Bass Tournament News

Theo Corcoran gets emotional hoisting his 2013 Forrest Wood Cup championship trophy after his co-angler victory August 15-18 on Louisiana's Red River.   Photo Credit: FLW Outdoors

Add one more name to the list of Michigan anglers making their mark on the professional bass fishing scene in 2013 – Theo Corcoran.

Corcoran took a major step toward fulfilling his lifelong dream of making a career out of professional bass fishing by winning the 2013 Forrest Wood Cup title August 15 – 18 on Louisiana's Red River.

But at only 23 years old, Corcoran isn't getting too far ahead of himself. He views the win as a major step forward but has no immediate plans to make the jump to the front seat of the boat. "My goal for next year is to win another tournament as a co-angler and then maybe in five years, be a full-time professional angler," said Corcoran.

Although he currently lives in Missouri, Corcoran grew up in southeast Michigan where he developed his angling skills on Oakland County's Pontiac Lake. He's particularly fond of Pontiac Lake because anglers can catch fish in almost every way imaginable there – a feature that comes in handy when preparing for lakes in other parts of the country. "I can take a presentation that works on Pontiac Lake and have success with it on any body of water in the U.S.," said Corcoran.

Although experienced with a wide range of presentations, Corcoran considers shallow water power fishing – crankbaits, spinnerbaits or flipping - his specialty. "Flipping grass is by far my favorite way to catch bass," said Corcoran.

To compete at the highest levels of bass fishing, Corcoran will need to expand his repertoire even further and gain experience across an even broader range of waters and he's the first to admit there's still much to learn – especially when it comes to reading and interpreting electronics.

Corcoran credits much of his success to Michigan bass angling pro Scott Dobson, who took Corcoran under his wing and coached him on the importance of hard work – on and off the water - to reach his potential. "He's the reason I made it to the Forrest Wood Cup," said Corcoran.

Dobson's advice to Corcoran is to remain a co-angler on the Walmart FLW Tour for as long as possible. "It's a great way to learn from the best at a reasonable cost," said Dobson, adding that for basically the price of hiring a guide, a co-angler on the FLW Tour can fish alongside a top-level pro and gain tremendous insight into the world of tournament fishing.

There's another aspect of professional bass fishing Corcoran will need to learn if he wants to become a full time tournament angler - attracting sponsors. Sponsor funding is required to offset the costs associated with fishing a pro circuit like the FLW Tour or Bassmaster Elite Series. In fact, it's so important that Dobson suggests Corcoran – or any young aspiring angler – invest a little time and money in developing public relations skills.

While growing up in Michigan, Corcoran spent most of his free time fishing and despite the typical distractions of young adulthood, kept his focus on becoming good enough to make it his career. "While other kids were going out partying or getting into trouble, I was going fishing," said Corcoran.

Although becoming a full time tournament professional has always been his dream, the dream didn't begin to take shape until a few years ago when he began to experience success at local club tournaments against older, more experienced competitors. Confident he could compete with the best local anglers, Corcoran moved on to fishing the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) and NBAA events.

The confidence continued to grow and culminated in his Forrest Wood Cup victory – a victory Corcoran hopes is just the next step toward a long and successful career.

2013 may have marked the year Corcoran broke onto professional bass fishing's national stage, but don't be surprised if you hear the name again in the not-so-distant future.

By Jeff Nedwick