Fishing ranks as the 4th most popular participation sport in the country, beating out bicycling, bowling, basketball, golf, jogging, baseball, softball, soccer, football and skiing. Only walking, swimming and camping are more popular � in fact, fishing is more popular than golf and tennis combined.

https://outdoorindustry.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/2016-Special-Report-on-Fishing_FINAL_WEB1.pdf

^^^

Still doesn't mean they will watch it on tv.

The �sport� of fishing is NOWHERE the same as �Sport Fishing�. The vast majority of people �participating� in the �sport� of fishing are doing so leasurly. They are not full blast fishing, culling, flying from
Spot to spot. They are drinking and relaxing. Nothing like other sports that are participation sports. Soccer, even for fun, keeps a score. Golf, even for fun, keeps a score. Everything that is listed above, has some type of score that validates ones performance. Almost nobody culls bass and weighs em up. They either fish for whatever bites:....and I do mean anything. Or they fish to cook.

Bass tournament folks make up such a small percentage of the fishing public, that it�s basically
Non-existent.

We ain't talking bout how it ranks as participation sport we talking bout how many people gonna watch it on tv

Right. People�s interest in an activity has nothing to do with them having an interest in watching it on tv. Seriously though, this format is built to make this sport as entertaining as possible in my opinion. I don�t know much about media but, I think the folks at OSG do. If tournament fishing can reach the audience outside of what it normally does. I think what�s happening with BPT is far and away the best chance it�s ever had.

Bingo, they do and they'll do their thing with MLF just like they have the last 7 years and we can all sit back and armchair the deal.

Participation or interest in a sport has a lot to do with who watches it on TV.

I disagree to an extent. There's millions that fish all over the world. There are also millions that have no idea you can fish competitively for money. Nor have any clue about watching it on TV. Why do you think fishing shows get crappy time slots on channels.
Big differences in recreational fishing and tournament bass fishing.

Go ask a guy who catfishes if he has ever heard of Kevin VanDam or Mike Iaconelli. There's a reason the fishing industry spends so much on tournament bass fishing and it's not because they are only targeting tournament bass anglers.

I bet 80% (of catfishers) have never heard of KVD.

Try looking at it this way... Reality type shows and sports are a large percentage of what is aired now. From the major networks to the �cable channels� reality is dominating. I watch sports and a variety of reality almost exclusively if it�s not news. It�s not always about only fishermen watching fishing shows anymore. My dad watches the Tour De France every year and he�s probably been on a bike 3 times in the last fifty years. He does it because he likes the footage of the scenery. I may watch Fixer Upper with my wife. I�m not in the remodeling business. We�ve had several reality shows approach our business to do a show. They�re looking for personalities and entertainment. I�m not saying OSG is trying to create a hybrid sports/reality show but, there�s a reason they picked guys that have the total package. MLF has been entertaining and they�re about to take it to a whole new level. Of course it could flop. Business is risky. Then the nay sayers can say I told you so.

MANY millions of people who do not play football watch football. I personally don't play golf but watch every major religiously. Watching fishing on tv, live, has never been a thing. So to me the whole argument is apples and oranges. Until now. If MLF can figure out a way to broadcast to a wide audience live and make it interesting, then I think it would be fair to compare.

Maybe I worded it wrong. People that fish is VERY broad. How about this... the number of people that golf compared to the number of people that competitively fish for bass is probably 10 to 1. And I�d be willing to bet that most of professional bass fishing�s television viewership is people who competitively fish.

How many people are going to tune into the Outdoor Channel that don�t participate in outdoor activities? Heck, I don�t even have the Outdoor Channel. If they want it to go mainstream, it needs to be broadcasted on a mainstream network. I still feel like BASS has that advantage over MLF.