Over the weekend, as I made my way around Facebook, I came across a post that simply stated, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Doug Hannon, also known to many as the Bass Professor, who has reportedly passed away this weekend. We’ll have more information on Monday. R.I.P.”
As I was unable to track down any sort of solid news on the subject, I hoped that this was little more than someone’s heartless attempt at an April Fools Day prank. Despite sending out a few emails and a lengthy web search, all signs continued to point back to the original Facebook posting. This only served to further fuel my thought of it being a bad joke.
Unfortunately around noon on Monday the story was confirmed in an official press release: “Doug Hannon “The Bass Professor” dies at 66. Complications from recent neck surgery believed a factor claiming life of famed fishing tackle inventor, angling authority, author and longtime TV host”.
While I was satisfied to finally put this to rest, I was moved by the passing of a man whom I fondly looked forward to watching every weekend on ESPN in my youth. I recall one specific episode of The Bass Professor in which Doug talked of farm-raised monster largemouth bass. As best I remember it he had this private lake, something new to me at the time, where he was working on raising fish to the proportions which most bass anglers could only dream about. I immediately had grandiose ideas of doing the same in my small, 1-acre residential backyard. Fortunately for my parents and neighbors, the act of taking on such a project was far more than an enthusiastic adolescent could ever undertake. I still keep the dream of owning a private lake in the back of my mind to this day, although the reality of the fantasy ever coming to fruition is about as likely as my one day becoming an astronaut or president of the United States.
Now you might ask why I was so fascinated by Doug Hannon at a young age. Well, among his many other accomplishments, Hannon is credited with catching and releasing over 800 largemouth bass over the 10-pound mark! %pullstart%Hannon is credited with catching and releasing over 800 largemouth bass over the 10-pound mark!%pullend% I am not sure about you, but if I was able to land a single bass of that size I would be ecstatic! To land 800 such fish is more than legendary. Similar accomplishments with other species of fish are extremely difficult if not impossible to provide, so to make a comparison is futile. It seemed that nearly every week he was seen landing these massive bucketyaps and I wanted to someday be just like him. Well unfortunately I have as yet to even crack the 10-pound barrier one time; it does not mean that I have given up hope on the dream.
One of my favorite segments of the weekly installments of The Bass Professor was when he would dive into the local waterbody to actually film and observe his quarry in its natural environment. I had never seen anyone take the act of fishing to such extreme lengths and was forever influenced by his way of thinking. To this day I make it a point to take to the water to better understand the environment in which I fish. This has greatly improved my success over the years and I credit The Bass Professor for opening me up to an idea which I would likely not have otherwise thought of myself.
I knew I was not the only one to have been influenced by The Bass Professor, and Chris Lido, managing editor of the New Jersey edition of The Fisherman Magazine fondly remembers Doug Hannon as follows: “His was one of the first fishing shows that was instructional and looked into the biology of black bass. As a biology student I was really interested in this as Doug would oven dive below the waters surface to observe bass behavior.” Like many other fishermen, it is obvious that Chris and I were influenced by Hannon’s unconventional thinking and approach to increasing his angling success.
More than simply a great angler, Hannon was also an award-winning inventor. He holds nearly 20 patents for fishing-related products including the MicroWave Line Control System by American Tackle, the WaveSpin spinning reel spool design, the first weedless trolling motor blade and many others.
Hannon was hailed by Outdoor Life as one of the O.L. 25: people “whose lifetime achievement has had the greatest positive influence on hunting and fishing.” In 2000 he was inducted into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wisc. He was also an accomplished author having written hundreds of feature articles as well as three books: Hannon’s Field Guide for Bass Fishing, Catch Bass, and Big Bass Magic. He also filmed and produced videos with 3M called Understanding Bass, Catching Big Bass, and Bass-Formula for Success.
The Bass Professor, Doug Hannon, will be forever missed and remembered for his accomplishments and innovations in the angling community. The next fish I catch is for you, may you rest in peace.
