DATE: Thursday, August 7, 1997              TAG: 9708070796

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C1   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Column 

SOURCE: Tom Robinson

                                            LENGTH:   73 lines

BEACH ANGLER REELS IN THE BIG ONE: A SPOT IN THE BASS MASTERS CLASSIC

Virginia Beach's Rick Morris has chased bass, more for profit than for fun, around the country since 1993. This fishing season, he's gone as far as Texas to drop his line, and how you rate his success depends on where you look.

Morris has collected less than $15,000 in prize money in '96-97 from the 11 professional bass fishing tournaments he's entered. Three years ago, he cashed checks for $50,000 from the circuit, which makes you think the bass haven't been leaping into his boat lately.

Wrong again, fish breath. What Morris has lacked in big finishes this season - he bagged third place in two events two years ago - he has compensated for in consistency. Consistency that has put Morris in Birmingham, Ala., this week for the granddaddy of them all, the BASS Masters Classic.

It's the Super Bowl, the World Series, the U.S. Open . . . well, you get the idea. For a pro bassman, it gets no bigger than the Classic.

And Morris' presence in the 27th Classic as one of 40 competitors from around the world is testament to his improvement as a technician, despite decreased winnings.

Morris, 35, performed steadily enough and finished decently enough over and over to rack up 408 points on the tour and claim 23rd place overall.

Because the top 25 finishers receive automatic entry into the Classic, Morris, who made it by only five points, gets to fish Lake Logan Martin - 40 miles of dammed-off Coosa River - eight hours a day for three glorious days beginning today.

``I've been many times as a spectator, and last year I told myself I'd be there this year as a competitor,'' said Morris, a glass-blower by trade who still runs a small business with his wife, Pam. ``If you win this tournament, you're set in this sport for life. Nobody ever forgets you.''

Being a player in the Classic's spectacle excites Morris as much as the thought of fishing among the world's finest. Each day will end with the participants paraded in the spotlight, one by one in a boat towed by a pickup, before thousands inside Birmingham's arena.

The fishermen will climb to a stage where they will be interviewed and their catch, up to five bass, displayed and weighed among much hoopla. Total weight at the end of three days wins, so an ounce here or there could separate the $100,000 winner and the $50,000 runner-up. (Fortieth place pays $4,000.)

To the champion - Morris figures about 45 pounds will win - goes one indelible victory lap.

``It's the ultimate,'' said Morris, one of 12 men fishing their first Classic. ``They put the champion in a boat with his wife and the American flag and they drive you around the arena. He's holding her hand, she's boo-hooing. It's very emotional.''

For Morris, envisioning himself and Pam so celebrated helps keep him going through the 50,000 miles he annually puts on his '95 Chevy van festooned with sponsors' decals, as do his his ever-present motivational tapes.

Then, obviously, there are those sponsorship dollars, the lifeblood of most pros.

Morris puts salesmanship up there with rod-and-reel skills as prerequisites for the pro fisherman. Your ability to promote a sponsor's equipment at shows and tournaments directly impacts upon your longevity on the tour, Morris said, especially when you're an up-and-comer.

Morris has been around enough to snag 970 pounds of bass in his career, good for 91st on the all-time money list with $79,650.

Adding a cool 100K by Saturday night, though, would beget hundreds of thousands of endorsement dollars down the road.

``I'm definitely at the point where I know I can make it'' as a pro, Morris said. ``But it's still not 100 percent secure. Like any company you build, you have to stay ahead of the competition.''

And hope the big bass bite. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]

NHAT MEYER/The Virginian-Pilot

Rick Morris, who has hooked 970 pounds of bass in his career,

figures 45 pounds will be enough to win the BASS Masters Classic

this week on Lake Logan Martin in Alabama.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu