U.S. Angler’s Choice is pleased to announce the 2010 Eastern Pro-Am Tour. “We have a solid program that is going to give weekend tournament anglers the opportunity to fish some of the best lakes and rivers in the East during prime fishing times” noted U.S. Angler’s Choice Director of Operations Bill Hutcheson. “Best of all, anglers who fish all four of our events will qualify to compete for thousands in bonus cash at the final event of the season”. Dave Kilby, Region 4 Vice President and Tournament Director for these Eastern Pro-am shared weight events further added, “The selection of the bodies of water Angler’s Choice is fishing in 2010 will be a true test of the best anglers in the region. Whoever comes out on top of the Bonus Cash payday at the final event will have proven themselves as one of the top anglers in the this part of the country”, added
The Angler’s Choice Pro-am events will benefit from having a highly experienced and professional tournament staff running each event. Consistency is key and having an experience tournament staff is one of the areas where Angler’s Choice is head and shoulders above the competition. Led by Eastern Pro-Am Tournament Director Dave Kilby, the U.S.A.C. Eastern Pro-Am’s are staffed by seasoned USAC team directors including Tim Chadwick, AC Potomac River and Upper Chesapeake Bay, team director, Ricky Bodsford, USAC Bass East Virginia team director, and Dennis Deahl, assistant director. This staff has decades of tournaments under their belt and know how to run a seamless, quality event that will have you coming back for more.
Four events constitute the 2010 season with the opener occurring on April 17-18th at the Upper Chesapeake Bay. Anglers should be able to capitalize on the Upper Bay’s wide-open pre-spawn bite and will likely need about 18-20 lbs per day to lead the pack.
From there, the trail moves to The Potomac River on June 26-27th. The springtime bite on largemouth bass should be in full swing with limits aplenty hitting the scales each day.
Football sized smallies are the name of the game as the USAC trail heads north to Lake Erie in Buffalo August 7-8th. In the summer any cast can result in a chunky smallmouth and anglers will be plying the waters with a variety of baits for what are typically 20 pound plus bags of fish.
The final event of the 2010 season slated for October 9-10th on Oneida Lake in Syracuse. This is traditionally prime time for big smallmouth and/or hungry largemouth as they feed heavily in preparation for winter
The U.S. Anglers Choice payback is one of the best in the east. The Payback for 2010 exceeds 100% on the Pro angler side. Best of all, its’ what you the angler can use – straight up cash! Furthermore, our complete payback and options payback will be posted as soon at the partner pairing meetings start. No more guessing what the true numbers are and what you will be paid for your finish.
2010 Anglers Choice Pro-Am Payback*
* Based on 150 boat field – one in five payback
PAYBACK CHART DOES NOT INCLUDE OPTION PAYOUTS
Place |
Pro Payback |
Bonus Cash Payback** |
Total Payback at fourth event |
1st |
$12,500 |
$15,300 |
$27,800 |
2nd |
$7,000 |
$10,200 |
$17,900 |
3rd |
$5,000 |
$6,375 |
$11,375 |
4th |
$3,500 |
$5,100 |
$8,600 |
5th |
$3,000 |
$3,825 |
$6,825 |
6th |
$2,500 |
$2,550 |
$5,050 |
7th |
$2,000 |
$2,550 |
$5,050 |
8th |
$1,500 |
$2,550 |
$4,050 |
9th |
$1,250 |
$1,275 |
$2,525 |
10th |
$1,250 |
$1,275 |
$2,525 |
11th |
$1,000 |
|
$1,000 |
12th |
$1,000 |
|
$1,000 |
13th |
$1,000 |
|
$1,000 |
14th |
$1,000 |
|
$1,000 |
15th |
$1,000 |
|
$1,000 |
16th |
$800 |
|
$800 |
17th |
$800 |
|
$800 |
18th |
$800 |
|
$800 |
19th |
$800 |
|
$800 |
20th |
$800 |
|
$800 |
21st |
$500 |
|
$500 |
22nd |
$500 |
|
$500 |
23rd |
$500 |
|
$500 |
24th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
25th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
26th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
27th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
28th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
29th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
30th |
$500 |
|
$500 |
Pro Payback |
$53,500 |
$51,000 |
$104,500 |
BONUS CASH** – In addition to these great stand-alone paybacks, Angler’s Choice is holding in reserve 20% of the Pro entry money and 10% of the Am entry money for the final event of the year. This reserve will be awarded as Bonus Cash to the top 10 Pro and Am fishermen who participated in all four events over the course of the 2010 season. This is not a year end point’s race as the Bonus Cash paybacks are awarded based on participation, so everyone has a shot at winning regardless of how well you finish during the first three tournaments. Based upon full fields at all four AC Pro-Am’s, this would amount to $51,000 on the Pro side and $13,500 for the Am anglers. These numbers do not include 100% paid back option money or other winnings from the final tournament. The top finishing pro at the end of the year will more than likely walk away with a $30,000 payday – more cash than is available at any other weekend Pro-Am! You can only get in on the Bonus cash by fishing all four USAC Pro-Am events though, so sign up now!
Angler’s Choice Pro-am events use a shared weight formula in which each day’s Pro and Am angler effectively fish as a team to catch their best five fish limit. The Pro and Am angler “Share” the total weight, which carries over to the next day of fishing. Pro and Am anglers are paired up with different partners for the second and any subsequent days of fishing. Shared weight events are commonplace in the Western U.S. and many of the top anglers in the sport including the likes of Aaron Martens, Skeet Reese, Brent Erhler, and Ish Monroe all cut their teeth fishing shared weight events.
Entry fee for the 2010 season is $425 for Pro anglers and $225 for Am anglers. Pro and Am anglers who sign up together are given a guaranteed entry status. All other entries will be taken on a first come, first serve basis and paired accordingly.
All Options at Angler’s Choice Pro-Am events are paid back 100% and both the Pro and Am anglers have their own separate option pools. Options for the 2010 season will include a $50 Big Bass option that will pay out to the top two largest bass of each day. There is also a $50 Top 10 option that pays out to the top 10 Pro and top 10 Am anglers entered into this option pool at the end of the tournament.
Competitors may sign up for the U.S. Anglers Choice Pro-Am events by logging on to www.usanglerschoice.net and clicking the Pro-am events link home page. You may then click on the entry form, print a copy and mail it in with a check or credit card. You may also enter over the phone by calling (800) 360-7112 and speaking with the Angler’s Choice tournament coordinator Sonia. Specific event related questions should be directed to Tournament Director Dave Kilby at (443) 617-1850 or limitfinder@yahoo.com .
Deadline to enter prior to each tournament is the Wednesday prior to the start of the official pre-fish period.
Fish the best in 2010 – Fish U.S. Angler’s Choice.