Ricky's fishing career has taken him
all over the world. |
Ricky, a native of Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and a resident of Hot Springs, Arkansas, caught his first bass when he was six years old. He has been hooked on the sport ever since. He attended Henderson State Teacher's College in Arkadelphia, where he set up his class schedules to have afternoons free for fishing. A semester short of graduation, he quit college to take a lucrative job with Reynolds Aluminum Company in 1968. "I had to make money to support my fishing habit, even in those days," he says.
A year later, Ricky had worked his way up to a company chemist, even though he didn't have a chemistry degree. While at Reynolds, he used his vacation time to fish on tournament, while paying others to work for him while he fished two or three more. In 1974, he was offered a sponsorship opportunity and resigned his job with Reynolds to become a full-time Pro Fisherman.
When Ricky quit his job, the WALL STREET JOURNAL picked up his story of a chemist turned pro fisherman and featured it on the newspaper's front page. "At that time, no other sports person had been placed on the front page, " says Rick. That's how unusual it was to go "pro" in the fishing industry. Now, since the sport has grown, it's not quite that unusual to make a living as a professional tournament fisherman.
Ricky's fishing career has taken him all over the world, fishing tournament, promoting and representing major companies in the fishing industry, conducting seminars and demonstrating the fishing techniques that have made him a major force in the bass fishing world for two decades.
While in Canada, Ricky helped coordinate and run the country's first Walleye Tournament. The even dew close to 10,000 people. Canada now holds bass tournaments as well.
Ricky also traveled to Japan a couple of times, where, in addition to holding seminars on fishing, he met with Japanese engineers to help design new products. During Ricky's second trip to Japan, the locals held a fishing festival which was similar to a tournament. "They only allowed 100 people to enter," says Ricky. "I gave instructions through an interpreter and my wife and I got some great fishing in as well. The bass in these lakes, we were told, were brought over after World War II by servicemen.
Bass tournament competition is a way of life for Ricky and his family, in fact, he says it's a "Green Family Tradition". Ricky's first wife, Bettye, competed on the Bass'n Gal circuit and qualified for some of their classics until her death in 2002. Now his wife Karen has traded in a life of teaching school for fishing with Ricky. Ricky and his sons marked a first in the history of the BASSMASTERS Tournament Trail for three years. Keith qualified to enter the BASSMASTERS Top 100 Tournament Circuit but decided to join his dad on the Wal-Mart/FLW ESPN Tournament Tour instead.
Ricky and his son Keith both fish FLW Tournament Tour. At the end of each practice day they get together to plan their strategies for the tournament competition by comparing notes and studying their lake map. This is nothing new for this father-don duo, they have been fishing buddies since Keith was big enough to hold a fishing rod. Ricky started taking Keith fishing when he was still in diapers! In fact Keith caught his first bass weighing 2 pounds 12 ounces when he was only 18 months old and was featured in the local newspaper.
"Since fishing is a sport that has no age limit," says Ricky Sr., "I'll never get out of it. I will, in some way, always be involved because fishing is truly what I know and love to do."
 View Ricky's Fishing Resume......
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