Professional bass fishing lost one of its pioneers Sunday when Ricky Green of Hot Springs died in Houston, Texas, from complications following lung transplant surgery.
He was 69.
Green, a native of Arkadelphia, was inducted into the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame in 2005 and was a dominant competitor in the early years of the Bassmaster tournament trail.
The organization that evolved into BASS held its first tournament, the All-American, in June 1967 at Beaver Lake, and Green competed in the second All-American in 1968 at Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Texas. He finished in the top 10 in six of the first nine events he entered and qualified for the Bassmaster Classic 14 consecutive times.
Green finished second in the 1972 Bassmaster Classic at Percy Priest Reservoir in Tennessee. He also held the record for the largest bass caught in a Classic for nearly 30 years, an 8-pound, 9-ounce largemouth at the 1976 Classic at Lake Guntersville, Ala.
Dave Precht, a former editor of Bassmaster Magazine, said Green also was the first fisherman known to be paid a salary by a sponsor.
Larry Nixon, another bass fishing pioneer from Bee Branch who won the 1983 Classic, said Green was a great friend, a great angler and a great champion.
"I've been around Ricky ever since I started fishing tournaments," Nixon said Tuesday. "We fished side by side many a times during competition and never had a conflict. He won the very first tournament I ever fished. It was the Arkansas State Championship in 1967. I was about 16, and that was the first time I ever met him."
Nixon said that Green was at his best fishing in shallow water, and that he revolutionized the art of fishing with spinnerbaits. He was so respected, even in the twilight of career, that Terminator hired him in 1996 as a member of its pro staff, along with Jimmy Houston,to promote its groundbreaking line of titanium spinnerbaits.
"He taught many a bass fisherman how to fish a spinnerbait," Nixon said. "He went all over country doing seminars. One of the biggest things he did was promoting the sport.
"The bass fishing world lost a great ambassador."
Nixon said Green also played a major role in promoting Trilene fishing line, one of the top brands of fishing line.
"They couldn't give away a spool of Trilene," Nixon said. "Ricky and Jimmy Houston said, 'Let's make something of this Trilene.' They went from not being able to give it away to where it's now one of the biggest names in the business."
Green is survived by his wife Karen Cunningham Green; sons Ricky (Sherry) Green Jr. of Gurdon, Keith (Tami) Green of Arkadelphia and five grandchildren, Haley, Hannah, Heidi, McKinley and Madi, two great grandchildren, Marleigh and Boston; and one sister Marilyn (Jack) Coy of Hot Springs.
Other survivors include his stepchildren, Gay (Swan B. III) Moss of Texarkana, Texas, Chris (Nicole) Cunningham of Charlotte, N.C., and step-grandchildren, Burrus, Rivers, Caroline and Schafer.
Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at the First United Methodist Church in Hot Springs. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. today at Ruggles Wilcox Funeral Home in Arkadelphia. Internment will be at 2 p.m. at DeLamar Cemetery in Manning.
Pallbearers will be Jimmy Houston, Tom Mahoney, Ronnie Smith, Johnny Hoy, W.A. "Dub" Wingfield and Jack Coy.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Green's name to the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame. Checks should be made payable to Bass Fishing Hall of Fame and accompanied by a note stating "Ricky Green Memorial." Mail to Bass Fishing Hall of Fame c/o Donald Howell, 361 Summit Blvd., Suite 210, Birmingham, Ala., 35243.
Sports on 05/14/2014