Lying for sponsors?

I know some guys that go to weigh ins in tournaments that say they caught there fish on there sposors bait,but they really didn't. I personally think this is very wrong,(by lying)and I know a lot of people do it.what is your opinion.?

I think ts kind of bs, fishing as much as I do I see it all the time. I just say hey I tried catching them on the "A" but they just really wanted "B"...

Dont believe anything a fisherman tells you.

Just say you caught everything on a Dawia steez. Never know whos listening! ;-)

In all honesty I dont have that problem haha

I know it happens, I always try to take what they say at weigh in with a grain of salt

That's a bunch of bull,pay your bills by being a honest man that works hard for a living,that's my opinion.But I will respect yours just saying.

Most times the only time a fisherman is fibbing is when his mouth is moving----so if his mouth isn't moving you are OK; otherwise you are on your on!

Maybe you should take up golf---they may not fib as much.

And truthfully, I have fun EVERY day, and that is not a fib! But then again, I play golf AND fish.

Best advice I ever got was "Be happy why be anything ELSE?". Think about that, lot there.

Most people lie about what they caught em' on anyway.. I really don't agree to lying, but thats just the way it is...

We tell our prostaff to tell the truth,even if they catch them on a competitors products.

And this is new to you?

heck i will tell you if im catching them, or not even what im throwing during practice, you still dont know what the retrieve is or where im fishing it as far as flats points break bridges exc... A man is only as good as his word...

Buzzfrog you must have missed the sarcasm in my "posts" I personally dont fish with products that I dont believe in so why try to get them to sponsor me? The fact of the matter is like mentioned above fisherman lie! Ive heard stories from several people about this exact subject and some are more than suprising.

Here's the deal, sponsors are a vital part of an anglers success in the sport. They support you and want to see you succeed and they expect a little in return, plugging a competitors product is not helping them at all. This is what I call "product integrity"-fishing only products you truely believe in and think give you the best oppottunity to compete. For example I have a great relationship with Black Angel Jig company. I throw their jigs exclusively and I feel that these jigs give me a great opportunity to win, however if I were to use another jig (i wouldnt) I would just not make a comment on it. You dont have to lie, you just dont say anything, or dont drop a products name.

Cody you have posted twice and I totally think you are a good guy thanks man,I totally am the same way.why lie just live life honestly.

Great way to put it

i catch all my fish on a laser lure.

I totally agree with this statement.

When I started Bass fishing about five years ago I had a very experienced tournament fisherman give this advise.

Every fisherman will tell you the truth if you just listen, BUT you have the filter out the BS to determine what he actually told you.

Over the past 5 years I have thought about this at every weigh in and every story. This has taught me a lot about people. God could not have created a funnier animal. Then he made fisherman out of some of us.

If an angler is going to lie and gets caught it also makes the sponsor look foolish.

Tell them what they expect to hear and no one will question it. Sometime it is the truth and sometimes it is not. 90% of the fishermen I know will fudge on stage in some form or fashion. Most winners will not give 100% of the truth. Unless you have a camera boat on you it wont matter and some still lie even when it is all on film. I have told the truth before and people said I was lying.
Here in east TX this time of year the "on stage" answer is either "rat-l-trap" or "carolina rig". Some really did use them and others didn't but it sounds believable so it won't be questioned.
I think it depends on how soon an angler's next tournament on that lake is.

You Lie Davy.. I know you're a Hawg Craw man from Way back!

My wife always says we caught it on an Electric Chicken color power worm. She really caught it dragging whatever behind the boat while she napped.

The only time a fisherman is telling the truth is when he is calling another fisherman a lier.

I have always lived by "Honesty is the best policy".. If someone asks what I caught them on. I will tell them.

I catch all of mine in the mouth.. well except for the occasional foul hooked Buffalo that gets stuck on a crankbait.

the funny thing about all this is the myth of the magic lure or what theyre hitting on; this is what created BPS. its really about where and with what kind of presentation.

As far as Bassbrokers comment I too have noticed several times where pros have caught fish on one certain brand of lure on camera and then onstage and in the bassmasters writeup they say they caught them on their sponsers product. One even used a different reel on camera than they said they were using. I guess their philosophy is like G-man says "be a ho or be po!"

Jason

All jokin aside...Ive always wondered if Boyd Duckett really used carrot sticks or just had his favorite rods painted orange?

pro anglers are sales persons. always have been and always will be.

