The fact that Gary Klein fished Saturday's Top 10 final round of the FLW tournament at Lake Okeechobee means he complied with FLW Tour rules: he wore an FLW-sponsor shirt on the final day of competition.
BassFans will recall that the sponsor-jersey requirement is new this year. In past seasons, pros could wear a plain shirt on the final day, or they could wear the shirt of an FLW sponsor and get paid for it. They were not allowed to wear their normal tour shirts, which invariably have logos of non-FLW sponsors.
(For FLW Outdoors chairman Irwin Jacobs' explanation of the logo rule click here.)
When the logo policy was tightened this year to FLW-sponsor shirts only, Klein and Rick Clunn were two pros who said they were uncertain about what they would do if they made the final cuts.
They felt uncomfortable giving people the perception that they were endorsing a company with whom they had no relationship. But they both leaned toward fishing in the FLW final rounds if they made them. (For more on that, click here.)
When it came down to it, fishing -- competing -- was more important to Klein.
"I'm wearing a Fuji shirt for two reasons," he said. "The second day of the tournament I was paired with Bruce Fleming from Fuji. He's a super guy who put together the Fuji team, and I appreciate him being part of the (fishing) industry."
The second reason, Klein said, was that he likes Fuji's support of their FLW team.
"We all have to evaluate this," he said. "The biggest thing for me is that I'm a competitor and I like to compete. And I've always done well with FLW tournaments, so why keep myself from that?"
Yelas: One-Day Sponsorship
Like Klein, Yelas is one of the most highly-regarded pros in bass fishing, and he also wore a non-sponsor (Chevy) jersey during the FLW final round. FLW lets the anglers choose which shirt they want to wear, in order of day 3 standings, and Yelas said he chose Chevy because he drives a Chevy Suburban.
"It's like a one-day sponsorship," Yelas said. "I made $4,500 for wearing it, and I got to wear a Yamaha hat which means I got to promote one of my biggest sponsors."
He pointed out that he also wore a Berkley patch on the Chevy shirt, and that Klein wore a Berkley patch too. Both anglers endorse Berkley, which sponsors the FLW Tour.
"If Yamaha and Berkley were not sponsors of this tour, I wouldn't be here," Yelas said. "The bottom line is that I want to do a good job for the companies whose products I endorse. And I can't do that unless I can promote them at tournaments.
"That's what it's all about. I can't make a living off tournament winnings. I have to have endorsements," he said.
"The reason I haven't fished these tournaments for the past few years is because of that logo rule -- because Skeeter and Yamaha are my biggest sponsors and I couldn't promote them," he added. But with Yamaha and Berkley as FLW sponsors, "I can fish (the FLWs) now."
Jay Yelas says he is fishing the FLW Tour now that he can endorse Yamaha and Berkley.
