BASS announced late last week that it would no longer offer a co-angler division in the Bassmaster Elite Series. Reaction was predictably mixed.

While most pros BassFan spoke with liked the decision, others in the sport were more mixed in their opinions.



In a BassFan Poll that's currently running, 34% of respondents said they liked the no-co decision, while 62% didn't (more than 2,100 readers voted).

And the BassFan FeedBack section is flooded with letters about the decision. Due to the sheer volume of chatter, not every letter could be published. BassFan was able to publish the majority of the letters, though, several of which appear below.

Tony Brown of Greenbrier, Tenn. writes:
What a Great Move by BASS. I like it. Instead of a spectator, why don't they just assign a camera person to each boat? Sounds like BASS doesn't need to worry about the money the cos were giving.

Joe Zelienka of Walnutport, Pa. writes:
Co No Mo: A Poem
Hush co-angler, don't say a word,
BASS's gonna cut you, so I've heard.
Because the problems that you bring,
BASS's gonna axe you come this spring.
Since your tactics do harass,
BASS's gonna kick you in the *?$.
Cause of you some pros now choke,
BASS's gonna change it, that's no joke.
And if you're having a hard time coping,
BASS's gonna tell you Go Fish An Open.
So hush co-angler, don't say a word,
While BASS's gonna treat you like a turd!

Doug Cavin of Fairborn, Ohio writes:
Everyone who's a member of BASS just got spit right in their face. BASS just loves to hurt the ones who support it – the Federation members, Weekend Series, the junior anglers and now the co-anglers. If there's one thing I've learned about BASS over the last 5 years or so, it's that if they get or see a chance to screw over members, they'll jump all over it. I'll never renew my membership again.

K. "Burger" Young of Alachua, Fla. Writes:
I can understand doing things to try and enhance the sport, but I'm not sure if BASS is enhancing the sport in the right area. I'm not sure that removing co-anglers is a good idea or a bad one for that matter. This move will surely get the crowd going and spark some controversy.

More emphasis should be put on future anglers trying to qualify to fish the Elites. It's going to be interesting to see if they are going to adjust the criteria to even qualify for the Elites. Allowing only the Top 5 finishers to qualify is a little lean. Then, to turn around and give the new rookie a small window of time to come up with entry fees in addition to a sponsor(s)?

As much as I want to fish as a BASS professional, I quickly see my chances slowly but surely dwindling away. Looks like the sport of BASS fishing is in jeopardy and not growing.

Jim Settnek of Trafford, Pa. writes:
The one can of 10-inch pink floating worms that'll be opened with these announcements is the issue of no co-anglers. I feel like we, the wannabes with big imaginations, lost an important connection with the pros that made this professional sport so different from all others. We lost our access to them.

However, on some level, and I hate to admit it, I do think in the grand scheme of professional sports that eliminating the co-angler probably advances the Elite tour to the next level.

Wes Hood of Annandale, Va. writes:
I've fished the Top 100s, Top 150s, Megabucks and the Elite Series as a co-angler since 1991. I never realized how reviled I was by my pros. Glad the truth is out. All I can say (without becoming vulgar) is "Good luck finding paid observers." BASS couldn't fill the co-angler slots on many occasions, and I don't believe they ever filled the paid observer slots in the Majors, so logic would say the number of people willing to pay for the honor of riding and not fishing will be even smaller.

Oh wait, I know: Why not take the money to hire paid observers out of the purse money? That's one way to try to maintain the integrity of the sport. Or better yet, go to the 50-boat field many have been calling for. Fifty boats and 100 pros paired pro-on-pro, just like the good old days.

I don't think I'll be lining up for any seminars or merchandise or autographs anytime soon. Congratulations BASS! You've let a vocal few create another "outstanding" corporate decision.

To my friends among the Elite Series pros and staff, my warmest personal regards. I'll miss seeing you all next year.

To the rest, it'll be interesting to see who gets blamed for poor performances next year. No more co-anglers, that only leaves the ubiquitous "locals."

Scott Burke of Oakdale, Calif. writes:
I'm completely disappointed that there are no longer co-anglers at the Elite level. It was one of the best fishing memories I had when the Elites were on the Delta a couple years ago. I'm a lifetime member of BASS. I'm devastated. Please change this decision.

