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cox , pro circuit top performers to fish 2021 bass pro tour
> MLF FANS and BASS PRO TOUR competitors will see some new faces filling the field during the 2021 Bass Pro Tour regular season .
Top performers in the 2021 MLF Pro Circuit will join perennial MLF BIG5 Angler of the Year contender John Cox during the seven-tournament 2021 Bass Pro Tour season , under a oneyear agreement announced by MLF and the Professional Bass Tour Anglers Association ( PBTAA ).
Cox and four different Pro Circuit anglers per event will replace five departing Bass Pro Tour anglers to compose the 80-man roster for each of the seven Bass Pro Tour events , starting with the regular-season opener at Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Texas in mid-March .
COX GUNNING FOR MORE TOP 10S
A perennial Angler of the Year contender during a 10-year FLW Tour / Pro Circuit career and the winner of the 2016 Forrest Wood Cup , Cox was an original invitee when the Bass Pro Tour roster was filled in 2018 . He opted not to accept that invitation , but still fished the FLW Tour and Pro Circuit in 2019 and 2020 , respectively . He plans to fish both the Bass Pro Tour and the Pro Circuit in 2021 , setting the table to fish upwards of 20 tour-level events if he qualifies for MLF Cups .
“ I like the lakes , I like the payouts , and I like that I can fish a lot of tournaments ,” Cox said . “ I don ’ t know exactly how I ’ ll do in the MLF format for a full season , but even if I don ’ t do great , I feel good about my chances to make a few top 10s and cash checks . There are a few places on that 2021 schedule where I think to myself ‘ Hmmm , I know a spot or two here or there , I think I might do quite well in that one .’ I ’ m excited about it .”
The Florida pro started his career in 2004 as a co-angler in the Gator Division of the Phoenix Bass Fishing League , and has racked up seven wins , 35 top 10s and nearly $ 1.5 million in winnings in 133 BIG5 tournaments .
PRO CIRCUIT TOP PERFORMERS QUALIFY UP
The four remaining roster spots at the seven regular-season Bass Pro Tour events will be filled by the top finishers from each Pro Circuit event in 2021 . The top four finishers from each individual Pro Circuit event will receive automatic invitations to compete in the Bass Pro Tour event that follows , opening the door for the Pro Circuit ’ s top performers to compete in the MLF catch , weigh , immediate-release format for a $ 100,000 first-place check .
The four roster spots for the first Bass Pro Tour event in Texas will be filled based on 2020 Pro Circuit Angler of the Year standings ; Pro Circuit event number one – Feb . 11-13 at Lake Okeechobee , Florida – will then feed Bass Pro Tour Stage Two at Lake Travis , and so on .
“ We ’ re all fishing to try to make the Bass Pro Tour circuit , and this will be a really good opportunity for a guy to get his feet wet in that format ,” said Pro Circuit angler Bill McDonald , who got his first taste of the MLF format at the 2020 TITLE event at Sturgeon Bay , Wisconsin . “ It ’ s a very positive thing to get that exposure . You can tell yourself that the Bass Pro Tour format isn ’ t really that much more pressure , but I can tell you from experience that it takes a strong mental game . It ’ s the highest of highs to hear your name at the top ( of SCORETRACKER ®), but your brain goes crazy when you drop rapidly . It ’ ll be valuable experience to qualify for one of those ( Bass Pro Tour ) events .”
PHOTO BY CHARLES WALDORF
14 FLWFISHING . COM | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | DECEMBER-JANUARY 2021