AlphaTrade Sponsored Elite Pro - Billy Brewer
(Excerpted from BASS Reporter's Notebook, January 15, 2008, Bassmaster.com)
TWO-TIME PRO.
Before he became a Bassmaster Elite Series pro, Billy Brewer of Lorena, Texas, was a relief pitcher for several Major League Baseball teams.
Recruited out of college in 1990, his pro ball career spanned 10 years. He played in the majors for the Kansas City Royals, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees, and spent time in the minors with several MLB organizations. In 2000 he retired after his fifth elbow surgery.
"I didn't make the comeback like a lot of guys do, I just couldn't pitch as well," the lefty said.
He went to work in his family's retail furniture business, which allowed him to be at home more often with his wife, Shawna, and four children.
But he missed the competition and tried to fill the void with local bass tournaments.
"I saw fishing as my chance to compete again," he said. "I'm a very competitive person by nature. Baseball, pingpong, checkers - it doesn't matter what the game is, I want to win."
In late 2006, Brewer decided to leave the family business and become a full-time pro by joining the 2007 Bassmaster Central Open circuit. His 15th-place finish in the Central Open's 2007 season points fell short of an Elite invitation. But it was good enough for a ticket to the Bassmaster Elite Series WildCard event, which awarded 10 Elite berths. He finished in 12th.
A few days later, two pros in the top 10 opted out, and Brewer was in.
"You could say I was the WildCard wild card," he said. "At first I didn't feel like I truly earned it, but then decided it doesn't matter how you get there. Even if I was the 110th guy, at least I'm there."
And, once again, he's a rookie
"Do I think I'm ready? Probably not. It's my first year," he said. "But I turn 40 in April. I'm getting to the age where it's either: Try it, and if you can do it, do it; if you can't, then just fish for the heck of it.
"I'm sure I'm going to be a bundle of nerves in the first tournament. It will be like the first time I hit the mound in a big-league game. I never thought I was going to make it from the bullpen to the mound. I'm sure I'm going to feel the same from takeoff to my first fishing spot. But once I get there, it's going to be like I've been doing it my whole life, the same way I felt when I made that first trip to the mound."
So far, most of his time as an Elite pro has been spent behind a desk, but his legwork is paying off. He already has several sponsorship commitments, including one from Canadian-based AlphaTrade.com. The financial data and digital marketing company will wrap his BassCat/Mercury rig. His other sponsors include Kistler Rods, MotorGuide and Lovett & Associates, a Waco, Texas, financial planning and investments firm.
BORN TO COMPETE.
Besides Billy Brewer, several Bassmaster Elite Series anglers once competed - and were injured - in sports far removed from bass fishing.
Matt Sphar of Pavilion, N.Y., was a competitive downhill ski racer for 11 years. He now has permanent wire in his cheek, the result of a wipeout that smashed his cheekbone (even though he was wearing a full face helmet).
Glen DeLong of Bellville, Ohio, was a professional motocross racer for years, until he broke 19 bones.
Elite rookie Brian Clark of Haltom City, Texas, was a professional bull rider who had to give it up after a serious injury.
