Greatest Angler Debate continues with #7, Hank Parker
ESPN Outdoors News — April 27, 2005
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| Hank Parker |
A closer look tells you all you need know about why Parker is a semifinalist in The Greatest Angler Debate. Before he left to focus his attentions on a television career, Parker was one of the brightest stars in the sport. The Greatest Angler Debate presented by John Deere started with a list of 35 top anglers from the world of competitive bass fishing. That list was pared down to the sport's 10 best in January. Fan voting began in January and ended in March. The process ranked the pros third through tenth. The top two candidates will face-off in a second round of voting that begins June 15. Three weeks ago, the countdown began with angler No. 10, Mark Davis. Since then, ninth-ranked Gary Klein and eighth-ranked Jay Yelas have been profiled. This week it's Hank Parker's turn at No. 7. He'll be profiled on Saturday, April 30, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2's "The Greatest Angler Debate." The "CBS Morning Show" once described Hank Parker as "the rod-and-reel answer to Michael Jordan, in popularity and talent." Parker's professional-fishing career began in 1976 with the National Bass Association. He won its championship in his first season. The next two years he fished both National Bass Association and American Bass Association (both now defunct) events with great success. In 1978, Parker "graduated" to BASS events, and his impact was immediate. In his first full season on the BASS trail, Parker never finished worse than 30th place. In his first Classic, he ranked ninth. The next season, Parker picked up right where he left off, eventually winning the 1979 Classic on Lake Texoma. The victory propelled him to superstardom and the world of outdoors television. Parker won his second Classic 10 years later, picking up a CITGO Bassmaster Angler of the Year award along the way in 1983. He was the first angler to win the so-called Grand Slam of Bass Fishing, which included the Classic, Angler of the Year and a BASS SuperBass tournament. Parker earned a check in 74 percent of all the BASS tournaments he fished, despite the fact that the pay list was much shorter and the checks decidedly smaller during the early days of his career. He finished in the top-10 in more than a quarter of those BASS events and never failed to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic in 13 years as a professional angler. "Hank Parker is the only top pro to retire at the peak of his career," said Bassmaster Magazine senior writer and "Greatest Angler Debate" commentator Tim Tucker. "He made the most of his 13 years on the trail and had an even brighter future ahead of him when he decided to leave competitive fishing." Parker was a pioneer of what modern anglers have termed "power fishing" — a philosophy involving the use of fast-moving baits like spinnerbaits, crankbaits and jerkbaits to cover lots of water and elicit reaction strikes from bass. "He was one of the first guys who really focused on covering lots of water," Tucker added. "He'd put the trolling motor down, turn it on high and run the juice out of it. He was an absolute master with a spinnerbait and crankbait." Had Parker not retired so early, at age 37, there's no telling what he might have accomplished as a tournament angler or how high he could have climbed on this list. On Saturday, April 30, at 9 a.m. ET on ESPN2, BASS Saturday will profile Hank Parker. Fans also will find stats and stories on The Greatest Angler Debate in the pages of Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times, Bassmaster.com and on the weekly ESPN Outdoors radio show. On June 15, the debate heats up again as the fans choose between the top two anglers during a second round of voting on Bassmaster.com. The debate will conclude in Pittsburgh — at the 2005 Classic — when two champions are crowned. One will be given the Classic trophy and the other — or perhaps even the same angler — will be hailed as the greatest angler of all time.
