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RAY SCOTT OUTDOORS, Inc. Eagles of Angling
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Bassin' Greats Rally to Senior's Call Stan Sloan, Don
Butler, Tom Mann PINTLALA, Alabama - Stan Sloan stood out in the first Ray Scott's All-American Bass Tournament before he stood on the winner's stage. The Nashville, Tennessee angler had his electric trolling motor on the bow of his fishing boat. In 1967, the "bass boat" evolution was just in the embryo stage. But, Sloan, as many of the 106 fishermen gathered from across the country, at Beaver Lake, Arkansas provided an incubator for bass fishing know-how. Most fishing rigs of the day had the electric trolling motor clamped to the stern, if the fisherman was fortunate to have a hand-operated maneuvering motor, rather than an old-fashioned sculling paddle. Sloan's idea was more forward thinking. His explanation: "It's easier to pull a chain, than push it." Made sense. And, after the former Tennessee state correction officer made headlines by winning the first big-time professional fishing tournament, others followed his lead. Sloan, now head of the Zorro Bait Company in Sparta, Tennessee, is still taking the lead. "Stan's the first fisherman I called when the notion for a Senior's Bass Fishing Tournament came to mind," said Scott. "He quickly agreed to 'count me in'." A field of 100 "living legends" of the past 34 years of bass fishing will fish May 18th on Scott's 55-acre lake at Pintlala, Alabama as a special fund-raising benefit for the Pintlala Elementary School. "Bass fishing's still my game," says Sloan, "but tournament fishing on the professional tour hasn't been for a long time. A senior's age contest for old-timers sounds like a lot of fun." Only anglers born before May 18, 1939 are eligible to compete. Under Scott's Senior rules, anglers 62 years and older are being invited. "Bass fishing is one of the few professional sports that getting older isn't a handicap," opines Scott. "The more you fish, the more experience you have." Don Butler, the originator of the Small Okiebug Spinnerbait from Tulsa, Oklahoma, has many fond memories of his 34-years of playing by Scott's rules. As a member of the newly formed Tulsa Bass Club, Butler fished in the first All-American Bass Tournament in June 1967 at Springdale, Arkansas. A few months later when Ray Scott announced the organization of the Bass Angler Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.), Don Butler plunked down a $100 bill as the Society's first lifetime member. B.A.S.S., Inc., based in Montgomery, Alabama, lists a worldwide membership of 600,000 anglers, today. Butler, semi-retired to Grand Lake near Langley, Oklahoma, sees a senior age tournament format as a "winner." Butler notes, "The PGA Senior Golf circuit is growing in popularity. Golf fans flock to see the past greats of the game. Bass fishing's reached the point where having a Senior Division will add interest for fans." The title "former BASS Masters Classic champion" is a blue chip in Butler's piscatorial portfolio. He won the coveted crown in 1972 at Percy Priest Lake near Nashville, fishing his own spinnerbait, the ¼-ounce Small OkieBug. The banner headline on The Tennessean newspaper's sports page proclaimed: "S.O.B. Wins BASS Masters Classic." For sure, Don T. Butler has registered his mark in professional bass fishing history. Among the B.A.S.S. Tournament Trail's all-time stars there's none brighter in memory than Alabama's Tom Mann. Soft plastic lures today are bathed in "strike oils" to make fish react, but Eufaula's Mann first made plastic worms "tasty." His famous Jelly Worms came packaged in colors, like strawberry, grape, and blackberry with scented smells to match. "I'm afraid I'll be fishing with a handicap in this four-pound line only tournament," grins Mann. "At Lake Eufaula, I only fish for big 'uns with well-rope size line. That's like using sewing thread. You're likely to break-off on the hookset." Allowing only four-pound test line, with all reels spooled with STREN's Original Clean/Blue fluorescent monofilament, is one Senior tournament twist. Another departure from bass tournament standards is that all "fishing will be from the shoreline." No boats or wading will be allowed. Much to Tom Mann's surprise landing lunker largemouth bass in this Eagles of Angling Senior Tournament will not win the $5,000 first-place prize. The champion will be the angler catching the most and heaviest string (pounds and ounces) of bass measuring 12-inches and under. There will be no creel limit. And, no nets used in the competition. "We're going to put the emphasis on getting bites and quantity - not quality - in showing how these old pros can catch bass," said Scott. "There's a need to remove the smaller bass from my lake." Scott's lake, he admits, has a reputation for producing big bass. During the first Eagles of Angling tournament to benefit the Pintlala Baptist Church, eight of the 20 top pros fishing "caught the largest bass of their fishing careers," including the lake record 13-pounds, 15-ounces largemouth boated by Rick Clunn. "Every fishing lake goes through cycles and its got to be managed," continues Scott. "With this 55-acres, I'm targeting it as a trophy bass fishery. To do that you remove the smaller year-class of bass when the population explodes. "Last year there was an exceptional spawn and there's too many small bass competing in the food chain." Scott, who in 1972 introduced the conservation movement of "Don't kill your Catch," is still dedicated to the fundamentals of Catch and Release bass tournaments. "In smaller, private waters you can monitor the fishery and keep the lake in balance. One way is use a shocking boat or fishery biologists to chemically treat the waters," explains Scott. "If these old pros are as good as they claim to be," continues Scott, "we'll thin the bass population, have a darn good time, and provide a benefit for the kids at the Pintlala School." Each competitor is contributing a $500 entry fee and along with $5,000 donations by several sponsors, Scott is hoping to establish a $50,000 fund to support the Pintlala schoolteacher's instructional needs. "The Eagles of Angling Pintlala School Fund will be administered by the Helping Hands Ministries, Inc. a Tallulah Falls, Georgia based independent administrator," said Scott. "A local committee will be charged with reviewing and fulfilling the program. The monies will go specifically to the teacher's classroom needs and benefit the student directly. This is not a building fund benefit." The tournament weigh-in, and the announcement of the monies raised, will begin at 5 p.m. (May 18th) at the Pintlala School, located at 214 Federal Road. Scott says the public is invited to attend the weigh-in and meet the Senior Eagles of Angling personalities. Scott has a firm commitment from former President George Bush to participate along with avid bass anglers from the entertainment world, like Nashville recording start Bobby Bare and Roy Clark, the TV star of the popular "Hee Haw" show and comic Frank O. Hill, who built a successful costume jewelry business from quail droppings. Among early-day B.A.S.S. Tournament stars are Blake Honeycutt, the all-time tournament weight titleholder with 136-pounds, 8-ounces; Georgia's Pete Henson, 1969 Rebel Invitational winner at Ross Barnett Reservoir in Mississippi; Glin Wells, the master of jig fishing and winner of the 1972 South Carolina National at Lake Keowee; Gerald Blanchard of Memphis, Tennessee, who in 1967 with 42 pounds of spotted bass won Scott's second tournament at Lewis Smith Lake in north Alabama. Proof that the bassin' old-timers can still keep up with the younger pros dominating circuits today is Gary Alverson, the 1979 Florida Invitational winner on the St. Johns River. Alverson of Soddy Daisy, Tennessee still competes on the Bassmaster Tournament Trail with success. As does Charlie Campbell of Forsyth, Missouri, known for his topwater fishing skills with a Zara Spook.
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