By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor
Kevin Short, a two-time winner on the Bassmaster Elite Series and one of the circuit’s mainstays since its inception in 2006, has announced that he will retire from Elite Series competition at the end of this season.
Short, 53, told BassFan on Tuesday that the Lake St. Clair event on Aug. 27-30 will be his final Elite Series derby, barring some miraculous rally over the next two events that would carry him into the Top 50 in Angler of the Year points, thus earning a trip to the Sturgeon Bay AOY Championship next month.
“It’s been an incredible 12 seasons,” Short said after finishing day 2 of practice at the Chesapeake Bay. “I’ve had just overwhelming support from my sponsors, fans and family. It’s been absolutely great. It is more than any guy could ask for.”
News of Short’s retirement was first reported by Bassmaster.com on Monday.
Short, who earned the nickname “K-Pink” over the years for his pink-themed boat, jersey and rods – he’s maintained it was a marketing decision in an effort to stand out – is one of 21 anglers with multiple Elite Series victories. He’ll leave the Elite Series having competed in three Bassmaster Classics.
Short won the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Central Open in 2003 – his first of five B.A.S.S. wins – and began competing on the Bassmaster Tour in 2004. He’s one of 50 anglers from the 2015 Elite Series that was part of series’ inaugural season in 2006.
This season has mostly been a struggle for Short, who’s cashed four checks, but also has three finishes of 89th or worse. He’ll go into this week’s tournament at the Chesapeake Bay in 88th place in points.
Last year, Short’s house in Mayflower, Ark., was destroyed by a tornado that ravaged the town that sits along Lake Conway. He missed an Elite Series tournament at Toledo Bend, but collected enough points during a late-season surge to qualify for this year’s Bassmaster Classic, where he finished 44th.
“Losing our house and going through that whole mess,” he said. “When something like that happens to you and you come out the other side, it centers you in a way. You step back and look around and realize there’s more to life than running up and down the road and chasing green fish.”
Part of the Plan
Short said his decision to step away from the Elite Series is not a full-blown retirement from tournament fishing. He still intends to compete in the Bassmaster Opens and the FLW Rayovac Series in the future and continue his involvement with Major League Fishing.
In fact, his Elite Series departure was something he and wife, Kerry, discussed a few years ago.
“About 4 years ago, Kerry and I sat down and said, ‘Where do we want to be 5 years from now,’” Short said. “That was the beginning formation of plan B. This is 4 years in and we’re kind of right where we thought we’d be.
“A couple opportunities presented themselves earlier this year. It’s strange how that kind of stuff works. I’ve had opportunities over the last 5 or 6 years to do something different and not fish the Elites, but they were not things I wanted to do. The timing wasn’t right. This time, it is.”
Short declined to elaborate on the opportunities he’s considering, but he did say they would keep him in the fishing industry.
The decision to leave the Elite Series, “is not something that’s just come up all of a sudden,” he added. “We have kind of had this plan in place to move on and do something different.”
Closer to Home
Short said he’s mostly in good health, but admitted the grind of being on the road and long days on the water are starting to add up.
“I’m not going to say it’s not getting hard because it is,” he said. “Physically, it gets harder. I’ve been active my entire life and stuff just starts to wear out. I’ve noticed that more and more I’m having problems with my shoulders and I have a touch of arthritis in my foot and knee. That’s just age.”
Not competing on the Elite Series will also allow him to be around home more. His father, Louie, is 88 years old and lives on the same street.
“He’s been incredibly active, but he’s finally starting to show his age,” he said. “Kerry and I live two doors down. The day’s rapidly coming where somebody needs to be around for him. God knows he was around for me when I was growing up. It’s payback time and there’s nothing more I’d love than to take the Fossil [Louie’s nickname] fishing rather than him take me fishing.”
Left a Mark
Short’s Elite Series victories came at the Mississippi River in 2009 – his winning weight of 43-03 still stands as the record for lowest winning weight in Elite Series history – and at Pickwick Lake in 2010. Known as one of the best river fishermen and shallow-water crankbait anglers on tour, Short has also been one of the more outspoken anglers during his career. He was a vocal proponent of B.A.S.S. eliminating co-anglers from the Elite Series a few years ago.
“I took a lot of heat for that at the time,” he said. “I’m not saying I got that done, but there was a lot of discussion that happened after I threw that out there. If I did nothing else, maybe I had a role in starting the discussion about the Elite Series having just one guy in the boat fishing and furthering the sport at that level.”
As far as regrets go, he didn’t have a long list. He said his inconsistency prevented him from ever challenging for an AOY title.
“The only thing I truly regret is not making the $1 million mark,” he said, referencing his career earnings with B.A.S.S. that are just shy of $900,000. “I got close, but that’s not to say over the next two tournaments, it won’t happen.”