Bob Adams of Cincinnati, Ohio writes:
They say "no more co-anglers" but they say observers will take their place. This makes no sense! All the pros have co-anglers with them, possibly catching their future fish, but so does every other pro! Really a poor choice on Ricks' part. I could see if they were going to replace co-anglers with camera men, but to replace them with observers? Happy trails and I guarantee the co-anglers will be back in 2010!

Tim Cummings of Waynesboro, Tenn. writes:
You're cutting out your co-anglers. These are the guys who actually buy their boats and tackle. The pros don't buy these things. They get most of their stuff free.

I think you're going to lose a lot of members to FLW because of this. I think FLW Outdoors is growing and trying very hard to be the leader in bass fishing, and they're succeeding. BASS is not. BASS is going downhill and this move is just going to make it worse.

Jeff Mitchell of Seymour, Ind. writes
I'm sure you're getting a lot of emails complaining about BASS removing co-anglers. I think it's great. Once again, no chance of someone accidentally finding out about colors, lure selection or what not. Pros vs. Pros. Now, if BASS is smart, they'll make a minimal charge to 'observers' or no charge at all and allow a lottery to get into the events. If they try charging anything over $100 they could have some trouble. I know I'd pay $100 to sit in a boat with a pro for 2 days to watch and learn.

Justin Hanold of Coconut Creek, Fla. writes:
Two thumbs up for BASS. It's great that they listen to their pros. Now the Elites are truly that – Elite. Co-anglers are great, but in the upper tier of our sport there's too much money on the line to have to worry about a guy on the back deck.

Steve Earle of St. Peters, Mo. writes:
Although I've fished BASS as a co-angler a couple of times and absolutely loved it, I believe that this is BASS taking another step to make their circuit a "true professional sport." I believe that their goal of creating the ultimate professional circuit is what separates them from FLW. I understand that the circuits have different goals and FLW has its own advantages, but I believe the huge fields, the opportunity to "jackpot" tournaments, etc. takes away from FLW when trying to allow the very best anglers to rise to the top.

Matt Hassler of McKinney, Texas writes:
I'm extremely disappointed in the decision to eliminate co-anglers from the Elite Series. I fished as a co-angler on Falcon Lake and it was one of the best experiences I could have ever imagined. Phasing out or reducing the co-anglers to 1 day would have been a more reasonable change. I think the unique chance to fish with an Elite angler, the goodwill it fosters and far reach of the experiences, far outweighs any perceived detriment caused to the pro. They wouldn't cover the results of the co-anglers if it was not interesting to everyone.

Mark Lewis of Louisville, Ky. writes:
I think the pros need a tour where they can fish by themselves (with an observer who doesn't get to fish). They pay the high entry fee, they put in the time on the water away from home and family, spending all that money. They don't need someone in the back of the boat that could take a 3-pounder away from them. I think it was a good move.

The cos can still fish the lower events, clubs or other local events until they can save up or work their way up to the pro level. Or they can move over to FLW Outdoors and fish with them.

Bryan Heaberlin of Deland, Fla. writes:
Co-anglers serve no purpose other than to distract the pro angler. Few people care how they finish in the events. BASS could sell the seat time in their boats, I believe, to people who want to be official observers. I don't care how many fish they catch on shakey-heads behind the pros. Sorry fellas.

Todd Reed of Marshalltown, Iowa writes:
This saddens me, as I've always wanted to fish one of the BASS tournaments with a pro. There's so much knowledge to be learned from them. I've been an observer for BASS, but it wouldn't be the same. I was chosen to participate in the River Rumble this year, but that was moved and I didn't partake. Oh well, I guess if you're one of the best 100 pros in the world, maybe you shouldn't have to share your boat.

Jeremy Green of Madison, Ala. writes:
I think it's about time. A co-angler at that level is a major hindrance to the pro in regards to fish management and onboard storage. I'm sure there were pros that could care less how their co did and pros that did care, and now with the co eliminated it's just one less burden on the pros that did care and should make for a much better competition. Guys like KVD are always going to get theirs, but now guys like James Kennedy will have a better shot because they aren't having to share fish with a co.

Jeff Banko of Chesterfield, Va. writes:
Regarding the BASS decision to eliminate cos at the Elite level, I'm all for it as long as the still-to-be-announced observer program is a good value. Frankly, paying $250 to be a co-angler where you were very limited in what was acceptable for you to do never appealed to me. If they make it something like $50 or $100 to get to ride with a pro, then I would think it's a great opportunity to ride along with a pro and learn something.

