The 80 anglers who comprise the new Bass Pro Tour will not pay entry fees for the 2019 season, Major League Fishing announced in a press release today.
The anglers reportedly voted to avoid contributing the proposed entry fee of $48,375, giving the BPT the distinction of being the first national tournament circuit to operate without entry fees.
The results of the voting were not disclosed in the release, but BassFan has learned the decision was approved by an “overwhelming majority” of the field.
Without the $3.87 million in anticipated entry fee revenue, the payouts for each BPT tournament will be less than initially announced, but no further details were made available. It’s believed the group is considering alternate payout models that could be put to another vote.
Gary Klein, a co-founder of MLF and a BPT competitor, lauded the decision.
"What brought this great group of anglers together in the first place was the allure of being able to ultimately control our own destiny because collectively we now make the rules," Klein said in the release. "It's all about the big picture of what we want this sport to be and getting it there. We call this 'Major League' Fishing for a reason and no entry fees is a monumental move in our achieving that distinction."
