The World Fishing Network is breathing a breath of fresh air into Canada’s professional bass-fishing tournament scene. The WFN Tour: Bass Championships (WFN) inaugural season is set to kick off July 4, 2008 on Lake Simcoe in southern Ontario.

Many are counting the WFN as the resurgence of the defunct Canadian Fishing Tour (CFT), but WFN Event Manager Dave Millard considers this a fresh start. “This isn’t something that’s rising from the ashes of a past event,” he said. “This is a new tour with a new direction.

“The WFN is organized entirely by Insight Sports, and we believe we have a fantastic and highly competitive tour put together our anglers.”
(Editor’s note: Insight Sports is WFN’s parent company. It also owns GOLTV, NHL Network, GameTV and several other properties.)

The Rundown

The WFN will feature four regular-season events capped off by the Canadian Open Championship tournament. Each of the regular-season tournaments will pay out $150,000, and the Canadian Open boasts a $300,000 total purse.

“This is definitely bigger than anything Canadian bass anglers have ever seen,” Millard said. “Nothing has ever been done on this scale, and we’re excited to be able to deliver this kind of package to some of the best bass anglers in North America.”

The WFN also has an Angler of the Year (AOY) points system in place, and will award $50,000 to the individual who claims that title. “All-in-all, the WFN will pay out $1,000,000 in 2008,” he said.

The tournaments are 3-day, pro-am-style events. The full field of pros and co-anglers will compete on days 1 and 2. On the final day, the field is cut to the Top 10 pros. Co-anglers won’t fish the 3rd day. “On day 3, each pro will be paired up with a cameraman or observer,” he noted.

“We’re expecting a turnout of a hundred pros, if not a little more than that. The Canadian Professional Anglers Association (CPAA) has signed on to the whole tour concept, and we’re really glad to have their support.

“The great thing about our payout structure is that it extends all the way through 50th place,” he added. “Our entry fees are $1500, and if you make the Top 50, you’re guaranteed to get that entry fee back. In a 100 team field, if you can finish in the Top 50 percent, you’re fishing for free.

“That was one of our primary goals when we established our payout structure. We don’t want this to be the kind of tour where you have to finish in the Top 10 just to have enough gas money to get to the next stop.”

Northern Exposure

One aspect where Millard believes the WFN will excel is in the level of exposure it offers to anglers and their sponsors. In the US, he said the WFN will reach over a million viewers through Verizon’s digital television network. They’ve yet to decide on which Canada-based network will run the shows, but they expect a deal with a national broadcaster to be finalized shortly.

“Each regular-season tournament will be featured in a professionally-produced, 1-hour broadcast,” Millard said. “The Canadian Open Championship event is being covered in a special 2-hour broadcast. Our coverage will go from blastoff to weigh-in, and I think fans of competitive fishing will really enjoy what we have to offer.

“From the anglers’ standpoint, this is a great venue for them to gain publicity for themselves and all the companies they represent,” he added. “Our anglers can showcase all their brands and they’ll be fishing out of their own boats every day of the tournament.”

On top of that, he expects the competitors to be treated like “rock stars” when they roll into town. “I can’t begin to tell you how excited our host cities are to have these events. I can assure you, the guys who fish our tournaments will be warmly received everywhere they go.”

Come On Up

Millard said he’d like to extend an invitation to all American tournament bass anglers, both pros and amateurs, to take a trip to Canada and see what the WFN is all about. He promised the events will be “extremely competitive” and looks forward to the possibility of “watching Canada’s best face off against America’s big-name bass pros

“The Professional Anglers Association (PAA) has expressed interest in sending its Top 10 anglers to fish the Canadian Open,” he added. “We’d love to see some anglers from the states come up and participate in our events. We can assist them with travel accommodations, lodging - anything they need.”

The WFN has also worked to get a discount on fuel purchases for its tour members. “We talked to the anglers and the number-one thing they requested was help with fuel expenses. So we worked out a deal where our anglers can purchase gas cards at discounted rates.

“The bottom line is if someone really wants to fish our events, we want to make it as affordable as possible for them to do so. We know it’s a big monetary commitment for an American bass pro to drive to Canada and fish a tournament, but we want to do everything we can to make it fun and rewarding for them, as well as our Canadian anglers.”

Notable

> The FLW Tour visits the Detroit River just two weeks prior to the WFN event on that same body of water. “I hope some of the FLW pros will decide to stick around and fish both tournaments,” Willard said.

> For more information on the WFN, click here.

WFN Tour: Bass Championships 2008 Schedule

Host City: Sarniahttp://www.wfn.tv/news/index.php?id=319