Buzzfrog, Always enjoy your posts! There are truely differences between patch wearers and patch bearers.

Thanks skout truly means a lot,good luck to you an always fish hard.

I got rid of my laser lures and went only to GIANT Megaphone lures with NEON Purple Black lights that they steal from strip clubs---caught a 35# bass last week that I am waiting to get certified as a new NC state record. HONEST

AND for only $1.49 (plus $189 S&H) you can have one of these lures just PM me your credit card #, Name and exp date.

From a manufacturer standpoint, it is hard to monitor. We try and start with fishermen who we feel have integrity. Sometimes it is pretty easy to weed through the BS. I would rather them not say anything at all vs lying. Anyone caught lying would be terminated. I am more impressed with one of our staffers catching fish and placing than being so concerned about what they caught it on.

Well said, Mark. Honesty is our policy as well.

No sponser no worry

We can say its right but is the Lord convinced

I say..... Tell the truth is the best thing to do! That's my motto! It works the best in my opinion.

With that kind of shipping, you must sell them on Ebay-lol.

A man that will lie about one thing will lie about another.

won a big draw tourney several years back, my draw partner ended up w/BB and got third. We fished my area with spinnerbaits that I had made just for that tourney..
I mentioned to him during the course of the day that I had another tourney the following weekend on the same lake. He not only cut the bait off (I had given it to him) and stowed it,when he was asked on stage what we did - he told them that we had fished in my area and used my bait....AND that he knew I would be back so he wasn't saying where or on what.
Really appreciated it and thought it was a classy thing to do.

Class act that's the way it should be

I caught 'em on the end of my line.

I don't see the problem with telling the truth on stage or in the write up. Nobody believes you anyway, so you might as well be honest and throw them all off the trail.

+10

Well I don't have sponsors and have never looked for them either. I am contacted from time to time by small tackle companies wanting to send me product to try. If I catch fish on it and like the product I see no harm in giving them a leg up. Over the last 2 years I have only had 2 products that I felt comfortable mentioning. One of the products a client brought on board my boat, and wanted me to teach him how to use it. We caught a lot of fish on it so I included it in a report. The owner saw the report and offered me some to try, and I took him up on the offer. He has a great product and when I get on a pattern where his product works I will mention it again. Otherwise I try not to mention brands at all..... unless Zoom bait company is watching hint hint.

I fish against the fish not the fisherman! ! yes i like to win but I like seeing my friends on the road to so if we can help each other we will !!

i tell the truth cause every one thinks its a lie any way and hey if it helps some one else catch a fish or two i say good for them i think every one forgets were supposed to have fun and help our fellow man out i know alot of people will disagree but to each is there own im new at this sport but i love it and dont think any one really knows wat a fish is thinking all the time i think its just putting something that looks like food in front of there face and youll eventually get bit so lie if u must it dont matter to me im going to catch em eventually

what are you talking about... everyone knows i catch all my fish on a GRANDEBASS RATTLE SNAKE!

Ive had sponsors in the past, nothing major just entry level but I took it just as serious as a big money sponsor and always told the truth. If I caught fish on my sponsor bait I would say so, if I didn't I would say what kind of bait without mentioning a manufacturer. If you lie and get caught it ruins credibility and that is part of what your sponsor is paying for. Lose your credibility, lose your sponsor.

the only time a fisherman lies is when his lips are moving

Good post!!

LOL while using your "rocket rod" & when they didnt hit that you picked up the ole trusty "Ronco Pocket Fisherman and let the "Banjo Minnows" fly!

Early in my career, as much as I hate to admit it, I was guilty as charged at an event on LOZ. I put a lot of emphasis (and rightly so) on doing everything I could for my sponsors. It did not take me long to realize that sacrificing my integrity was in no way a benifit to those who were supporting me event after event.

Here is where the real problem lies, If im fishing another brand of jig other than one produced by my sponsors, and on a given day I have to use a competitors jig to get results, what happens to the guys/girls who run out after a Saturday tournament to get my sponsors jigs for a Sunday tournament, and get very poor results because my sponsors jigs don't really do well under the present conditions, now instead of happy repeat customers, there are a few out there who got bad results from a great product because of my dishonesty, when I know all along that my sponsors jig was not right for the job, who gains anything from that situation?