Chris Mahfouz of Houston, Texas writes:
Though I'm disappointed in BASS's decision (I was considering fishing the Elites as a co-angler next year), I think it'll be positive for the Elite anglers and the Elite Series. BASS is taking the next obvious step to make the Elites really just that. This will now be considered the pinnacle of tournament bass fishing. Any pro who wants to take their brand to the next level will be striving to gain a berth in the Elites. I like it.

Chad Keogh of Black Creek, B.C. (Canada) writes:
Though I'm sure BASS went along with the no co-angler format because it somehow saved them money (since all their decisions seem based on that), I'm also sure that the pros whining about having to take co-anglers out was a big part of the decision too.

The pros whine about co-anglers sharing their boat/water, about other tournament anglers on the same lake for a different tournament sharing their water, about each other sharing their water, about spectator boats sharing their water, and about local recreational anglers sharing their water.

I think bass-boat manufacturers need to start equipping each "pro-level" bass boat with a Kleenex dispenser so all those tears don't raise the water levels, or BASS needs to buy about 10 lakes so the pros can fish private lakes they don't have to share with anyone so they don't have to adapt to anything other than the weather.

Todd Steele of Port Huron, Mich. writes:
They should make it a combined-weight, five-fish tournament so the pro benefits from teaching the co-angler (who has paid a lot of money to fish and learn. The World Fishing Network out of Canada this year is trying this out. I'm fishing as a Pro. I think it'll be great for both myself and the co-angler. Wish me luck!

Steve Boyd of Orlando, Fla. writes:
I'm sure there will be plenty of co-anglers upset over BASS's decision, which is a good thing since they have a desire to participate. But this is a good decision as far as the Elite Series goes. They're supposed to be the best of the best and without co-anglers they'll be able to operate as such. Co-anglers are not a hassle, but they can dictate some of the decisions a pro makes, or the outcome of a 4-day tournament where weights accumulate.

Now it's all on the pros and it's up to them to execute with less distraction from a co-angler. This will also help the weigh-ins, as the co-anglers rarely bring in bags worth weighing and only slow the excitement down. Believe me, I know because I've weighed in plenty of my own bags as a co-angler that I'd rather not have.

While I've been very critical of BASS, they deserve kudos for making a tough decision and one that will benefit the sport in the long run. These guys need to be pros, act like pros and feel like pros with everything that happens in their boat.

To those that say eliminating the co-angler doesn't grow the sport: I say we all have the responsibility to grow the sport and if we do our jobs, fishing will always be around. Don't leave to someone else what we all should be doing.

Charles Bowman of Kernersville, N.C. writes:
The elimination of the co-angler is fine with me. Since I no longer am a participant and am now an observer, I, as an observer, am an extension of BASS to "keep the pro honest" as an onboard referee and to keep the integrity of the sport. Since I cannot compete, and since I am doing this job for BASS, I should be paid. I'd say $100 per day would be fair.

John Hennecke of Sacramento, Calif. writes:
I think that BASS has eliminated what made this sport different than any other. The folks at ESPN are forsaking membership for the almighty dollar.

Dennis Banik of Hammond, Ind. writes:
I'm greatly disappointed with BASS's decision to eliminate co-anglers from Elite competition. Ours is the only sport where a fan/fisherman can rub elbows with the best for a small price. We're the reason that the pros are popular. My experience at the Elite event in Erie 2007 was one that I'll never forget and always talk about. The pros were some of the nicest people you could meet and to have an opportunity to fish side-by-side with them was an honor and a privilege. I guess now I'll I have to fish FLW to rub elbows with the pros of our sport. I'm disappointed in BASS.

Cliff Pass of Lenzburg, Ill. writes:
BASS made a great choice in removing the X-factor of co-anglers determining the outcome of events from the Elite anglers' perspective. The competitiveness of many co-anglers is a detriment to the Elite anglers who are making a living at their sport. Many a skilled co-angler has caught fish which has cost Elite anglers a chance at a check or worse.

In structure-fishing or fishing acres of grass, a co-angler has just as good a chance at a large stringer as the Elite angler. There's no reason the pros should have to play defense to make a living.