS keeps shooting themselves in the foot on just about every issue that comes up. The fact is, the co-angler program was one of the most popular for years until the cheater box came on the scene. Keep watching your "sport" tank with leadership like you have at BASS...
i don't think its bass that made this decision i think the lack of co anglers that want to be front ended all day by a pro playing his livescope video game is the real problem. bass may have cut co anglers out but thats because they were not getting enough any more. i wouldn't pay all the money for entries, lodging, fuel and everything else just to have a pro front end me all day. they need to bring back the term non-boater and let them have the front of the boat for 1/2 the tournament hours like they used to
I got to kinda disagree with co anglers never being an advantage. I started fishing as a co angler as a learning experience. In Florida it’s different. There’s very few guys that can go out and win or be in contention just scoping.
I’ve had times where something has changed and I couldn’t get bit, or my boater couldn’t get but, doing what I was doing, or what they were doing in practice. Either I, or my co angler either threw something different or targeted something different in the grass and cracked the code and figure it out . That either clued me, or my boater when I was a co angler in.
I was able to position my boat either spot lock or power poling down in a way that we both had an opportunity when there was a big school in that area and we both just crushed in them that day.
One of those times it was a kid that was fishing his first BFL ever, and that kid did everything a co angler should do, I was like 17th or 18th out a 200+ boat in event ( which I thing is respectable ) he had a top 10 and seeing that kids face during and after weigh in made my day vs how I did.
On the other hand, I’ve had a few co anglers that I just couldn’t wait until the day was over to get them off my boat.
This whole no co angler deal, the ABAs did it first and they sold it as a marketing deal. It definitely made me want to fish them more.
That’s a double edge sword seeing how I started as a co. The problem is there is a lot of co anglers that want to go out and their whole goal is to out fish the boater like they got something to prove. You got a lot of bad apples that have ruined it for others.
My opinion though is when you got guys that are trying to qualify for the opens don’t need to have that distraction in the opens. Toyotas are a little different like you said but there is still some guys trying to qualify for the invitationals but then that adds another level before you get to the BBT on the MLF side
I literally said they are an advantage for some and that’s why it’s not fair at that level. I also said that there is an advantage in practice as well, it’s a huge advantage. I’m not sure where you got that.
@@toddcastledinefishing5924 I apologize if I misheard or misunderstood you.
I have not joined BASS since they eliminated co’s from the elites. They don’t appreciate what co anglers do for the sport. I have met and made some great friends through the co programs. The recreational anglers are being forgotten by BASS and other circuits.
They're going to lose alot of money.
Man you got my present
Just one more way to lose more spectators 🤔
Unfortunately, by eliminating co-anglers, BASS Will lose boat sponsorship. You need co anglers to develop to buy boats and push the industry forward in that area. They also will be purchasing more tackle and push the industry forward in that area. This is a pretty grievous error on the part of BASS And I’m not saying this lightly because I am a bass lifetime member.
Nehh. Plenty of tournaments co anglers can fish if they want. If you are trying to qualify for the elites... you shouldn't have to play the co angler game.
Come on Todd. You have great content, but to lay it to the co angler for hole jumping, the co doesn't control the boat correct? The pros do it religiously. The largest issue we have in professional fishing IMO is the whiney and entitled pros. I think they have all forgotten that the water is public, BASS nor any pro have no exclusive right to any venue, any location on the lake. In their arrogance, if a local is sitting on a location, the pro automatically says they jumped "his" spot. Like no one ever knew of the place prior to his coming there. Go back to two pros in the boat, each with half the day. No need for Co's and the cheating is eliminated. The resource is public, taxpayer built and maintained/managed, yet somehow these self proclaimed elites think they should have priority to it.
The bottom line here is that less people will be fishing the various tournaments....not good for the sport
Your comment made me think what good thing has happened to the sport lately?
I liked it better when less people fished. Lol. I’m kinda serious. I don’t really care about the sport though. I just like fishing. And it was more enjoyable when the lakes were less crowded
@@toddcastledinefishing5924BASS has been putting out old clips. Higher tournament winnings with about 1/6 the cost. It’s not making these days look good, that’s for sure!
