From an interesting study in the journal Recreation, Parks, and Tourism in Public Health comparing the expenditures of tournament anglers in Wisconsin. More specifically, bass, salmon and walleye tournament anglers. During the summer of 2014, they surveyed participants in 15 tournaments for anglers' expenditures in nine categories: housing, grocery stores, restaurants, automobile transportation, boat operation, fishing equipment, boat launch fees, entrance or parking fees, and entertainment. Maybe not surprisingly since it was Wisconsin, but walleye anglers spent the most money (median, $1,562), followed by bass anglers (median, $555) and then salmon anglers (median, $371).
Housing accounted for both bass and walleye anglers' largest expenditure; salmon anglers' listed 'boat operation' as their largest expense. But while cash output varied between tournaments studied, researchers summarized, "It can be concluded that anglers participating in all fishing tournaments spend significant amounts of money."
There were several key factors that contributed the greatest to expenditures per angler. They were;
- High rates of non-local participation
- More time spent in the host community
- More time spent practice fishing
- Higher participation of anglers over the age of 36
- Long tournament durations
- Greater tournament sizes
- The generally positive reputation of the tournament.