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PHOTO BY JOEL SHANGLE
Bally ’ s Corporation , Bally Bet Go All-in on Bass Pro Tour Angler of the Year Award
Bally Bet AOY will be awarded $ 100,000 as part of new partnership
Ask any of the 15 anglers on the 2022 Bass Pro Tour roster who have claimed tour-level Angler of the Year titles and they ’ ll tell you bluntly : “ The AOY is what I ’ m the proudest of .”
Ask Kevin VanDam , who has racked up more tour-level wins ( approaching 30 of them ) and has earned more money in bass tournaments than any angler in the history of the sport , and he ’ ll confirm that his astounding eight AOYs are the pinnacles of his career . That sentiment will be echoed by Mark Davis , David Dudley , Jordan Lee , Andy Morgan , Jacob Wheeler , Bryan Thrift and all the other MLF pros who have earned a coveted AOY title .
“ Every win feels great and every trophy looks good in a trophy case ,
“ Bally ’ s stepping up like they have is a big deal for our sport .”
The 2022 Bally Bet Angler of the Year will reward and recognize the angler who had an exceptional year like that of 2021 AOY Jacob Wheeler .
but there ’ s nothing in the sport of bass fishing that compares to being an Angler of the Year ,” said Morgan , whose display at his home in Dayton , Tennessee , includes three FLW Tour AOY trophies . “ Those three ( AOYs ) are the best things I ’ ve ever accomplished in this sport . Everybody fishing at this level can get hot for three or four days and win a tournament , but man , if you win an AOY , you ’ ve caught fish better and worked harder than everybody else all year long . It ’ s very rewarding to win ( an AOY ).”
And thanks to a groundbreaking new partnership announced in January between Major League Fishing and sports gaming giant Bally ’ s Corporation , that AOY will also be very lucrative to win in 2022 .
Under the terms of the new deal , Bally ’ s will serve as the exclusive Sports Betting , Daily Fantasy Sports ( DFS ), and Free-to-Play ( F2P ) Partner for MLF ’ s tournament circuits – all firsts for the professional fishing industry . Even more importantly to the 80 anglers
14 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | FEBRUARY-MARCH 2022