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Would Roland Martin fish Elites?

Would Roland Martin fish Elites?

B.A.S.S. posted its requalification criteria for the 2017 Elite Series at Bassmaster.com on Thursday evening, and it would seem to open the door for nine-time Angler of the Year Roland Martin to return to the organization's top circuit, if he so chooses.

The majority of the criteria is the standard stuff that appears in the 2016 Participation Agreement, but toward the bottom is the announcement that two "Legend" qualifiers will be added to the field.

Here's how that portion of the post reads:

B.A.S.S. Legend invitations will be extended based on one point for each Bassmaster Classic win and one point for each Bassmaster Angler of the Year title. Legend qualifications will be prioritized in the following order:

1. Active Elite anglers not otherwise qualified for the 2017 Elites;

2. Active Bassmaster Opens pros not otherwise qualified for the 2017 Elites;

3. Current B.A.S.S. members in good standing not currently fishing B.A.S.S. events.

(Ties will be broken by B.A.S.S. all-time winnings at time of invitations. Should a Legend-qualified angler decline an invitation, B.A.S.S. will invite the next qualified angler from the Legend list.)

Under that system, Martin would receive 9 points, as that's how many AOYs he won during his illustrious career. The only angler alive who'd get more is Kevin VanDam (11, with four Classic wins and seven AOYs), but VanDam is in no need of any exemptions and likely never will be.

The 75-year-old Martin left the Bassmaster Tour after 2005 (the year prior to the launch of the Elite Series), but has fished 19 Opens – mostly in the Southern Division – since 2011. He's also competed in 10 FLW Tour events over that span.

The next-highest point totals for active anglers belong to Rick Clunn (5), Mark Davis (4) and Larry Nixon (3). Retired competitors Hank Parker, Bill Dance and Guido Hibdon would also receive 3.

To see the complete post, click here.

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