Bottom line, be honest, or say nothing at all. I have the best sponsors in the world, who's products I believe in and used in a variety of situations before my relationship with these companies was ever formed, they all deserve my best effort and total honesty.

i catch all my fish on hooks.

I think they should really say what they caught them on.
When they lie it just makes us want to go buy a 15 dollar lure that doesnt work any better then a 3 dollar lure

I stand corrected - I just got the REAL story on my previous post from the actual fisherman involved (who was never named), and apparently the story that had been circulating about those events was incorrect.

I'm definitely not saying that i do it, I have no reason to.. Heck i'm usually the most honest dude out there. If i dont want people to know what i'm throwin just dodge the question.. I was just simply stating some people are going to do it anyway.. Just like telling people stealing is wrong, and yet boats still get broken into. It's funny sometimes though, especially when everyone knows its B.S..

I won't mention the marina but a long time ago a guide out of that marina would come in and have photos taken of his catch and the bait he used was whatever the marina had a surplus of or a big markup on.I am not to sure how ethical that was but they did sell more baits.

Is it lying to just say 't-rig worm'?

Or am I obligated to say 'green pumpkin speed craw with the front two legs pulled of on an 1/8 tungstenweight with a 3/o Gammy off-set hook with a dab of chart. marker on the pinchers'?

and where you caught them. if you win a tourny you have to tell everyone how you did it. because you are not allowed to keep a secret that might lead to future success.

The Angler is under no obligation to tell you with what bait he caught his fish.

We do the same. In my personal opinion as a fisherman when I see someone doing it, it reflects poorly on the business.

I guess my take on this is slighly different than most. It dosn't matter what the bait, line, rod, reel you say you used, people are going to think you are lying regardless of wheter or not you really are. Since that is the case, depending on the fishery, sometimes I tell people exactly what I was using or doing, and other times I am a little more tight lipped. If I ever do good enough in a tournament, and I am on stage I keep it pretty vague, however if somebody walks up to me after and asks, I will tell them. I still remember at our collegebass national championship, a young kid apprached me with his dad, and wanted to know how we caught them that week. You could tell he was really nervous to approach me, and then just asked how we caught em. I told him exactly how and walked over to my boat and gave him one of my jigs. I thought it was a pretty cool deal

His Dad was using the kid as a prop.

I don't really get into the name dropping personally. If i caught em on a worm, I say a worm. If I caught em on a drop shot I say drop shot. If someone asks the color, I tell em the color. If I caught em on a crankbait I tell em I caught em on a blue/chart crank. I rarely say it's 'x' company.

What agitates me, and what I immediately thought of when I read this thread is this scenario:

"I caught my fish on a 'brand x' tube" And I saw them out there on the lake catching them on a trap. That immediately forms a bad opinion in my mind of that angler. I don't necessarily think bad of the sponsor, but it does put a ? mark in the back of my head thinking did their sponsor push them too hard to promote?

I don't have many lures over the ten dollar range but the ones I do have I'm afraid to throw lol. But here's my opinion if strike king is payin me the big buks and I catch em on an h20express for example all I would do is thank my sponsors for the support

So, you’re saying that you never gut-hook a bass???




TFP

No one ever believes me when I tell them I catch them on Strike pro lures anyway. They only make a thousand different lures why would one of them work. My fishing partner got mad at me at an event we won when I told them what we caught them on. It was a new bait that no one had, I said no believes us anyway that we would tell them on stage funny how we still do good with all those lures. Now the problemn is, is that guys are believing us because they see us fishing and those baits on our rods in the morning.

Someone said it dosen't matter about lures, when your out there throwing a lure lets say on Rayburn and no one has one, and the fish have never seen one it works, it works REAAAAAALLLLLLLYYYYYY good.

Todd-- I believe you....In fact, I am looking for another red crawfish. That one you gave me, it never made it home. I think I left it on mrbass24's bumper...

I will be using Strike-Pro lures more this year..

Bennie

I have the same problem Todd does. Nobody ever pays any attention to what I say anyway. So I just tell the truth.

+1

No reason to lie about what you caught, where and with what. Doesn't matter who your sponsor is. If you don't want to give away secrets, either don't answer the question or don't go into details. You can say you were using soft plastics, but don't have to say if it was T-rig or C-rig. Don't have to say what brand or color as far as that goes.

