Match Fishing Pools

Back in the early 70’s before commercial fisheries, there was no peg fees but you may need to have joined a club of which there were many around the region. The main source of a decent match was the South West Winter League where the pools were 1/- (5p), 1/6 (7.5 p), 2/6 (12.5p), 5/- (25p) and 10/- (50p) all adding up to £1. The difference from nowadays is that the league took 15% levey on the pools for fees.Some said unfair as the pools were optional. The payout was based on percentages e.g. 50%, 25%, 15% and 10%. This proved to a big payday if you won a match I know that Mike Jones had two good years picking up £5,000 each year which back then £5,000 could buy you a detached house today equivalent of £400,000 so £800,000 equivalent over two years, can't do that nowadays. Where did it all go Mike? Because of all the variables with who went in which pool, working out the payout was a frightful affair especially BC (Before Calculators) I’m sure some guessing went on.  I have witnessed one organiser trying work the pools payout for a 240 peg match when three sheets to the wind very amusing but kept us in the Barge Inn for hours. No defaults back then. The pools were collected by the match organiser. I remember one match where I had custody of over £1,000 and found this off putting as to where to keep it whilst fishing – it stayed in my tackle box which I refused to leave, even for the call of nature. I remember someone losing the pools with us all searching fields for hours until dark and the occasional car break-ins. Once the Winter League changed from overall weight to section points a section pool was introduced, at the same time league fees were introduced with the pools being 100% paid out.

Along came commercial fishing, about 30 years ago for me. Some fisheries left the pools collection and payouts to one of the regulars, just collecting the peg fee at the end of the match. Many fisheries still work this way. The pools were normally a Main and Section. These pools varied from £10 to £15. Then some bright spark of an Angler decided that a “Super Pool” would help boost the payout and the match organiser or his Gimp would go around with a scrap of paper asking if anyone wanted to enter (why does Dave “The Drain” Lewis spring to mind). At no time was this intended or has ever been a WTA pool. The match organiser would at the start announce how much was collect in all the pools and how it would be paid out to prevent dissent later. The Super Pool (SP) has always been paid out as near as possible to mimic the main pools e.g. pay three in main then try and pay three in SP, but again depended on numbers entering the SP. A check must always be made to ensure the winners were in fact in the SP (I have known organisers accidentally pay a SP in error).

The important thing to remember the Pools belong to the anglers fishing and not the fishery management or owner so organisers should always gain consensus of participating anglers as to the pools and the payout of said pools.

Currently expect to pay £20 around the country. The pools are broken down in various ways with some being optional. Commercial fishery Managers recognise their livelihood depends on getting as many anglers peg fees as possible so the need to cater for all pockets and standards of angling and getting that important consensus. One elderly angler said to me recently at the Windmill Fishery that he looked on the pools as an expensive day ticket as he couldn’t compete with the better anglers, but felt it value for money because of the camaraderie, important to remember these anglers.

There is some thought that higher pools attract more and better anglers. In the South West this has been tested. Paul Greenwood then Fishery Manager at Viaduct increased the cost of the Wednesday Opens to £25. At around the same John Bradford aka The Gimp started a Thursday cost cutter at Viaduct which was intended for the over 55’s. Well the Wednesday Open attendances fell with the cost cutter attendances rising in popularity to 40 or more on a good day and remains popular today, the Gimp still moans that his match was shanghaied which is now open to all comers.

It has become traditional in the South West to have a Silver Fish payout which is paid out of the main pool and is usually paid by default. Some say this should not be defaulted; for example The Sedges Fishery pays out both if you win both. I can see both arguments, but side with default as I think this can benefit the lesser angler and spreads the money further. The Silver pool payout is usually about the same value as third place. The value can be more than a third spot payout but should never be the same as this avoids arguments as to who gets what when the Silvers winner is also third.

Viaduct has got its Thursday cost cutter right with peg fee plus £6 pools. This comes from having an owner who is a top match angler.

The total cost of pools should be £20 negating the need for cash change. Typically:

£6 peg fee

£8 main pool

£5 Optional Super Pool. This is not a Winner Take All and should mirror main pool payout – subject to numbers that enter)

£1 Golden peg Optional. I am not a great fan of this one for open matches because regulars can pay in for weeks and a one time attendee wins it. But if a fishery runs it I would make the change that the payout for winning the match from the designated peg is £100 maximum and if the Silvers is won from the peg instead then a maximum payout of £50 i.e. 50% of Golden peg money.

The main pools payout should be spread out with a typical 20 pegger where all anglers had paid all pools. Try and keep the highest payout to around £100 maximum.

Main Pool: £160 

1^st £50

2^nd £40

3^rd £30

Silvers:

1^st £25

2^nd £15

Super Pool: £100

1^st £40

2^nd £35

3^rd £25

The pools payout I quite favour is those created Colin Golding for the Over 55's at Huntstrete. Currently £4 peg fee and £8 pools with the payout equal for both Silvers and overall and each framers get £25. So on a typical pay-out the top four would each receive £25 as would the top four Silvers weights. I would like to see this be applied to other cost cutters. Simple to manage and administer.