Scott Martin had a little fun at the expense of fellow FLW pro Jonathan Newton this week. Newton, who like Martin is part of the National Guard team, was practicing for the Detroit River FLW Tour Open and called Martin to see how his preparation was going.
Little did Newton know Martin was still at home in Florida and not actually on the water in Detroit.
“I told him, ‘Yeah, I’ve got about 25 pounds today. Things are great,’” Martin said. “I had him going for about 5 minutes.”
Martin has decided to skip the final three FLW Opens of the season so he can devote more time to his family. He and wife, Suzanne, have four school-age children (two boys in middle school and two girls in elementary school) and he wants to be able to do the things other parents do like drive them to school and help out with homework.
“It’s extremely important to me,” he said. “Growing up in the industry, I know what it’s like to have a dad who’s gone 300 days a year fishing tournaments and doing appearances.
“Since winning the Forrest Wood Cup (in 2011), my schedule has gotten really busy with promotions and I’ve been blessed that the TV show (“Scott Martin Challenge”) has continued to be a success. With my tournament obligations on top of that, it eats up a lot of time. When I looked at this year, I know my wife and kids have sacrificed so much and I wanted to give back this fall. I want to be able to take them to school and make their baseball games and watch their soccer matches.”
His television obligations haven’t changed and he has a full slate of trips scheduled this fall for his show, but from a family standpoint taking a break from the tournament grind was necessary.
“When you look at it, I’m gone 14 days for an average tournament and then you get home and unwind and before you know it, you’re packing up again,” he said. “I love tournament fishing, but my boys (Jacob and Reed) are at an age where school is really important right now and things are changing in their lives and I need to be a good example for them.”
He was instrumental this summer in the formation of a fishing club at The King’s Academy school his sons attend in Clewiston, Fla. At the recent open house, about 15 students signed up to participate. The club will benefit from the guidance of Martin as well as from guide trips and clinics at Lake Okeechobee.
“The best part of the whole high school and college fishing thing for me is it’s getting the younger generation involved and getting the love instilled in them at an early age,” he said. “There are so many great things about fishing. Some people look at it and say, ‘Well, what can a child really gain from fishing?’ Some say it’s just fishing. It’s a lot more than that. With the youth fishing group, we’re seeking out sponsorships from businesses so we’re writing letters and asking for donations and we’re working on being organized and looking professional. There are so many life skills young kids can get from being in a fishing club.”