Real easy to answer without lying. Can't trust liars and sure can't believe in the products they are promoting.

I just ordered $200 worth of those 'Snakes' they've been advertising on WFN, cuz Doug Hannon and his doofus sidekick swear by 'em!

I have more respect for the guy who says "I'd rather not say" than anyone else.

We killed 'em at Welsh yesterday on a Carolina rigged cotton candy BOOYAH buzzbait.

Luke Clausen said he won the Classic on a hard nose when it was really a Gambler so I guess it happens at every level.

As my grandpa used to say "All fisherman are liars except me and you, and I'm not sure about you!"

Such a hilarious statement!

He still swears by the RED RAG on a treble hook on Caddo back in the early days. Back in the days they didn't have motors, just paddles. He would go out in the river channel and catch 100 bass a day. Go figure! I hear the story about 3 times a year! LOL!

Don't Ask:Don't Tell.

no different than what some guides post. They always post how good the fishing is when others are struggling. I know they are good but they never have a bad day! I read the reports for the water temp and clarity and somethimes that is not alwys truthful

Heres what I don't understand if everyone is lying and every company has guys sponsoring them how are people catching fish. Lots of times the people that are so paranoid over whether someone is lying is because they do it to everyone else, some of us just don't care, it might be ego or whatever some just think even if they told you, you couldn't go figure it out. Then there are those that know that someone hates to drop shot and they can tell that person cause they know in a million years there not going to get out there and try it.

If the Purple Ibex Modulator lure company is paying me BIG BUCKS for endorsements..........you can BET YOUR LIFE that ALL my fish are caught on Purple Ibex Modulator lures!

HEY!! Would I LIE to ya! Huh!???

so is that why i don't have a bunch of sponsors? i need to be more of a liar and alot less honest..i'm sorry but you can keep your money and sponsorship...rick

If the person really believes in the product he is sponsored by, he probably would not be using another product. If the person uses another product other than his sponsors' for the job at hand, then he really doesn't need or believe in his sponsors' product. Just my two cent's worth. Get Bit.

no different than lieing on stage taying you caught em one way just to throw everyone else off. Which I can honestly say I have done.

some people just cant help it. they would rather lie than tell the truth even when you see them throwing what they caught them on and tell you something totally different. the best thing you can do is just laugh about it and go on.

My sponsors baits catch fish, as others do, but you are not always going to be able to catch fish on your sponsor's baits in every situation and they understand that (or should). Being honest about what you catch fish on, whether they are your sponsor's products or not, is important!

If people lie because of their sponsors, neither them or their sponsors have much integrity. If you are sponsored by a spinnerbait company or a jig company and you caught your fish on plastic worm, you sponsor should want you to be truthful so when you did catch fish on the spinnerbait or jig and told everyone, they would believe you and believe in the product you were promoting.

Exactly!

I know this post may be frowned upon slightly but I know a lot of guys in this sport...And all of the really good fisherman I know lie, it isn't to push a sponsor, but people don't want to give away all of their details. I have learned to respect all the time people put into practice and finding fish, that I don't really bother to ask... If I ever get lucky enough and catch them, it was most likely on a jig, and guess I will start just leaving it at that.

Perfect post

Ya mean.....those pro fishermen don't SPILL THEIR GUTS about lure type, color, retrieval method, wind direction, current drift, presentation and finesse moves??

SHAAAAA-ZAMMMMM!!!

Nothing to do with sponsorship but I've always felt like if I tell the truth: 1- it's good karma, 2- eighty percent of the liars out there are gonna think it's a lie, and 3- the other twenty percent will never try it even though they know dang good and well I told the truth. I know a few real good sticks who think the same way, and I bet a lot of pros do, to.

It seems that many people feel strongly about the issues raised in this thread. I have been tournament fishing since 1982 and all of the stuff talked about here can be applied to the same situations from that year. Some folks lie about fishing, some don't. Simple as that....always been that way.

Oh I agree completely! Apparently some guys get their feelings hurt over this issue, justifiably or not. This is exactly why I feel that you really need to think about who it is that you are asking for help from before you juump out there and do it. I network with a VERY small group of guys that I know I can trust and they expect and receive the truth from me in return. If I were approach an acquaintance at the boat ramp and ask for help, it would be reasonable to expect a response that is less than completely true. On the same note, if that same person approached me upon hearing that I was struggling and fraudulently testified to the effectiveness of his new sponsor bait just to sell the product, that speaks to the character of the individual.

