Any fisherman worth his flipping stick knows that name. Now 93 and living in Ocala, Fla., Homer is truly a legend in this outdoor industry. For more than 35 years he was the angling editor for Sports Afield and then Outdoor Life magazine (he also writes a column for Bassmaster Magazine). A past president of the Outdoor Writers Association of America, he has received numerous accolades and awards and was inducted into the Professional Bass Fishing Hall of Fame in 2001.

Over the years, my friend Homer has hosted three national television shows, held four world records, authored seven books, starred in more than 50 fishing films (one of which won seven national awards), and served as a consultant to the tackle industry.         

His positions have included being the outdoors writer for the Springfield (Ark.) Daily News, as well as vice president of advertising and public relations, both for Heddon Lures and the Daisy BB Gun Company.

Miraculously I met Homer as I was struggling to get my very first tournament off the ground on Arkansas’ Beaver Lake in 1967. He was working for the nearby Springdale newspaper at the time we met. He really gave me the third-degree asking good questions.  Fortunately, he believed me and that gave me instant credibility.

Here’s how the man known nationwide as Uncle Homer recalls that meeting:

“Ray caught me sitting on a deadline and I really didn’t have the time to spend with him. But I took the time because I knew it was something that was very important in his lifetime. I decided to write the very first article on his tournament. And I told him, ‘There have been so many tournaments where there was cheating that they have a bad name. But if yours goes true down the line I’ll do an article on it and try to help a little bit.’

“We sat down and Ray asked me questions for two-and-a-half hours. I had to work that night until one o’clock in the morning to get my story out. But his questions were sincere. He realized what had happened at other tournaments and asked all kinds of questions to make sure that that couldn’t happen to him. So I knew he was sincere.”

Thanks to Homer’s help we drew 106 competitors from 13 states for that tournament, which led to far bigger and better things. And my friend was along for the ride the entire way as a sounding board, cheerleader and valued advisor.

Homer next came to the rescue with the very first Bassmaster Classic, which was held on Lake Mead in 1971.

Bob Cobb and I decided that we should have a championship fishing tournament with the top 25 fishermen and take them to a lake where they would fish for the title of best in the world. We hit on the idea of inviting the outdoor writers to observe the event so that they could find out that we were good guys and that our tournaments were well operated.  Just as important, they would have a first-hand view of what real tournament fishing was all about – skill, brains, physical endurance and sportsmanship.

The media was what we were missing in those critical early days. We needed people to know that first, BASS was a good organization and second, tournaments were a learning process – a laboratory of knowledge for people aspiring to learn how to catch bass more efficiently.

I ran the idea for the Classic by Homer Circle and he liked it. He thought it made good sense. I knew it was downhill from there because Homer was in those days especially, the best regarded guy in the business. There was a whole host of top-notch writers in his circle that became the core of the press we invited.

You have to understand that this was in the days before there were fishing pros and high-profile guides. Bass fishing was in the dark ages and the outdoor writers were the sole authorities on the sport. They enjoyed the largest and most loyal following of all among anglers. So we had to have their blessing…and their publicity.

Fishing fans, for all practical purposes, did not exist at the time either. We had nothing like the environment we do now or several years later when people worshipped Billy Dance and Roland Martin and Larry Nixon. All that evolved out of the Classic and the BASS Tournament Trail.

We had 32 writers that came to that first Classic. They got on a plane in Atlanta and flew across the country to Las Vegas without knowing where they were going until they were about 20,000 feet up in the sky. That was the first of 32 consecutive Classics that Homer would attend.  A Classic just wasn’t a Classic without Uncle Homer.  We never had a more fervent supporter.  It was personal for me.  He would say: 

“I always found that Ray Scott would keep his word and he would bust his butt to make every tournament come out A-1. He put everything he had into it.”

The bottom line is Homer Circle was an integral part of the success of BASS and bass tournaments because of his trust and faith in what I was doing.  Ultimately he affected the whole sport.  Thanks to him virtually every top writer of the time marched to the table. If Homer believed in it, it must be okay. People just didn’t think twice. He had that kind of following.

Subsequently most of the newspapers and the magazines believed in us, which tremendously helped BASS grow as an organization.

Really, there is no way I can measure Homer’s impact on me and the bass world.  He was one of those indispensable figures that, luckily for me, appeared at the right place and the right time with the right stuff.

The bass fishing world – and Ray Scott for sure – owe him a resounding debt of gratitude.  Thank you Uncle Homer.