First off let me say Hi and welcome to kysports.tv and this is my bio. No I won’t tell you I like long walks on the beach or my favorite ice cream,( Okay might let you in on that one), but I will tell you who I am, what I’ve done, and where I’m going. Just so you know that I am a normal person trying to make a dream come true.
My name is Matthew Mattingly, I am 22 years old and from Gravel Switch, Kentucky. I will graduate Lindsey Wilson College in May with two Bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Psychophysiology. I grew up in fishing the creeks and rivers of Marion County, playing sports and going to school just like everyone else. I’m just a little more obsessed with bass fishing than your normal 22 year old. My family will even tell you that I rather fish than eat.
I started fishing when I was 3, casting for and catching my own fish when I was 5. I was the kid who went to Wal-Mart to get the how to flipping and pitching videos instead of cartoons. I would wake early every Sunday morning to watch Kevin Van Dam become Dr. Crankenstein and catch fish after fish. It was almost inevitable that I would want to fish a tournament at some point. I started competing in local bass tournaments when I was 10 with my father and never looked back. After that first tournament I knew that I wanted to be a professional bass angler and still do! At age 16 I bumped up my game and started competing in the Bass Club Team tournaments with my father and a few guys from our club. We qualified for the World Championship in Wagoner, Oklahoma on Ft. Gibson Lake. We ended up finishing third to a team of men that have since had members turn professional and that really put things in perspective. Being 16 years old and a few fish away from winning $250,000 worth of boats is a surreal feeling. One that I will never forget, not only because it was an emotional roller coaster, but because it was with a group of guys that taught me how to fish.
From there I started fishing the Federation Nation tournaments and BFL tournaments to gain experience from older anglers and more experienced veterans and have done that ever since. This past year my college pulled together a bass fishing team and now in my senior year I compete at the Collegiate level along with every top Division 1 NCAA school that has a team. One of the highest achievements for me thus far is being a part of the 2014 Fenwick Earn Your Wings Program. This is where Fenwick rods and Pure Fishing recruit, sponsor and endorse 20 of the nation’s top college anglers giving them experience working along with a Fortune 500 company, valuable equipment they need, and lessons on how to chase their professional dreams. I have to say thus far it has been a fantastic experience.
Ultimately I want to go professional in the sport of bass fishing and that is my dream. I give free seminars, write articles, film television shows, podcasts and run media pages all to help my name get out there so that somewhere along the line I may have the opportunity to chase a dream and make it a reality. So sit back, relax and enjoy the ride as I keep you guys updated on the ups and downs of it all.