The question is, how would you know with 100% certainty that the "acquaintence" is lying ? Are you a human polygraph ? How do you come to the conclusion that the person was being untruthful ? Is it because you used the same lure afterwards and didn't load the boat ? Maybe that has more to do with where it was being thrown rather than by whom it was being thrown. Or do you come to that conclusion based on a bunch of hearsay being thrown around by people that were'nt in the boat with that person when they caught fish on the bait ?

I don't know, but it seems like you would be jumping to conclusions about the veracity of the "acquaintence" unless you were an eyewitness to the alleged deceit and would just be rumour mongering.

A good hypothetical would be this. I have a daughter and I know that if rumours were being thrown around about her at school for instance, it would sure hurt my feelings to know that the people spreading the rumours had ZERO solid evidence about them and that they were only causing hurt towards her based on the words of other people that had no solid proof as to whether or not she actually did what they were saying she did.

As a person with children, I'm sure you could understand that as well.

What rumor mongering? Is there a specific incident to which you are referring? I don't see one mentioned in my post. Why would you assume that I am speaking of anything other than a hypothetical, or are you claiming to possess Extra Sensory Perception? Congratulations on your daughter, I have two of them along with four boys!

And um yes............I am a human polygraph...........according to the aforementioned children.

re: Texas Smoke post



Obviously, you are one of the individuals that feel strongly about these issues. I, for one, don't really care what anyone else is doing most of the time. That is the truth, believe it or don't. I even get mad at my partner when he sometimes tells me what is going on in another boat fishing near us in a tournament.

That's just me. It is o.k. to being different and "not care" what anyone does or says pertaining to their tournament day. I usually limit it to "have a good day?" and so on. Anything else gets in MY way to catch fish.

"On another note", I was a co-angler in FLW, Everstart, Stren and so on....I also competed in 7 or 8 BASS tournaments back in '93-'94. I can't count the number of times (almost every one) that a pro used a completely different lure in the boat than he shared on stage and to anyone who asked, including "aquaintences". So, in those exact situations, I am a personal witness to the stuff described by JAS789 above.

Why would I, or anyone with my experience, think anything other than I am being mislead in these situations.....well in 95 plus percent of them anyway.

Earplugs and blinders for me. 1st Place is always doing SOMETHING different than anyone else...by definition.

Fish Tales. I don't mind telling people what I actually caught the bait on. No need to lie for a Sponsor or to hide the TRUE bait. I actually watched a Professional on White Rock lake catch one of a bed back up one of the creeks towards the highway. The Pro exiting told him where it was and he missed it at least 2 dozen times, then caught it. I had already told my son, "that I could already caught that fish after he missed it some 10 times. Fish were scarce at this Mega Tournament final. At weigh in he told a part truth that so-n-so told him about it and that he caught it on is 2nd cast. There was no reason to even say 2nd cast. Guess he forgot we were watching him from the top of the creek bank. We could actually see the fish.

Because I saw your post this morning before you edited it.

And you are claiming to be able to absolutely speak to the veracity or lack thereof?

No, because I wasn't there in the boat.

Were you ? Because the way you were stating things as fact, it seems like you must have been.

No, I wasn't in the boat. I was in the booth when the person in the back of the boat was telling the story.

Anything further, or can we put this one to bed?

So it's one person's word against another person's word and you just decided to choose which one was telling the truth and then state it as a fact ?

Wow.

Barrry, can you tell me exactly how you know the truth in ANY of this? This was settled earlier today amongst gentlemen and true to your form you once again decided to stir the pot. There were no names mentioned and no inferences mentioned. Have you reached the point in your life that your sole purpose for waking is to argue with someone? It's over, let it rest man...feel the freedom!

Isn't pot stirring a sport in some places? I think I read that it is addictive and very hard to quit. Some people have been observed stirring for several years....I think that is what the article said.

OK - I laughed out loud that time.

I have to look at the bright side of this...my post count is shooting through the roof.

I commend sponsors like you thats what fishing needs.

Don't lie just to kiss up. Give a sponsor props if their products actually helped you. Otherwise, be honest.

nobody is going to say anything is wrong with this, just wanted to see people's opinion on this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch#v=bzqQETLp6Tc&feature=related