As you might imagine, most Bassmaster Classic press conferences involve a small room in the basement of an arena, filled with working media members all trying to get their slice of the story, along with a photo or video capturing a pro whose career and life changed forever just moments earlier.
However, new Classic champion Justin Hamner’s press conference on the bottom of floor of Tulsa’s BOK Center looked a little different, with nearly a dozen Yamaha marketing folks piling in to celebrate their new champ.
At one point, Hamner, who delivered down-to-earth, funny, and sometimes teary-eyed answers to questions, stopped and paid special recognition to Yamaha, stating how grateful he was to be a part of their team.
It was heartfelt and meaningful as the highly likable young pro from Tuscaloosa detailed how a lack of sponsorship not so long ago placed unthinkable stress on his fishing performance. After missing a paycheck in a tournament on the James River in Virginia, he was left searching under his truck seat to find spare coins to just buy a cheeseburger.
"The Yamaha Pro Team is always a great representation of the integrity of the Yamaha brand; Justin Hamner exemplifies all of those great qualities,” said Lucas King, Yamaha’s Senior Sponsorship & Pro Staff Specialist. “Aside from his abilities on the water, he's simply one of the good guys. We're proud he's a part of the Yamaha family and excited to celebrate his incredible Classic championship."
A perfect statement indeed to summarize all the goodness of a rags-to-riches Classic story, to compliment a $20,000 Yamaha Power Pay bonus for a young man who not long ago found himself looking under the seat of his tow vehicle for “cheeseburger money.”
For more about the Power Pay program, visit https://yamahapowerpay.com.
