Day: January 8, 2019

Categories
MLF BIG-5

FLW QUICKLY ROLES OUT THIS NEW FEATURE!

THLIVEROS, HOLLOWELL AND PANGRAC TO JOIN “FLW LIVE” AS ANALYSTS FOR 2019 FLW TOUR SEASON

January 8, 2019  by FLW Communications

MINNEAPOLIS – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) the world’s largest tournament organization, announced today three additions to the “FLW Live” coverage team for the 2019 FLW Tour season – veteran FLW Tour pros Peter Thliveros and Todd Hollowell, as well as internet talk show personality Matt Pangrac. Thliveros and Hollowell will step off the front of the boat and into the FLW Live broadcast studio as the primary color commentators for six of the seven regular-season FLW Tour events, with Pangrac, a familiar face to fans as co-host of the popular internet show “Bass Talk Live”, stepping in for the Grand Lake event. The three personalities will share the “FLW Live” desk with host Travis Moran, who has been a mainstay on the show since its inception in early 2017.

“We wanted to bring in pros with extensive knowledge of what it’s like to be competitive on the FLW Tour. Peter T. is a legendary angler who is loved by fans, and Todd Hollowell has had many successful years on the Tour and continues to fish,” said Peyote Perryman, Executive Producer of “FLW Live” and the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show. “Matt Pangrac is a younger guy who reports on the industry and competes at the Costa FLW Series level. All of our additions have some sort of experience to share with our audience.”

Known as ‘Peter T.’ among friends and fans, Thliveros first joined the FLW Tour in 1996, winning the coveted FLW Tour Angler of the Year (AOY) title the same year. Thliveros went on to enjoy a 16-year run on the FLW Tour, and celebrated a victory at Michigan’s Lake St. Clair in 1999. The Florida pro also racked up six FLW Cup appearances and nearly $620,000 in career earnings during his tenure.

“I’m looking forward to the whole experience. With the amount of water I’ve fished over the years, I’m familiar with the terminology and have gained enough knowledge about the places the anglers are going to compete at,” said Thliveros. “For 35 years I was the one occasionally getting interviewed. Now I’m going to be on the other end of it, and to me it’s just as exciting.”

Hollowell first fished the FLW Tour as a co-angler in 2009 before joining as a full-time professional in 2012. Since, Hollowell has earned two FLW Cup appearances, two top-10 finishes in Tour competition and more than $250,000 in career earnings.

“I think FLW is on the cutting-edge of bringing the fans what they want to see through FLW Live,” said Hollowell. “As an angler who has been competing on the Tour for seven years, it’s an awesome opportunity to sit in the studio and get an inside look at how some of the best anglers in the world break down these lakes. I also believe I’ll be able to help communicate some of the thoughts and feelings some of these anglers are experiencing. I’m very thankful to be a part of it.”

The 2019 season of “FLW Live” kicks off this weekend with live, on-the-water coverage on Saturday, Jan. 12 and Sunday, Jan. 13 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. CST at the FLW Tour at Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Polaris. The live on-the-water broadcast will air on days three and four of all FLW Tour regular-season events from the boats of the tournaments’ top pros, as well as all three days of the FLW Cup.  For additional coverage details, visit FLWFishing.com.

Categories
Major League Fishing - Bass Pro Tour/Cup Events

MAJOR LEAGUE FISHING IS 1ST TO ANNOUNCE THIS!

Major League Fishing reveals on-air talent for MLF NOW! live stream of the Bass Pro Tour

January 7, 2019
(Photo: Phoenix Moore)

TULSA, Okla. – Major League Fishing (MLF) today announced its five-person MLF NOW! talent lineup that will be calling the action during the program’s five hours of live-streaming broadcast on each competition day of the new MLF Bass Pro Tour that kicks off Jan. 29 in Florida.

For the play-by-play coverage, MLF veteran announcer Marty Stone will team with former pro angler JT Kenney, outdoors communicator Rob Newell, college sports announcer Chad McKee and social media personality Natalie Dillon.


The MLF NOW! live stream crew from left to right: on-the-water reporter Rob Newell, color analyst JT Kenney, analyst Marty Stone, social media reporter Natalie Dillon and play-by-play announcer Chad McKee. (Photo: Phoenix Moore)

“I really like the dynamics of this group we’ve assembled,” said Randy White, MLF vice president for broadcast production. “We wanted people who had different strengths and perspectives, and to that effect, we have a great mix of personalities and knowledge with Marty, JT, Rob, Chad and Natalie. Each in their own style will no doubt add to the entire on-the-water viewing experience for our live stream audience.”

Stone is a color analyst for General Tire Major League Fishing Cup events that air on the Outdoor Channel and CBS Sports, and has been since the television show’s debut in 2011. During his previous pro angling career, he garnered two wins among 20 Top 10s in B.A.S.S. and FLW events.

Kenney is a former MLF Select pro who earned 45 Top 10 finishes and more than $1.5 million throughout a 17-year career along the FLW tournament trail. He elected to join the MLF NOW! team instead of competing in the Bass Pro Tour series.

McKee is a veteran college basketball and football announcer for ESPNU, where he also hosted the network’s “This Week in the Big 12” studio show. He additionally hosts football programming on the University of Oklahoma’s Sooner Sports TV.

Newell is an outdoors communicator whose articles and photos have appeared in FLW and Bassmaster media outlets for years, and he was a regular on FLW Live. He’s also covered MLF events since the beginning and therefore has one of the most thorough understandings of the league’s format, rules, anglers and tournament-fishing strategies.

Dillon is a social media personality with a following for her “Nattie Up North” postings on YouTube and Instagram. She developed her passion for fishing and the outdoors at an early age in her home state of Minnesota.

MLF NOW! features 10 cameras/cameramen shooting on board competitors’ boats throughout all six rounds of each Bass Pro Tour event. MLF opted for the five-person talent crew instead of going with the smaller lineup used at Major League Fishing Cup and MLF Select events because of the extended real-time coverage.

“At first we looked at just a three-person set, but quickly realized that five live hours a day is a lot of time for a host, analyst and reporter to cover,” White said. “It made perfect sense to have a bigger team for MLF NOW! in order to capture the full excitement and keep things moving.”

The organization’s inaugural 80-angler event on Florida’s Kissimmee Chain of Lakes is Jan. 29 – Feb. 3. Each of the eight Bass Pro Tour events will produce roughly 40 hours of live-streamed content that can be followed on MajorLeagueFishing.com.

All Bass Pro Tour venues have been qualified during the site selection process to satisfy MLF’s stringent connectivity requirements because MLF NOW! live stream and SCORETRACKER© are critical parts throughout the competition days at every event.

Every Bass Pro Tour stop will also become a 2-hour television show to air on Discovery Channel in the fourth quarter of 2019, and then repeat on Sportsman Channel in first and second quarters 2020.