“Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That’s what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice.”
–Professional surfer Bethany Hamilton.

History was made recently when Fallon Clepper became the first female High School Bass Fishing National Champion. She joined her (male) partner, Wyatt Ford, and took down the title on Pickwick Lake in late June. Each team member was presented with $160,000 in scholarship money for the win.

This isn’t the first time a female high-schooler has done well in organized fishing events. Earlier this year, a girls team won the Louisiana State Championship, besting a group consisting mainly of older, more experienced boys.

And we’ve seen standout performances from girls all over the country at the collegiate level. However, none has really broken through the pro ranks. I’ve always been stumped by that one.

Clepper, the history maker, earned a write-up from USA Today.

“I hope that me being the first girl (to make history) gave other girls an opportunity to go out there and see that you can do anything,” she said . “So I hope that I can encourage girls to get out there and start fishing.”

Why not?

There’s absolutely no reason women can’t compete with men in organized fishing. As a matter of fact, they might someday prove to be better players.

If you’re like me, and you’ve fished with a wide variety of anglers, you’ve likely noticed that women – even those viewed as novice anglers – frequently outperform men in the same boat. Now we can go through all the theories about being more patient, or keeping a better attitude; whatever. That’s not what I’m after. The point is this: Regardless of gender, anglers with the ability to read prevailing conditions and live “in the moment”, if you will, are frequently at the top of the standings in big-league bass.

My time fishing with females confirms that, as a whole, they are much more open to angling’s possibilities than most men. Women will frequently try off-the-wall techniques, or slowly perfect an existing method until a positive outcome is reached. And they often do so with a totally open mind, expecting to prevail.

Men are too afraid to look bad, plain and simple. The ego enters the equation and – sometimes, not always – the wheels fall off. Conversely, if you really study the best anglers on tour, more often than not they are very humble and less driven by ego than the rest of us. They understand that, in tough times, no one is out there feeling sorry for them, and the only way to overcome adversity is to cycle through the fishing equation with an open mind.

I see this trait as well, almost universally, in women anglers.

Examining the other aspects of competition, nowhere does bass fishing have a physical demand that cannot be achieved by a young woman. Frequently dipping my toe in the saltwater, I regularly come across fish that could drown a 10-pound bass in a hydrilla mat, and watch in awe as lady anglers wrestle them in. I’ll go out on a limb and say that a few can outperform me in a battle with a tuna. Believe me, a bass ain’t got nothing on these girls.

Finally, a female angler today is vastly more marketable than just about any male. Now, here, I’ve got nothing to do with the bikini team. I’m talking real lifestyle marketing to inspire and influence viewers, young girls included. Heck, especially. A well-spoken, high performing female angler has the potential for sponsorship and marketing contracts that far surpass the vast majority of competitive male anglers. You’d gasp if I shared with you the numbers.

This is not because the angler is a woman, but because women are so poorly represented in the outdoors. We’ve got a user group potentially equal in size to men, with 1/10th of the representation.

So what’s the problem? Despite all of the reasons that point to the top, why is it that female anglers have yet to really break through in organized bass competition, outside of kayak fishing? (Readers may be interested to know that Kristine Fischer is regarded as one of the best competitive kayak anglers in the world, and her record proves it.)

What’s keeping women from excelling? Maybe some of it’s due to intimidation. I don’t care who you are, competing against Greg Hackney and Michael Neal sucks. Add to that the cliquey feel of traveling tournament life and the high-stakes gamble involved, and most anglers fail trying to break through, regardless of gender. And with less than 1 percent of tournament fields consisting of women, mathematically the deck’s stacked to start with.

But I’m going to make a bold prediction. Before the end of the 2020s, we will see one – and most likely more than one – full-time, professional, touring female angler on the Bassmaster Elite Series or BPT. Not sometimes, or just getting by. A full-time, no other job, wrapped truck, competitive, paying-the-mortgage-with-fishing-money woman.

Fallon Clepper is living proof that this is on the way.

What are her thoughts on the future, I wonder? Do you think she believes it’s possible to fulfill this dream? Will $160,000 worth of scholarship money to a college that’s focused on bass fishing help? I highly doubt she’s nervous about going to a pre-tournament meeting with the guys.

The lack of females as anything but social media influencers has held our sport back too long. It’s time for young women to establish themselves as viable players and bass fishing champions.

Try to tell them they can’t.

(Joe Balog is the often-outspoken owner of Millennium Promotions, Inc., an agency operating in the fishing and hunting industries. A former Bassmaster Open and EverStart Championship winner, he's best known for his big-water innovations and hardcore fishing style. He's a popular seminar speaker, product designer and author, and is considered one of the most influential smallmouth fishermen of modern times.)