@@ryanstarzenski3072the last time I went to my favorite lake it was more crowded than I had ever seen it I usually fish it in early spring pre spawn and through the spawn and most of the time there are not many people there but we went hoping to find some bluegill on the beds and there were so many people there I couldn’t hardly believe it and they weren’t bluegill fishing so I only hope that when we go back there early spring that all of those people haven’t figured out how good the fishing is there at that time of the year .
Just picture sitting on the back of the boat as a Co in the middle of the lake while the pro is live scoping. He isn’t there to let you scope. He is there for himself. It would and is dead ass boring
I agree biting as can be. However the boater is not paying money to fish a tournament for the co, not his job
Does anyone think bass will still require two anglers for high school tournaments?
They don't require 2 anglers, they require a captain 1 or 2 anglers, if 1 another person as a spectator or Marshall. I captain my nephew and he fishes all BASS tournaments alone, my dad will go as a Marshall
@Mjones8383 w
With fl bass nation one angler would only get half the points affecting state and nationals I do believe.
I almost put my $$$ down after Christmas for Sam Rayburn
Let the cheating begin!!!
How are you supposed to fish from the back when the guy up front is scoping? Blaming Covid is wild.
Bed fishing any better?
@@MJ_Bass yeah it's much better, had one of my best tournament days in the back behind a guy who was locked in on bedding smallmouth. I was dragging a c-rig and drop shot off the ledge behind him and caught 13lbs of smallmouth. Not every fish is on bed at the same time and usually the bigger ones stay off deeper anyways.
@@MJ_Bassyou tell me
I am sure most pro's is happy that they are doing away with co-anglers. however that means also more pro's are going have to truly step up there winning.. eventually they may be forced to bring back CO's.
They might for sure, however I think more and more guys weren’t signing up
I can tell as viewer no one watch’s watch somone watchen screen.
I never liked co anglers, I wanna see the best of the best go head to head, they way they'd no excuses , i think the elites are the elites, bpt is second by a lot and the opens are right there with the bpt, without co anglers , the opens night take second
I guess im different than alot of guys ,if i was a coangler and drew you or some other uppe lwvel boater i probably wouldnt wven fish. Id be more interested in having you teach me. I dont mean spits i mean why is this spot good .why does a bait presented this qay catch more then another etc..
I think that should be more of how it works
I just don’t really get the point of “high level” co angling nowadays. If a guy is that committed he should get into a kayak and run his own show. If he just wants to have fun, man get into a team tournament or lower stakes club deal.
Agreed
don't be bitchin when the payouts and viewership for everything go down now. co-anglers are the majority of the fans for these leagues, not everyone can afford the boat and electronics.
Co Agleslr
So they get rid of the Co Anglers, what happens now? Do they pair the pros together in a boat, or do they all get to fish by themselves? Cause I'm thinking I don't want another pro in my boat, and I shouldn't have to share my boat if I paid to fish the tournament with someone that isn't on the same level!
They definitely fish by themselves, over the past couple of years if they didn’t have enough cos guys fished by themselves. Problem was it wasn’t fair that some had cos and some didn’t
@@toddcastledinefishing5924 and people have no idea how important it was whether you have a co on day 1 or 2. I’ve had a co on day 1 snatching bass off a spot that I returned to on day 2 and now I’m having a hard time getting a limit. It affects the outcome for sure.
I think this may be another repercussion of FFS ..and Co's whining about fishing behind in FFS tournaments 100%
Why wouldn’t they whine?
They had a reason to whine because they had no chance it’s a different way to fish. However, the best way to whine is not show up. I don’t blame them
@@ErnieAdamson🍼
If you've never been stuck in the back of a boat on the lake end of Pickwick (no structure at all) with an angler who uses ffs as their main tool, then your blessed.
@@wwp2213 Steve… I’m not a co angler cowboy.. but can definitely see why someone would “whine” or just not fish in the back.. hints no co angler in bass. People like you are exactly why this great sport is in bad shape.