he took the polygraph after the tournament....
keep in mind that he had done a survey of elite anglers on his own and sent the results to BASS...(I believe the majority wanted to limit the use of FFS)....this infuriated BASS and they called and threatened to ban Matt from future tournaments.....pretty obvious they did not want the fishermen from interfering with their "under the table" deal with Garmin for unlimited use of FFS...
beginning to look like they intended to punish or ban Matt using questionable results from a polygraph....

Under the table deal? 😆🤦🏼. It’s BASS business how they run it. These goobers aren’t employees- they are customers- no one forces them into what is worse odds than a slot machine to participate in the traveling circus. Bass has to pay bills and a profit- profit is the only reason they do this…

You can tell who has never signed the front of a check before..

That’s what I was wondering. Probably should have been disqualified for that too.

If the story about JT Thompkins DQ is accurate, BASS better hope it can not be proven in court.

Agreed. When did Herron become the union boss.

2025 rule
(ii) Once the Elite Series Schedule is officially announced or a competitor becomes definitively
aware of a tournament location, whichever date is earliest, current or qualified Elite anglers,
regardless of the event date, will fall under restrictions a – j below:
a. Elite anglers cannot gather waypoints or specific fishing locations i.e. creek, river,
area of the lake, etc. from any source that is not publicly available. Anglers may
participate in general discussions with fans and others about fishing, especially
including boat shows, seminars and the like; however, they must not use such
conversations to intentionally gain a competitive edge for fishing a future Elite event.
To be safe in such situations, the angler should discontinue conversations that focus
on specific locations or other information that might result in a competitive
advantage. Elite anglers cannot solicit, gather or intentionally receive any
information to gain a competitive advantage from anyone other than another Elite
series competitor in the tournament. Elite anglers cannot buy or barter, any
information to gain a competitive advantage.

^^^thank you, pretty much the nail in his coffin.

Story is the un-named angler who was being poly'd right before JT had the senior tournament manager at BASS bust in the door and tell the poly guy "this is not the guy we are after"!

The more I hear the guy who is CEO does not need to be CEO and the lady who is TD does not need to be TD. What other high ranking positions within that org are a cluster F?

Matt is not only having to deal with this situation which threatens to ruin his career but his parents are elderly and both are critically ill...

It’s his business, he paid for it- he definitely needs to be whatever he want to be.

c’mon…

I just don't understand how far some of these comments go! Everyone has there own opinion and should but the facts are:
BASS is a business that provides an event and a platform. The only employees they have are staff. They get to set the rules and standards they want.
Angler's are independent contracts. (self-employed) They choose where they decide to work or participate and sign a contract to follow said standards and rules.
Polygraphs have been around forever in competitive fishing at every level. And will continue to be. They are given at every major event. Never have I heard of one being challenged and proven false! EVER!
Where there is smoke there is fire! Matt is a friend of mine but per his interviews he broke the rules! Matt had 2 different conversations and something was said in both that per said rule is against the rules. Same with Martin. He admitted within the first 30 seconds of making a call to ask about nearby water and how it compares to the event waters! Black and white!