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The Yamaha Marine Tournaments and Pro Staff team adopted a new angler recruitment strategy for the current season, an approach which continues to prove itself. Yamaha pro anglers kicked off the year with significant freshwater wins within the B.A.S.S. tournament series: FUJITA Kyoya won the first Elite Series event on Toledo Bend in Louisiana; Trey McKinney won the second Elite Series event on Lake Fork in Texas; Justin Hamner took home the Bassmaster Classic Championship on Grande Lake O’ The Cherokees in Oklahoma; and John Garrett won the fourth Elite Series event on Harris Chain of Lakes in Florida.

“We’re trying to sign tech-savvy anglers - competitors who understand the importance of the social side and embrace new technology,” said Susan Camp, Marketing Division Manager, Yamaha Marine Group. “This goes beyond wearing our logo and thanking Yamaha as a sponsor on the stage. This newer generation can communicate their support for our brand to thousands of followers and help us expand our presence in this market.“

“About a year ago, Pro Staff and Sponsorship Specialist Lucas King joined our team,” Camp said. “What Lucas brings to the table is an in-depth familiarity of the competitive fishing industry, an understanding of the sport, and a passion for following the professional fishing world. His knowledge helped sculpt our goals for the 2024 team, which resulted in the largest marine pro team expansion in Yamaha history.”

The act of signing a pro angler to the Yamaha team is not a short, easy task - it is a thoroughly vetted contract process aimed to benefit both the angler and Yamaha simultaneously. Performance on the water is often the catalyst that starts the process of aligning Yamaha’s brand to prospective anglers. It’s a key factor in an angler’s career longevity, providing Yamaha opportunities for promotion at the highest level, on the biggest stages. The recent resurgence of pro fishing among younger audiences means social media and technology will continue to be key factors in the strategy for building a successful pro team.

“We focus on multiple areas when we consider new angler partnerships,” said King. “From a business standpoint, we work with our OEM team to identify boat builders we want to support with marketing efforts in the competitive fishing tournament scene. Many of these anglers have impactful communication platforms that can help us achieve growth for independent boat builders in the freshwater market. From a brand standpoint, we rely on the Yamaha Marine Code of Ethics to align our brand with anglers on our team. Their level of professionalism, respect for our natural resources, ability to advocate for boating safety, respect amongst fellow competitors and tournament personnel all play heavily in our decisions to choose anglers who will positively represent the Yamaha brand.”

Using this approach, the Yamaha Tournaments and Pro Staff team signed 15 new anglers to the team for 2024. Yamaha sends tournament support staff to competitions across the country to help support anglers at as many tournaments as possible.

“We were good at this before we had Lucas, but now we’re even better at making these guys feel like they’re a part of a family. Lucas relates to them and really conveys our desire for them to represent the Yamaha brand,” continued Camp.

Treating anglers like family and making sure they know they are cared for led to the signing of 2024 Bassmaster Champion, Justin Hamner, just months before he took home the title.

Hamner’s close relationship with fellow Yamaha Pro Patrick Walters helped him gain a better understanding of the value of a Yamaha sponsorship.

“Yamaha is like a family. It’s been so good to get to know everybody,” said Hamner. “My favorite part by far is actually getting to work with the people I want to work with.”

Hamner meets criteria of greatness both on and off the water, embracing technology and embodying the Yamaha Marine Code of Ethics. However, it was the team’s way of treating anglers that led Hamner, and other new team members, to choose Yamaha.

Bob Starr, Yamaha Motor U.S.A. (YMUS)