George Cochran

George Cochran (1950—) When George Cochran began his fishing career as a child in Arkansas, he did it in a very quiet and unassuming fashion. His father wasn’t a fan of fishing

He maintained that demeanor which ultimately earned him the moniker of “Gentleman George” among his fishing peers as he blazed a trail to more than $2 million in bass tournament winnings.

Cochran’s passion for bass fishing blossomed when his family moved into the Lakewood subdivision of North Little Rock, where a neighbor began showing him the correct way to rig-up and fish different lures.

He became obsessed, so much that he struggled to keep up with his high school studies because of his time spent fishing and hunting. In fact, he missed so many days in high school during his senior year that any time the telephone rang at home, his mother always knew that it was the high school principal asking, “Where is he today? hunting or fishing?”

George went on to graduate high school in 1965 and earned a degree at Arkansas A&M College in 1971. He married the love of his life, Debbie before taking a job with a railroad company.

His bass fishing prowess and tournament skills grew throughout Arkansas where he won two state championships and gathered more than 50 different tournament titles.

It wasn’t until he began fishing the B.A.S.S. tournament trail that people really started to take notice. He placed 31st in the first Bassmaster tournament event he competed in, the 1979 Florida Invitational on the St. Johns River.

George went on to qualify for 21 Bassmaster Classics and capture seven Bassmaster tournament titles. He won the 1987 Bassmaster Classic on the Ohio River and the 1996 Classic on Lay Lake in Alabama. He competed in 244 Bassmaster events and earned money in 150 of them, logging 54 top 10 finishes.  His winnings grew to more than $1.1 million before retiring from Bassmaster events.

He added another $1 million from FLW Tour events and is one of only five anglers to win both the Forrest Wood Cup and Bassmaster Classic. He appeared in nine Cup events and fished 118 FLW sanctioned tournaments. He won two and had seven top 10 finishes.

He built his career as a shallow water fishing expert and was one of the best to ever fish professionally. He continues to fish and duck hunt around his Arkansas home.