Pam Martin-Wells has earned nearly $500,000 fishing
By Jimmy Watson ? jimwatson@gannett.com ? October 14, 2009
In 22 years of professional bass fishing, Pam Martin-Wells has accumulated a lot of titles, mounds of money and enough prestige to last a lifetime.
But the veteran angler from Bainbridge, Ga., has never qualified for the pinnacle of professional bass fishing ? the Bassmaster Classic. Martin-Wells is just one high finish away from that elite event and she?ll have her chances on the Red River this week during the Academy Sports + Outdoors Women?s Bassmaster Tour Championship.
Martin-Well?s has led the WBT Angler of the Year points race since the inaugural 2009 event on Neely Henry lake in Alabama. Heading into the championship competition on Friday through Sunday on the Red River out of the Red River South Marina, Martin-Wells is one of five contenders in the 20-person professional field with at least 800 points. She has 862 ahead of Juanita Robinson?s 841, Laura Gober?s and Judy Wong?s 807 and Dianna Clark?s 800.
Not only will the AOY receive a Classic berth, they?ll also win a 2009 Toyota Tundra. The Classic is slated for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala., just three hours from Martin-Wells? home.
The WBT anglers will compete over three days for $94,000, including the winner?s purse of $5,000 plus a Triton/Mercury boat package valued at $55,000. There will also be 20 co-anglers, fishing from the back of pros? boats for a $40,000 Triton/Mercury boat rig, plus $3,250, awarded to the co-angler winner. In both divisions, the second-place prize is a Skeeter/Yamaha rig.
Kim Bain-Moore became the first female to qualify for the Classic last year after she won the AOY title in her first season on the trail. The points leader is the only female qualifier, so Martin-Wells could get in after years on various low-profile women?s trails.
?If the good Lord means for it to happen for me, it will happen,? Martin-Wells said. ?If it doesn?t happen, I?ll just move on to next year.?
Martin-Wells claims on her Web site that she is the all-time leading money winner for women, accumulating nearly $500,000 in tournament winnings on various circuits. That doesn?t mean much going into the championship, however.
With a quality field lined up for this weekend?s title event, Martin-Wells could have a tough time winning. Bain-Moore, Wong, Dianna Clark, Sheri Glasgow and Tammy Richardson, along the mother-daughter duo of Lucy and Melinda Mize, are among those who?ll have a lot to say who lofts the top trophy on Sunday.
The weigh-ins are scheduled for 3 p.m. all three days at the Academy store in Bossier City. The event is sponsored locally by the Shreveport Regional Sports Authority.
The 44-year-old Martin-Wells won the inaugural WBT championship in 2006 and has been one of the most consistent anglers throughout her career. She?s fished on the now defunct Bass?N Gal and WBFA circuits and was the Women?s Professional Fishing Angler of the Year for 1994, 1995 and 2005.
Martin-Wells spent most of Monday evening driving from her home in Georgia to Shreveport with her husband, Steven, who attends most of her competitions.
?I didn?t get married until I was 39, so I have no intention of leaving him at home,? Martin-Wells said. ?Steven is my back bone, my rock. He takes a lot of the stress off me.?
The anglers were allowed to fish on the river until it was off-limits on Oct. 1. They?ll get just one practice day on Thursday to see if they can find fish.
?Our biggest challenge is the high, muddy water and we have just a day to fish under these conditions,? Martin-Wells said. ?You rarely have the extremes that we are facing here. The water is six feet higher than it was when we were here practicing. That?s significant.?
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