Conway fisherman ready for shot at Bassmaster Classic

John Proctor knows that it will take more than luck to win in the Bassmaster Classic, but the Conway banker says he is ready for the challenge.

A self described “grassroots, weekend fisherman,” Proctor, 35, says he has been dreaming since he way 15 about competing in what bass anglers know as the pinnacle of bass fishing. “Other than getting married and having a child, this is the biggest, most exciting thing that’s ever happened to me in my lifetime.”

The 2016 Bassmaster Classic will be held March 4 through March 6 on Grand Lake ‘O the Cherokees in Tulsa, Okla. The three-day tournament will draw over 100,000 spectators to watch 55 of the best anglers in the world compete to catch the biggest largemouth bass. Most of those anglers are professional fishermen and well-known names in the bass fishing community. Proctor is the vice president of accounting and finance at Conway National Bank.

To qualify for the Classic, Proctor had to run a gauntlet of local, state and regional tournaments and did so with a single-minded determination.

“He put forth the effort, the time on the water, the reading, the studying. All he did was practice, practice, practice. There was no luck involved. John did his homework,” said Greg Fogner, president of the Conway Bassmasters.

Proctor practiced for almost a year for the BASS Nation Regional last year in Georgetown. He studied maps, scouted locations -- even wrote a plan detailing the places and methods he would use to set his hook on the tournament-winning fish.

For the BASS Nation Championship on Louisiana’s Ouachita River, he got help from Conway Bassmasters club members to assemble the specialized aluminum jon boat he used to get deep into the flooded timber for his biggest fish. That tournament solidified his place in the coveted Bass Master Classic.

Proctor has scrounged to purchase rods, reels and other equipment over the years. Now, tackle companies are jumping to be a part of his success. Boxes of lures show up on Proctor’s doorstep, he’s been given thousands of dollars in high-end electronics and Marshall’s Marine made him a deal he couldn’t refuse on a 21-foot Skeeter boat.

“I have to admit, that part’s been pretty cool,” he said.

Proctor will set out Wednesday for the final part of his journey, towing his new boat on the 17-hour road trip to Tulsa where he will have a few days to practice fish. He says he will spend every minute of that long ride playing out every conceivable scenario and coming up with a plan to come out on top.

He has studied the lake, watched video of past events, he even took vacation time in December to go tour “Grand Lake” with a local angler.

“I say, this is your goal, now how do I get there?” Proctor answers his own question: “Preparation is the one thing you can do to put the odds in your favor.”

Despite the level of the competition, Proctor says he will not be intimated by this event.

“I’m trying my best to win the Bassmaster Classic. I don’t want to be satisfied to just be there. You can’t think of it like that. You’ve got to look at it like you’re here to win.”

When the angler weighs his fish in on the big stage, he will have lots of support. At least six members of the Conway Bassmasters are planning to be there, as well as his parents and his wife Ashley with his 2-year-old daughter, Kinley.

“I have a lot of friends throughout Horry County that are going to be pulling for me.” he said, “I’m going to do my best to do them proud.”

This story was originally published February 21, 2016 at 12:35 AM with the headline "Conway fisherman ready for shot at Bassmaster Classic."