UKMA have been approached by newly appointed Paul Rothwell from Willis Worms to inform our readers of a new scheme that Willis Worms are starting called the ABC (Angling Bait Club) – something that anglers are talking about on various online forums with some degree of excitement for a couple of weeks now.

Denzil Thorpe, the companies Chief Executive has restructured the company in order to enable the company to be a very dynamic and forward facing company.  He intends to expand upon its already successful online sales area with the launch of the new Angling Bait Club. Realising that anglers are amongst the hardest consumer to please, the company has said that the angler is the main priority and that the company is constantly striving to bring the angler good products at sensible prices. The company has said that as a manufacturer, one of the disappointing findings was that some anglers have struggled to obtain the company’s products in their area for a variety of reasons, and that this situation does not benefit the angler or the company, and is intending to fully address the matter.
This area has bought about the inception of the ABC (Angling Bait Club) to enable the angler to be able to obtain the company’s products and other related products at unprecedented prices compared to normal retail.

Managing Director Paul Rothwell provided UKMA the following statement;

“’The ABC’ (Angling Bait Club) is a membership only opportunity for participants to purchase angling baits and related products at unprecedented prices.  The fee paying membership will be available on an Annual Membership basis.

The Willis Worms Angling Bait Club (The ABC) is a fantastic, ground breaking opportunity for each and every adult angler.  This recession busting offer will save the average angler a lot of his hard earned cash and is an opportunity too good to miss.  Once an angler joins the ABC they will be able to buy bait direct from the manufacturer at unbelievably low prices.
 
For the angler that likes a bit of competition the ABC Members Only Coarse and Carp matches will set new limits to competition prizes in the UK.  With a planned 50k first prize and potential sponsorship deals for winners in the pipeline these matches will be open to every member who fancies giving it a go.  Who knows, new stars may be born.

The Willis Worms Angling Bait Club is an evolutionary (not revolutionary) idea designed to break the mould not the wallet.
 
Saving money is as easy as ABC."

The ABC introduces the odds and evens rule to its 50K match.

As you are aware the ABC Club Members Matches will be held on a number of venues, including rivers, canals and on some "wild card venues" not necessarily on the current match circuits.

The ABC set out to dramatically change Club fishing and although the 50K prize certainly does just that, we can now reveal our real eye opener.  This may take some people a while to get their heads around it, but once they do it will change Club match fishing forever in terms of fairness and excitement.

One of the biggest objections to competition matches of this sort was that Mr. Average didn't like the odds when faced with a Professional Superstar Angler that had drawn a flyer of a peg.  It seems obvious that given certain environmental conditions, combined with a swim with natural fish holding features that a good angler would be at a serious advantage.  The ABC wanted to change that reality and so Denzil Thorpe's evolutionary idea will be brought into play on the ABC Club Matches.

The ABC matches will eventually whittle down to two (2) eighty peg QUARTER FINAL QUALIFIERS.

These 2 quarter finals will be fished under the NEW odds and evens ABC Match Rule.  The eighty peg quarter final will have 40 sections.  Yes...forty sections!!  Each section winner will go through to the semi-final.  For those struggling with the concept, its a TWO MAN SECTION.  The ABC introduces the very exciting Odds and Evens rule.  This means the angler on peg 1 (odd) is fishing against the angler on peg 2 (even).  The angler on peg 3 is fishing against the angler on peg 4.  The angler on peg 5 is fishing against the angler on peg 6, the angler of peg 7 is fishing against the angler on peg 8.... etc.  Each angler only has one angler to beat and he/she is sat on virtually the same part of the water.  No more feeling down in the dumps if the wind is on the other bank or because the superstar angler is on a flyer of a peg.  You only have to beat the angler next to you and lets face it, if you have drawn a poor peg....chances are so has he or she.  You will be able to count their fish, see what tactics they are using, glance at their bait and they will not be out of view during the entire match.  It's as close to being a level playing field as can be. Having minimised some natural advantages such as wind direction etc. the anglers skill, knowledge and water craft elements etc. can truly be used to good effects.  From a competition viewpoint this is truly head-to-head stuff and very exciting as well as fair. 

We believe that this evolutionary odds and evens system makes thing a little more interesting.  It also ensures that people don't feel like packing up even before they have set up because of a poor peg draw. 

Each QUARTER FINAL will produce 40 winners to go into an eighty peg SEMI-FINAL.  The 80 peg semi-final will be under the same odds and even rule with the 40 section winners going into the FINAL.

We have made every effort to produce a competition that demonstrates great sporting equality but that allows anglers to demonstrate their skill.  The winner of this competition could be absolutely any ABC angler.  We hope that the match scene embraces this system and joins the ABC to be a part of a club dedicated to improving the profile of angling.

The ABC is a first of its kind scheme that will enable club match anglers the chance to fish for big money and also to make savings of up to 33% off bait and related products from the Willis Worms website that would negate the £50 annual fee that Willis Worms are making to be part of the scheme.

Willis Worms have now stated the way the events will operate. The ABC memberships are limited to a certain number purely for logistical and fiscal reasons, but the £50,000 prize is there, set aside, ready to be handed over to the winner of the final match, and not based on the maximum membership numbers being reached. This may mean that some late takers may fail to secure a place in the ABC club, so if you are "sitting on the fence", but want to fish, then it is recommended that anglers sign up now as the club is not purely for match anglers to take advantage of the savings etc. Memberships are selling fast, so if you want to fish - JOIN NOW before the chance passes.

