Beginning Tournament Fishing Questions

[nofearengineer]

After getting overtaken by a bunch of USA Bassin boats at Patoka the other morning (who totally blew by me to all of my spots before I got to them...I should have started earlier or gotten a bigger motor ), I got to wondering about how fun it might be fishing tournaments.

Obviously, for me, it wouldn't be about money or glory, as boating one fish a day isn't going to earn me easy millions.

Last year I contacted my local bass fishing club "Evansville Bass Masters", and it turned out they didn't even fish around Evansville. For their own reasons, right or wrong...they pretty much fish only in Kentucky. I was really disappointed, as they seemed at least of a level of organization I that might be attainable by someone of my skill level. Anything more would be like trying to play one on one basketball with Lebron James. Pointless.

Anyway, at the risk of opening up a can of worms, does anyone have any advice on which organizations are better for a rank amateur to join; i.e. FLW, Bassmasters, USA Bassin, others?. I really don't have an opinion at this point, as I know next to nothing about the pro levels other than what I see on ESPN.

I get the impression that Bassmasters is the "Big Time", while FLW is more for the amateur? Correct me if I'm wrong.

It would be fun to be involved in a bit of competition, and the appeal of a rare big bass prize, and mostly a chance to learn from other people. I am assuming most of this learning would be by careful observation, and not freely given...I hear most tournament fishermen are pretty secretive. I also don't want to finance some ringer's boat with my entry fees if it's going to be that one-sided from a skill level standpoint.

I'm just sort of at that point where it sounds like fun, but I'm not sure if I would stand a chance of even making a respectable showing. I'm sure I get more a return on my time investment just learning from this site and its members.