MONTGOMERY, Ala. (October 7, 2003) -- CITGO Petroleum Corporation, the title sponsor of the Bassmaster Tournament Trail, and BASS announced today a 50 percent increase to the coveted Angler of the Year points program.
The 2004 Bassmaster Angler of the Year program has been designed to extend the purse from the top 10 to the top 25 anglers in the point standings at the end of the season. These top 25 BASS anglers will be rewarded through a $311,550 prize purse, which ups the ante from last year's $200,000 purse.
"CITGO's support of BASS has always been more than just the name sake sponsor of the tournament trail," said Lance Peck, Manager, Outdoor Sports Marketing for CITGO. "When looking at the Angler of the Year program, we wanted to provide a format that would include more anglers in the payout schedule. We are extremely pleased with the new format and title sponsorship of this program."
The Angler of the Year prize fund has undergone significant financial increases since 2002 when the field payout was just $25,000.
"We often talk of working with our partners to elevate the sport and this is yet another example of our title sponsor's commitment to BASS and professional fishing's premier tour," said Dean Kessel, Vice President and General Manager of BASS. "Aggressively but responsibly increasing angler prize winnings has been an important element of our long range planning."
The 2004 Bassmaster Angler of the Year will be awarded $100,000 cash and will also receive $11,550 to cover all 2005 Tour entry fees. The balance of the payout ladder breaks down in the following manner:
2nd $30,000
3rd $20,000
4th $16,000
5th $14,000
6th $10,000
7th $9,000
8th $8,000
9th $7,000
10th $6,000
11th-25th $5,000
A $1,000 bonus check will also be awarded to the Bassmaster Angler of the Year points leader after each of the first five Bassmaster Tournament Trail events with the prize fund distributed after the sixth and final Tour stop of the season.
With more than 13,000 retail locations, the petroleum company also proudly sponsors the Bassmaster Classic and the CITGO Pro Staff Team of Shaw Grigsby, Gerald Swindle, Marty Stone, Lucy Mize and Jimmy Mize. CITGO Petroleum Corporation, based in Tulsa, Okla., is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals, refined waxes, asphalt and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.