Garmin names 21 to pro angler team
Jan 11th, 2017 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Jan 11th, 2017 at 12:00 AM
Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ:GRMN),announced the addition of 21 professional anglers to its 2017 marine pro team. The new additions will round out the Garmin team of 70 professional bass, walleye, and crappie fishermen who will be representing Garmin in tournament circuits across North America, including the B.A.S.S. Elite Series and FLW Tour.
“For the past several years, Garmin has continued to attract elite anglers from across the country,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales. “They’ve taken notice of the quality of our products, our innovative technology, and the reliability of our service in the field, and they’ve made the decision to switch to Garmin because of that proven track record. We couldn’t be prouder of the team representing Garmin in the inland fishing industry and we look forward to celebrating their many successes this year.”
The new Garmin pro anglers include: Jimmy Bell (Walleye); Luke Dunkin (FLW); Paul Elias (B.A.S.S.); Anthony Gagliardi (FLW); Jeff Kriet (B.A.S.S.); Bradley Hallman (FLW); Jamie Horton (FLW); Alton Jones Jr. (B.A.S.S.); Alton Jones Sr. (B.A.S.S.); Shane Lehew (FLW); Billy McCaghren (FLW); Justin McClelland (B.A.S.S.); Mark Menendez (B.A.S.S.); Chad Morgenthaler (B.A.S.S.); Brock Mosley (B.A.S.S.); David Mullins (B.A.S.S.); Keith Poche (B.A.S.S.); Darrel Robertson (FLW); Bryan Schmitt (FLW); Peter Thliveros (FLW); and Andrew Upshaw (FLW). The new anglers bring many impressive accolades to the Garmin team, including previous Bassmaster Classic wins by Alton Jones Sr. and Paul Elias.
They join the dozens of world-class professional fishermen already running Garmin electronics on the tournament trail, including Jason Christie (two-time Elite Series champion), Greg Hackney (2014 Bassmaster Angler of the Year), Chris Johnston (2016 FLW Rookie of the Year), Jason Lambert (2014 FLW Rookie of the Year), Scott Martin (2015 FLW Angler of the Year), Andy Morgan (three-time FLW Angler of the Year), bass fishing’s elder statesman and ambassador, Bill Dance, and many more. Meet the entire 2017 team here.
The 2017 pro team will use Garmin electronics on their boats and during tournaments, television shows, and in public appearances. They’ll be equipped with detailed lake maps and best-in-class electronics and technology, including the National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA®) award-winning GPSMAP 7600xsv series chartplotters ranging in size from eight- to 16-inches, and the Garmin Panoptix™ PS-21-TR all-seeing sonar. Garmin was the first to bring Panoptix sonar imaging to the water, giving anglers the ability to see all around their boat in real time.
Garmin was recently named Manufacturer of the Year for the second year in a row by the NMEA, an honor given to the most recognized marine electronics company for support of products in the field. Garmin’s portfolio includes some of the industry’s most sophisticated chartplotters and touchscreen multifunction displays, sonar technology, high-definition radar, autopilots, high-resolution mapping, sailing instrumentation, and other products and services that are known for innovation, reliability, and ease-of-use.