Do Beards Raise Fish?

Word has been quietly circulating recently about the correlation between record catches and facial hair. Saltwater
fishermen (see video) have known this secret for generations and now bass, walleye
and other freshwater fishermen seem to have figured it out. Facial hair, in particular
the Van Dyke beard that many also call the Goatee, has been sprouting more and more
on bass tournament anglers according to fishing writer Dave Landahl.

These two fishermen tell us that they did not score any IGFA records until they grew their beards.

Offshore
anglers share their secret on video…


Outdoorsman Landahl reports that some top tournament bass fishermen such as Rick
Clunn, who has gone to a full beard, and even Mike Iaconelli who is trying a little
tuft on his chin, are convinced that facial hair works wonders.

When you’re on the FLW trail looking for the big bucks, many anglers feel you can’t afford not to use a brush.

Writing on Bassfirst.com, Lindahl says that there is some controversy about the
subject and a number of top anglers feel just the opposite and refuse to grow beards,
goatees, or even anything longer than stray nose hair. For example, top-notch bass
pros, such as Kevin VanDam, Skeet Reese, and Jay Yelas swear by a clean shaven face.

These two bass fishermen just back from the circuit say that beards, and maybe a little wax, are far superior to plastic frogs, rubber worms, and even synthetic bass fry.

Landahl writes: “Anyway, what is it in our collective bassin' psyche that makes
us be such followers? Ya got me. The facial hair phenomenon has been around for
over a decade now in tournament fishing.”


The word is that hairy tournament bass fishermen are keeping mum about facial hair
for fear the word will spread. Most top money winners have written books, created
TV programs, or invented bottled scents that are said to reveal their real tournament-winning
techniques, but veteran observers say those are just devices to divert attention
from the real secret – facial hair.

See? It works!

We tried to reach many of the top anglers both in the bass and walleye circuits
to find out if they would ‘fess up and admit that beards, or a least a scraggly
mustache made the difference. Most of these anglers were not at home and the ones
that were refused to comment – which just confirms our suspicions.

Even kids are finding out about the fishy allure of beards.

BoatTEST.com is asking all fishermen to help us put this rumor to rest one way or
the other. Does facial hair raise fish or does it just scare them away? We would
like to get to the bottom of this. The best answer will win the coveted BoatTEST.com
ducky.