One of the most cherished possessions of Florida’s Bakewell clan is a photo of 4-year-old Bobby Bakewell, who now, at 25, currently holds eighth place in the overall Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite Qualifier standings.
The color print shows the young Bakewell standing on the bow of a Ranger bass boat using both fists to jaw-grip an 8-pound, 2-ounce, largemouth he caught from Florida’s West Lake Tohopekaliga. The heavyweight inhaled a Johnson Silver Minnow as Bakewell cranked it back with a Zebco spincast reel.
What makes the photo a true family heirloom are the autographs of noted B.A.S.S. celebrities who have signed it. Among these names are Ray Scott, Rick Clunn, Bill Dance, Jimmy Houston and Kevin VanDam.
“My dad started getting the signatures when the Classic came to Toho and Kissimmee in 2006,” Bakewell said. “Growing up, my dad’s name was Bobby. As I got older, he transformed into Bob.”
His father had him fishing for panfish from the bank as soon as he could walk. He caught his first bass on a Heddon Tiny Torpedo at the age of 3.
At age 8 he was riding in his father’s boat during club tournaments. Two years later, he and his father began teaming up to compete in club events.
Bass fishing and baseball were Bakewell’s two passions. That changed at age 13 when he and his father hired a guide to take them fishing on a lake at Disney World. Once the guide saw how enthused the young Bakewell was about fishing, he told him about a junior bass fishing league put on by the Teen Sport Fishing Association.
Bakewell signed up the next week and put baseball in the rearview mirror. He competed in high school tours every year while attending Boone High School in Orlando, Fla. His partner, Jake Hutchison, now does media for Mud Hole Tackle.
“My dad stopped fishing tournaments to be my boat captain during high school,” Bakewell said. “I am eternally grateful to him for that. I don’t know how he was able to sit there and watch me fish all day.”
After Bakewell graduated from high school, his father resumed fishing bass tournaments. They still team up to fish Florida tournaments that take place near home.
In 2017 his friend Jeff Matthews signed up to fish the Eastern Division of the Bassmaster Opens. He invited Bakewell to travel with him and compete as a co-angler. The kicker was he would pay Bakewell’s entry fee.
It proved an offer that Bakewell couldn’t refuse. At the first tournament on the Kissimmee Chain, Bakewell finished in second place.
“After the Kissimmee tournament, Jeff told me I had won enough money to fund fishing as a co-angler for the rest of the year,” Bakewell said.
Over the next three years, Bakewell traveled with Matthews and fished as a co-angler in the Bassmaster Opens and another series. He stepped up to fishing as a boater when another tour’s southern division held all three of their tournaments close to home in Florida.
At the first of these events on the Kissimmee Chain, Bakewell claimed third place. He used his winnings to buy Power-Poles and Garmin LiveScope for his Skeeter. That boat continues to be his competition rig.
“That tournament showed me I could do this,” Bakewell said. “It was just a matter of learning how to fish different places across the country.”
After fishing two years as a boater, he wisely made a quantum leap to take on the Bassmaster Opens EQ series. Although he grew up casting to the bank and to shallow grass in Florida, he has embraced forward-facing sonar. He has become so capable with this technology that he stays busy as an electronics guide/instructor.
“Other than tournament winnings and help from sponsors, that’s my main source of income,” Bakewell said. “I go out in my customers’ boats, dial in whatever brand of graphs they’re using and show them how to get the best use out of their electronics.”
His ultimate goal, “without a doubt,” is to become a Bassmaster Elite Series pro.
Bakewell’s sponsors include Marine Fasteners, Bakewell Custom jigs (his father’s bait company), Yo-Zuri, AOK Networking, Veteran Elevator, Bruiser Baits, Spro, Gamakatsu and the 44 Tackle Company.
