Classic Catalyst
THE CONCEPT OF the Bassmaster Classic, Bob Cobb remembers, came out of the blue during a drive he and B.A.S.S. boss Ray Scott were making from Montgomery to Atlanta to attend a boat show. Once they had a basic idea, it only took them 2 1/2 hours to put the whole thing together.
Now, half a century later, that concept has grown into one of the most anticipated annual sporting events in the world, attracting not only tens of thousands of fans in person but also nearly two million more from more than 160 countries who follow the event online.
“There is no way anyone could have ever imagined how big and how popular the Classic would become,” notes Cobb. “I’m very proud of the organization and the people who led it through the years, and certainly, I am deeply honored to have been part of it in the beginning. All Ray and I were trying to do was convince the media that bass fishing tournaments were a legitimate competition and deserved to be covered in the newspaper sports pages.”
As Cobb and Scott drove toward Atlanta, they decided what they needed was a super tournament at the conclusion of their