The matches will be advertised on the Willis Worms ABC site and tickets for each match will be able to be purchased from the store front. Tickets will be allocated on a "first come, first served" basis, which is the fairest way. As an example, if a match has 80 pegs available, then only 80 pegs will be sold, with no waiting lists etc, that plague other events, and the website will show that all tickets for that particular match are sold out.

UKMA have also been told that the ABC club also have some 48 hour carp matches in the pipeline, which will be of interest to the competitive specimen angler.

Willis Worms have today (12 January 2010) released the following press release;

"Qualifier tickets for The Angling Bait Club will go on sale no later than the 28th February 2010.  This preliminary date may be brought forward if membership capacity is reached in the interim.  As expressed on the site, it is hoped that by the management of the club membership numbers, that each person that wishes to enter the competition, will be able to do so.  Although specific venues will not be able to be guaranteed to each individual angler, he/she will be able to purchase at least one ticket for the competition.  We will not be entering a draw scenario, random or otherwise.  Once ticket sales have been completed, ABC Membership will remain open to any Angler wishing to join the Angling Bait Club for the benefits of the 33% discount on baits and other club competitions that will be run throughout 2010. 

Any angler wishing to fish this competition is strongly advised to allow sufficient time for their membership card to arrive in the post as this number will be required upon registration/purchase of the tickets.  The system will not allow non-members to purchase tickets.  Each membership card (like any credit card) has a long number on the front.  This number (or part thereof) will be required for security reasons.  The card will also be required at all Angling Bait Club competitions prior to the draw.  No Card - No Draw.  Please see on site for comprehensive details.

During the next few weeks the remaining venues and dates will be posted on the site.  Some venues have not been confirmed due to unforeseen and unpredictable weather conditions and long term forecasts.  We now anticipate the first qualifier to be on the 4th April 2010 and not sooner as the company may have liked.

The Angling Bait Club is open to any angler and offers a 33% discount on baits and selected products.  In addition there will be other competitions open to the members during 2010.  These competitions may vary in disciplines and prize money.  It is without doubt a club worthy of considertion to any angler looking to save money on their online purchases and the ABC Match will also offer the largest payout of its kind in club match fishing."

UPDATE - 31 January 2010

The Angling Bait Club is pleased to announce the launch of a half-yearly membership to its scheme..  With effect from 01st March 2010 anglers will be able to purchase a six month membership to the Angling Bait Club which will allow them to purchase bait and selected products at the huge 33% discount.  The purchase of the half-yearly membership does not allow you to enter club matches however as such events are only open to full members (annual members) only.

The decision to allow a six month membership was based upon the response and feedback from a large number of pleasure anglers that did not fish all year round and had no interest in fishing match competitions.  In recognition of the occasional angler or the seasonal pleasure anglers we felt that a six month scheme would be of benefit.  After March 01st 2010 any angler may purchase a half membership to the ABC which will cover them for six months from the month/date of purchase.  The scheme will remain open after that date so an angler joining in June for example will retain membership until December etc.

The Angling Bait Club must stress that the main club match (50k) and other planned one-off matches to be held during 2010 are only open to FULL ABC members.  The website system will not allow non-members or Half-Members to purchase tickets for the event which go on sale on the 28th February 2010. 

During the winter break (imposed by the horrendous weather) the company was able to hold a number of additional meetings and push forward some of its plans.  The company has been re-named to The Angling Bait Club Limited to reflect its new direction and key objectives and the move to the new larger premises has been completed.  Remaining work on the bait processing equipment and new purpose built caster room will be completed during early February 2010.

We have been overwhelmed by the interest created by the ABC and are looking forward to meeting the challenges of the year ahead.  Current ABC members have enjoyed the discounts over the winter period and to be fair a number of anglers have already recovered their membership fee through their purchases, before the season even gets underway.  The scheme was designed to assist anglers, increase the profile of fishing and naturally boost our business as a result.  The ABC is beneficial to a host of people including retailers and other manufacturers.  The 50K match for instance has the ability to put 3200 anglers on the banks during the qualifiers alone.  These anglers from across all areas of the country will require bait, tackle and support and we are acutely aware that their purchases will not always be from the ABC. 
                               
Anglers wishing to fish the matches this year are reminded that tickets go on sale on the 28th February 2010 and that the competition is open to FULL members only on a first come, first served basis.  See the website for full details.

The ABC scheme is NOW LIVE and further information, including membership details and products that are available, can be found at http://www.willisworms.com/ ..

UKMA can only think that this is a positive step from a forward thinking company within the angling industry, and the £50 annual fee could easily and quickly be saved and profited on after a few purchases, meaning that it is a win/win situation for the angler whichever way it is looked at. Even for the non-competitive specimen angler, the savings that the £50 subscription could make when the companies Formula Carp products are purchased, will make it easier and cheaper for the angler to be able to use larger quantities of bait than they could have before, increasing their chances of landing that personal best fish that they have struggled to top. UKMA are waiting for the 8th December so that we can join up and start saving money ourselves!