Joe Opager, director of communications for the Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), says of Mark Rose, “We couldn’t ask for a better ambassador in the sport and for the FLW.”
Rose, who recently moved from West Memphis to a farm near Forrest City, capped his 2018 FLW season with the circuit’s highest award, Angler of the Year, an honor he calls “a blessing,” one that he says “won’t define me.”
But, it sure looks good on his resume.
Rose has won six FLW Tour events in his career, which started in the late 1990s. He’s also won the Costa FLW Series Championship, fished in 12 Forrest Wood Cups, won angler of the year in the former Costa FLW Series Midwest Division, earned 49 top 10 finishes and earned more than $2.4 million in the FLW. He’s also the first to ever win two FLW Tour events back to back.
“It has been a blessing,” said Rose, whose motto is “Faith, Family and Family.”
Once he had secured the AOY title, Rose reflected on his two decades of being a professional angler. He remembers when he started, noting that he has learned a lot over the years through his travels.
“I had a lot to learn in 20 years,” he said. “I had so much to learn when I started. I have been a student of the sport. Now, being crowned Angler of the Year is very, very special. It is something I don’t take for granted. I wouldn’t trade how I got to where I am for anything in the world. It was a lot of hard knocks. All I ever asked the good Lord when I started this was for me to make a living.”
Not that Rose thinks he’s got the sport figured out despite all his success.
“You better not think you have the sport of professional bass fishing completely figured out,” he said. “You can practice free throws in a cool gym. You can practice your golf swing. You can do a lot of things, but in fishing you are dealing with so many variables. I really think sometime that fish have ears. Whenever I hear people on the stage saying they have the fish dialed in or they know where they’ll catch them tomorrow. I always look at where they finished the next day. The fish will plot against them.”
Rose placed 25th in the recent FLW Cup on Arkansas’ Lake Ouachita, which turned out to be a hard place to catch bass for most of the 56 competitors. Clent Davis of Montevallo, Ala., who almost gave up the sport last year, won with a 15-fish limit totaling 36 pounds, 13 ounces. James Niggemeyer of Van, Texas, a member of the Strike King pro staff, was second with 29-9. Davis earned $300,000.
Around the outdoors horn:
GO HUNT, IT’S FREE: Tennessee residents are allowed to hunt without a license on Saturday, which coincides with the opening day of squirrel season. In addition to the opening of squirrel season, it will be the middle day of the statewide three-day archery private lands only/antlered only deer season. This is the first year for this type of deer season (Friday through Aug. 26), known as the Velvet Deer Hunt.
Free Hunting Day is an event the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) annually provides in hopes of increasing interest in hunting. Squirrel hunting is one of Tennessee’s oldest and favorite traditions. The day serves as an opportunity for persons to experience the enjoyment of the sport.
On Free Hunting Day, state resident hunters are exempt from hunting licenses and WMA permit requirements. Many of the WMAs are open to hunters seeking public access on Saturday. The TWRA offers a reminder that hunter education requirements are not waived for Free Hunting Day.
Anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 1969 is required to have successfully completed a hunter education course. An apprentice license is required for those born on or after Jan. 1, 1969 if the hunter education course has not been completed. This license exempts the hunter from the mandatory hunter education law for one year from the date of purchase, but may only be purchased for up to three consecutive years during the lifetime of the hunter.
DEER TALK: The TWRA is seeking public input regarding deer management at three public meetings early next month. Meetings will be held in West, Middle, and East Tennessee on Sept. 4-5-6. Input received at the meetings will be used to inform the development of a 5-year strategic plan for the TWRA’s Deer Management Program. Meetings will be held at the University of Tennessee-West Tennessee Ag Research and Education Center, 605 Airways Blvd., suite 104, in Jackson (Sept. 4); Lane Agri-Park Auditorium, 315 John R. Rice Boulevard in Murfreesboro (Sept. 5) and UT-Plant Biotech Building in rooms 156-157 (Sept. 6). Meeting times are 7-9 p.m.
Got an item or note? E-mail Larry Rea at lroutdoors@att.net or go to his web site at lroutdoors.com; listen to Larry Rea on Outdoors with Larry Rea on Saturday mornings from 6-7:30 on ESPN 790-AM and 1520-AM and 95.3 in Brownsville, Tenn., and 6:30-8 on News/Talk 101.5 in Jackson, Tenn.
Source: https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/sports/outdoors/2018/08/17/west-memphis-fisherman-mark-rose-named-angler-year-flw/1018757002/
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